Tag Archives: homophobia

Microsoft has settled the gay harassment lawsuit brought against it by ex-Lionhead developer Jamie Durrant, reports Pinknews.

That didn’t take too long did it?

Although actual settlement details are being kept under wraps, a Microsoft spokesperson said one of the stipulations of the deal was that Durrant would forfeit his position at Lionhead.

“We are pleased to have reached an amicable resolution to this matter with Mr Durrant. The terms of the settlement are confidential, but we can confirm that Mr. Durrant will not continue his employment at Lionhead as part of the agreement,” said the spokesperson.

“Microsoft has a longstanding commitment to diversity. We attract, recruit and respect diverse talent and we have included sexual orientation in our anti-discrimination policies for 20 years.

“Our efforts have been recognized by a wide range of groups, including the Human Rights Campaign Foundation in its 2009 Corporate Equality Index. We do not tolerate breaches of our code of business conduct and take any complaints extremely seriously.

“Throughout this process, those to whom Mr Durrant brought his concerns have taken them seriously and concrete actions have been taken to address them.

“Neither Mr Durrant’s sexual orientation nor the nature of his complaint had any bearing on the way it was handled.”

So there ya go.

Former Microsoft game user research head Bill Fulton – who previously worked on games like Shadrowrun for the company – reckons the general behaviour of many gamers online is “drastically reducing our sales”.

“Of all the ways I spend my free time, playing games online is the only one I would describe as ‘frequently barbaric’,” he said. “Insults of all kinds, including racist and homophobic slurs, are commonplace.

The women I know who play online avoid anything that would identify them as female – including voice communication – in order to avoid the unwanted, and frequently negative, attention. And that’s just how players are intentionally insulting – what some people do while playing online can also be aggravating.”

Not sure where he’s getting this from. All our online gaming involves pleasant chit-chat and flowers. More rather sobering quotes through the link.