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I REALLY WISH WE HAD THOUGHT OF THAT

by Hazed

A seller of computer games has revealed that it is now the legal owner of thousands of souls, signed away by online shoppers, thanks to a clause in the company's terms and conditions.

British retailer GameStation amended the contract which shoppers sign before they make online purchases earlier this month, adding the clause which grants the company the right to claim their soul. The clause states:

"By placing an order via this Web site on the first day of the fourth month of the year 2010 Anno Domini, you agree to grant Us a non transferable option to claim, for now and for ever more, your immortal soul. Should We wish to exercise this option, you agree to surrender your immortal soul, and any claim you may have on it, within 5 (five) working days of receiving written notification from gamesation.co.uk or one of its duly authorised minions."

The terms and conditions also state:

"We reserve the right to serve such notice in 6 (six) foot high letters of fire, however we can accept no liability for any loss or damage caused by such an act. If you a) do not believe you have an immortal soul, b) have already given it to another party, or c) do not wish to grant Us such a license, please click the link below to nullify this sub-clause and proceed with your transaction."

This was done as a joke on April Fool's Day but it also makes a serious point - that nobody ever reads the terms and conditions when they are shopping, and companies could put anything they want into those documents.

Not only did GameStation set this up as a gag, they also put in a mechanism to check who bothered to read the t&c. All shoppers were given a tick box option to opt out, and if they did they would have been rewarded with a voucher for five UK pounds. But very few did tick the box, so the company has concluded that as many as 88% of people just don't bother to read the t&c of web sites before they make a purchase.

Now before you go into a panic over the fact that a games company may now own your soul... GameStation has said it will not be enforcing their ownership rights.

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