User Created Content

I certainly agree that developers are beginning to view consumers as a potential resource and are generally supportive of user created content, as it tends to add value to their product for little to no cost themselves.

The creators of this additional content do it with no expectation of ever being reimbursed for their efforts, financially at least, and in this respect I fail to see how anyone can claim that they are an exploitable resource. There are professional positions for this field and there is an opportunity to be noticed and recruited if you produce exceptional work, as was the case with the Counter Strike team.

The issue becomes a little more clouded depending on the reliance of user created content. In most cases, a full retail release is made independent of user created content, although probably relying heavily on user input from previous titles or exposure through beta testing.

User content adds value to an existing retail product, therefore by proxy earning profit for the developer. Auran took it to a new level by including user content in a retail release which the author was not financially reimbursed for. Lego have been known to employ similar practices.

It is at this level of inclusion that the issue of exploitation starts to become relevant, when users are in fact treated like "defacto employees" of the development team, and although it is leaning towards morally questionable, I dismiss this notion outright.

It must have been like a dream for the people involved to be able to be so involved in what is obviously not only a hobby but a passion for them. They were not forced, and aside from being contracted to silence they had no tangible obligation to continue contributing, and had they chosen to do so there is every chance they would be serious candidates for a paid position.