Microsoft Eases Sexual Restrictions
By Joe Dodson, 3/9/2010 2:41 AMUntil recently, you couldn't identify yourself as any part of the LGBT acronym in your Xbox Live persona. But after "guidance" from the Gay and Lesbian Alliance, Microsoft has changed their terms of service.
In an open letter, Xbox Live General Manager Mark Whitten explained that the update "allow(s) our members to more freely express their race, nationality, religion and sexual orientation in Gamertags and profiles." He states that the previous restriction on homosexual identification had been used to prevent slurs and hateful expressions, but acknowledges that this made part of the community feel excluded from Xbox Live.
In 2009, a woman was banned for identifying herself as a lesbian in her profile, and before that, a man was banned for properly writing his name, Richard Gaywood.
