With the recent announcement about changes to the EULA (and in particular, how they will affect multiplayer servers), many questions have arisen. Mojang has looked over numerous discussions by you, the community, and has released a new Q&A announcement, to address some of the most frequently-asked questions to come from the announcement. More many come in the future, but for now, check out these clarifying answers, direct from Mojang!
Quote fromAre any servers exempt to the EULA?
No. It affects all servers and players equally.
Do server hosts have a grace period to implement changes to their servers?
Yes. All servers must comply with the EULA by August 1st, 2014.
Can I charge for access to my server?
Yes. How players join a server is up to you. Single entrance fees or subscriptions are both allowed.
How often am I allowed to charge players to access my server?
You can charge players as regularly as you like. You can even charge for timed access if you think it’s the best way to monetise your server.
What counts as a server? Are proxies one big server, or lots of smaller ones?
A server is something a user connects to with their client. The user is on a different server when they leave the one they are connected to and manually join another (in the multiplayer screen). Virtual servers and proxies make no difference here, to the client it’s the same server.
Can I charge access to a specific part of my server, such as a minigame or world?
No, you cannot charge for any part of a server other than the initial access. Once on a server, all players must have the same gameplay privileges. You may make a different server for the user to connect to which features “premium” areas, and charge for access to that server instead, but the benefits cannot carry over to your other servers.
So can I charge for my minigames or mods?
Yes, so long as all players on your server have access to the features.
Can I offer a limited trial period for all users?
Yes. So long as both trial and paying users have access to the same gameplay features during the trial, we’re cool with it.
Can I give paying users priority access to my server?
Yes, but you cannot restrict gameplay elements to specific users.
Does the EULA still apply for access to user-created mods?
Yes. It doesn’t make a difference who made the mods, or how they were implemented onto your server. All mods require Minecraft to run. You are not allowed to charge for Minecraft features which affect gameplay.
What do you mean by “hard currency” compared to “soft currency”?
Hard currency is real money or anything that can be converted into real money, including Bitcoins. Soft currency is available in-game only, and has no real-world value. The restriction in the EULA only apply to hard currency; you may unlock anything with soft currency.
Can I sell “kits” for hard currency if I provide a balanced alternative for non-paying users?
If the “kits” contain gameplay-affecting features they are not allowed. Gameplay balance is not relevant to the EULA. If the items included in the kit are purely cosmetic, you can charge real money/hard currency.
My server features a currency that you can earn through gameplay, but which can also be bought for hard currency. Is that OK?
Soft currencies that are solely earned in-game are fine, but you cannot sell in-game currency for hard currency. Hybrid/dual currency systems are not allowed.
Can I sell boosters, which provide faster gold gain, XP, or other in-game resources for hard currency?
No – boosters, item generators, and all other features that affect gameplay are not allowed.
So how do I make money from cosmetic items?
You can sell cosmetic items for hard currency directly or allow players to fund an “account” specific to your server. It’s up to the host of the server to decide how this works. Remember that capes are the exception to this rule – you are not allowed to give them away or sell them.
Can I sell ranks on my server?
Yes. Ranks are allowed so long as any perks gained are cosmetic. Coloured names, prefixes, special hats etc. are fine.
Can users purchase something that affects the entire server, such as a temporary XP boost?
Yes, but everyone who can access the server must be able to use the feature, regardless of whether they purchased it or not.
Can I award all players with a gameplay feature if I reach a donation goal within a time period?
Yes, so long as all players receive the benefit regardless of who donated then it’s OK.
Can I charge for access to server commands?
Yes, as long as their effects are purely cosmetic. Commands that affect gameplay, such as a command to fly, cannot be sold for hard currency.
If all players get access to a feature such as a plot of land, can I sell access to multiple plots for hard currency?
No – that would be a gameplay affecting change, so it’s not allowed. All player who access your server must have the same gameplay features offered to them. The same rule applies to items, such as potions.
How should servers deal with users who have already spent hard currency on features that affect gameplay?
Users may keep the perks they have paid for, on the condition that the same perks are available to other players on the server (directly, or purchasable using soft currency). It’s up to the server host to decide how to compensate users for previous transactions.
Do you have a question you would like answered about the EULA? Let's discuss it in the comments!
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EXTREMELY FRIENDLY REMINDER OF FRIENDLINESS AND HAPPY-JOY FEELINGS
Please keep all discussion as civil as possible! This is a very hot topic, and we understand that there are very strong feelings about the EULA. That's okay! Open discussion is a GOOD thing! However, please avoid the following:
- Name-calling
- Encouraging (or claiming to engage in) EULA violations
No worries, didn't mean to get confrontational with you. It's hard to keep track of all of the parallel conversations going on in this thread. Getting too used to trying to translate the posts from people trying to find ways to skirt the EULA.
and in minigames and in skyblock etc.
Indeed.
So you see p2w as necessary, as in you don't think compromise is possible? Things should just be the way they were before?
I'm an admin on a vanilla survival hard server... we'd be number one in votes on the server list we were on 'cause our players loved us. Of course, players come and go... life, etc. The owner started to give out fish whenever someone donated because the list of donors showed up on the vote site. We eventually found a way to keep it vanilla but automagically let the server know who voted... so we auto gave raw fish, and had congrats and thanks and yayyy messages... and people loved it. XD
Awesome reward 'cause starving to death was a popular passtime.
But now... if someone doesn't get fish, they cry fowl. It's expected.
So that's very easy to see "reward" gone "purchase" over time... happened to an old kid's forum I used to play on, too. "Thank You Letters" / "Donation Items" became "Monthly Collectibles"
But in blackjack everyone is playing against the dealer, what you get in your hand is irrelevant to everyone else (unless they can count cards.) So kind of a bad analogy.
That's not what I heard. He is anti P2W, but he's saying that we disagree where the line between P2W and fair is.
There is too much at stake, and so those whom are driven will find ways to strive in the new system AND keep their players happy. We are Minecrafters. We are creators. There's always a solution around the corner -- we have the minds to make that happen.
ALL the servers? Doubt that'll fly.
But a way to report abuse in general would be good.
You have a better chance than the next guy of beating the house, hence a better chance than the next guy of winning money. Not really a bad analogy at all. But if you like, we can call it Poker instead to make you feel better.
But you don't deny it's a tangible advantage?
Why should I? They've just put their hard-earned money into a server that may implode next week for all they know. They should get something TANGIBLE for it.
We need a way to fund a server... do you not get it, not even the gold or shiniest towers can make a player donate if they cannot have it... We will not be able to adapt if we cannot get support from our players....
Well the only way to easily report a server on whatever, is to have some sort of list with servers that are active and can be reported from in the first place. It is not like websites can link a report button to every ip that comes along. so the easiest thing to do is log all servers the way steam does and keep track of it all.
YES EXACTLY!
Why should they be entitled to get an advantage among other players just because they donated? *cough* or maybe gave money with the intention to gain something other than helping the server *cough*
I mean cosmetics are tangible but they aren't advantageous.
nobody donates for cosmetics anymore. that is the point.
No. As I've said, I believe that much of the EULA is a good thing. Specifically, what I want changed is: