Discussion for the use of the “Sight API” - Companion App

[Minimoooo]

I think the reasoning is that it presents itself as an unfair advantage to those unaware of the apps and other third party services. I didn't know this app existed and would have been at a disadvantage. I don't plan to use the app either and it would only make sense that the team at SE bans accounts relating to this. The MB is already very competitive and even more-so after the servers being sewn together. It may be an unpopular opinion here but I agree with SE and their mindset of disallowing third party tools / parsers for an advantage that otherwise wouldn't be available in-game. It's unfair for the vast majority of players and is clearly stated in their ToS. A good compromise could be to be able to see market prices across different servers without having to teleport to them or merge all MB in servers in a datacenter together. I'm not saying this is what I'd like to see, just what seems to be viable options for those really wanting something like it.

So lets be clear:
1. There are many sites and services (eg Discord bots) that provide market information. Not 1 App.
2. There is an official app that provides the information, this app is made by SE. It is called "Companion App". Anyone can use this, they can even Buy/Sell using it.

I agree with SE and their mindset of disallowing third party tools / parsers for an advantage that otherwise wouldn't be available in-game.

Then why does an official app exist? The Companion App is not in-game. There is no difference between loading up companion app vs using a discord bot or looking at a website. Also does this mean looking at crafting guides gives you an unfair advantage? It isn't in-game after all. Also do you use Database websites? They provide information which isn't in-game (damage formulas) and Datamining is against the TOS so we should ban those too?

Your argument kind of falls apart because SE provide an official means to view market information outside the game, but right now they're banning accounts that do now view that information directly with the app. By your logic, because the Companion App is not in-game, and those with a phone can use it, we should ban people for using the companion app too...

Are you happy with 1% of people having an advantage vs 100% of people? The more SE ban these sites, the more it pushes the functionality to the people who have the technical knowledge and keep it private. Those people will have an extreme advantage vs everyone else.

Your "unawareness" is not an excuse, you may be unaware of a lot of things (good crafting methods, fast EXP methods, theories on when to sell items during patches), that is no reason to ban sites and services that provide you with knowledge.