[MUD-Dev] FW: [uodevlist] OT - Lawsuit on Lum's

[Dave Rickey]

-----Original Message-----
From: Travis Nixon <tnixon at avalanchesoftware.com>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Dave Rickey <daver at mythicgames.com>
>
>>    According to my math, a win for the plaintiffs (assuming they get
>>class-action status), *without* counting in legal expenses and any
>>additional punitive damages that might be awarded, will mean that overall
>UO
>>*lost* money for EA, even if they are only awarded based on minimum wage.
>>They get the full amount they are asking for, the judgement will exceed
the
>>*entire* revenue the game has ever generated.
>
>
>Er, sorry for being such a bonehead, but what is your math?  I had a look
at
>the legal stuff and couldn't find references to any 'amount they are asking
>for'.
>
>Just curious.  : )
>
    OSI claimed 4000 participants in the counselor programs before the perk
removals, and required 6 hours a week from each.  Figure an average of 2000
counselors, times 6 hours, times 52 weeks, times 3 years, times 5.25
(minimum wage for that period) equals $9,828,000.  The Federal Labor
Standards Act (which is what the plaintiffs are suing under at a federal
level) requires an automatic doubling of that amount in any judgement,
$19,656,000.  OSI doesn't publicize profitability figures for UO, but a
rough estimate based on subscriber numbers averaging 120,000 for 3 years
says the *total* revenue has been about $40,000,000.  Raph says only about
half of that is operating profit, that fits with what I know, and this
(conservative) estimate of damages would just about wipe out *all* profit
the game has ever generated.  That doesn't count legal fees, and if OSI
loses they'd have to pay *both* sets of lawyers plus court costs.

    But the plaintiffs are suing for *three* times minimum wage, for hours
actually worked, plus overtime (and many, perhaps most, of these people
"worked" considerably more than the minimum required hours).  That would
mean 5-10 times as much total damages as the minimal estimate I made above,
far more than the game has ever generated in revenue.

    EQ and AC aren't quite as exposed, they've never had as many volunteers
in proportion to their player base as UO, but it's still not chump change.

--Dave Rickey




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