This deal, whaterever it is, was probably forced onto SOE by upper Sony management. That said, the consequences affect the US as well as the UK and Europe. Splitpaw has lost a ton of folks from the US and other countries as many have moved their charcters to a US server in hopes that they can avoid losing them altogether or be forced into some convoluted financial deal with an unwanted third party. The silence we are getting probably is likely due to legal considerations, which does not bode well for anyone.