MS plays down modded console bans

Microsoft has claimed that the number of Xbox Live Arcade users banned for accessing the service using modded consoles is less than previously thought.

According to Xbox Live general manager Marc Whitten, the number of users ejected from the online service is not one million as originally reported.

"These were people that were pirating software. We try to keep sanctity of life from a safety and anti-cheating perspective and we protect our partners. We didn't release the [banned] number," he told VenturaBeat.

"I cannot explain to you why people would think it was a million people. It wasn't a million people. Check the veracity of that claim. It was one news source," he continued.

"I think we do a really good job understanding what people are doing on the system. That applies to intellectual property [piracy] and how we treat the community in terms of harassment. We are committed to making it better and better."

The original figure came from InformationWeek, which reported that one million XBLA users had been kicked from the service. It did not cite a source for its information.