Piracy

[martymas]

hi team look what i found.

dont know many it affects .

but it is rampart in places like china

U.S.

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Microsoft's Profit Doubles as Compensation Costs Fall; Sales Growth Slows

Procter & Gamble Earnings Rise 13 Percent, Helped by Asian, European Units

AT&T Shares Jump on Optimism SBC Will Agree to Buy Company for $16 Billion

Microsoft To Begin Blocking Fake Windows Users From Downloads

Jan. 26 (Bloomberg) -- Microsoft Corp., the world's largest software maker, said it will fight piracy by requiring some customers to verify they have a legitimate copy of the Windows operating system in order to download some company programs.

Customers using Czech, Norwegian and Chinese versions of Windows won't be able to use a Microsoft download Web site next month unless they have a valid copy of Windows, said David Lazar, Director for Genuine Windows. Microsoft in February also will expand a voluntary program that rewards customers who verify their Windows by giving them free software and discounts.

Microsoft is trying to fight worldwide software piracy that cost the industry almost $29 billion in 2003, according to a study by the Business Software Alliance. The company hopes free software will convince customers of the value of real Windows, while not being able to download deters would-be pirates.

``This is really a carrot-and-stick approach,'' said Michael Cherry, an analyst at Kirkland, Washington-based market research firm Directions on Microsoft.

The voluntary program, which Microsoft began testing with its English Windows customers in September, consists of an offer on Microsoft's Download Center Web site for free and discounted software in exchange for checking if a user's Windows is real. The Web site performs the check.

Microsoft expanded the program, called Windows Genuine Advantage, in October to include Czech and Norwegian language versions, as well as simplified Chinese, used in the People's Republic of China, and traditional Chinese.

More Languages

As of Feb. 7, Genuine Advantage will be available in 25 languages. Participation will be voluntary for those downloading software, except for the Czech, Norwegian and simplified Chinese versions. Microsoft plans to make verification mandatory in more versions in the future, Lazar said.

Microsoft also will sell Windows at reduced prices to customers in Norway, the Czech Republic and China who claim to have purchased a fake version of Windows XP.

China has the highest software piracy rate in the world at 92 percent, according to the Business Software Alliance, a trade group funded by companies including Microsoft. Norway and the Czech Republic are among the 20 countries with the lowest piracy rates, at 32 percent and 40 percent, respectively.

The U.S. has the lowest piracy rate at 22 percent. Because the U.S. is the biggest PC market, its piracy cost the software industry $6.4 billion in 2003, or 70 percent more than China.

Around midyear, Microsoft plans to require all users of its Download Center and Microsoft's Windows Update site, which rolls out security fixes and additions to Windows, to check that their Windows is legitimate, Lazar said.

Customers will still be able to get security fixes and other ``critical'' updates without the check, he said. Less important updates, such as software to enable a new printer or digital camera to work with Windows, will require customers to verify their Windows, he said.

To contact the reporter on this story:

Dina Bass in Seattle at [email protected].

To contact the editor responsible for this story:

Emma Moody at emoody@bloomberg.

marty

[macmarauder]

HA HA. Nothing new. They've only had code in the M$ OS for piracy purposes for about 10 years now. Heck don't you remember them even thinking of putting program certificate checking into the OS. This is just another way of exploiting thier little Windows Extras.

Cause Bill Gate just doesn't have enough money.

well at least i don't have to deal with that problem. for now i'll stick to screwing with his plans to own Apple.

[marko_tomas13]

ya i cant really say im surprised i've been thinking this would come for a while now

[martymas]

yes i have some chinese friends who are here as students .

and microsoft is selling win 95 and 98 for the eqivelent of $10 dollars

and i thought they had given up on these two sys;s

my greed has become a respectable word now.

marty

[tictoc5150]

<sarcasm>Windows, being the rock solid operating system that it is, I'm sure won't have any bugs that might interfere with legit license holders PCs</sarcasm>

As a linux user (primarily anyway), I can't think of reason why someone would want to pirate that damn OS...what, they can't get linux in Asia?...lol

[jcl]

The only part of the plan that bothers me if the possibility that it could prevent people who don't have a valid copy of Windows for legitimate reasons (e.g., people who don't have Windows at all) from accessing interesting downloads. Hopefully it won't be extended to cover MSDN and MS Research.

Be interesting to see if this is permanent solution or a stopgap until Longhorn ships. The rights management infrastructure that was planned for Longhorn should be able perform the same function more or less transparently to the user.

[bearskin]

you think there's problems now just wait til Longhorn is released. you will have to call and ask MS every time you shut down or restart your computer. being mostly a lurker on this and other boards I can't understand why everyone has to jump on the MS bandwagon and install the latest and the greatest. from what I have seen on these boards WIN XP has some serious problems that will probably never be fixed. things are really gonna get interesting if Longhorn comes bundled with AOL as our only option. I like to place WIN XP and AOL in the same catagory..trash. so when Longhord is released let's all jump on board and let MS control other facets of our lives. I have already seen instances of people asking for the longhorn beta. thanks for letting me vent...............

[martymas]

im afraid i have to agree with bearskin.

but what alternative have the ordinary user have

win is easy to use and very user friendly .

my grand daughter who is ten can operate it .

that is why there is 60.000.000.

known users .

this has been an age old argument.

i have .

mandrake 10.

mandrake 9.1.

lycoris.

and now ubuntu

and cant use them because no where has linux given easy access to configuting .

the modem.

and with out being on line .

what the hell is the use of an os .

if you cant get on line.

dial up users.

have the biggest problem.

to be able to configure the modem.

it has to be done through the console to extract the driver .

but how many run of the mill users know these command.

i tried to get info from the linux forum on this board .

but i was treated as an ignorant.

get to know your os .

so i gave up.

that is why most people use win.

not every one is an expert.

i think only the exclusive few can use it .

i read the historey of linux and the developers started out with that idea

of making it exclusive.to be used by the experts.

and im afraid im no expert.

so i have to go back and use winxp weather i like it or not.

and there are millions like me .

marty

[macmarauder]

I can't understand why everyone has to jump on the MS bandwagon and install the latest and the greatest.

because it's shinny?

because it lessens the M$ mind control. "you must buy windows"

maybe because people are too scard of doing actual computing on thier computer?

i used to wander the same thing about why people even bothered with a PC instead of just buying a Mac in the old days, and now i think the same about Unix, Linux, and Mac. with these little beuties to choose from why both with windows at all? now you can just slap together a PC for $500, toss on a nice OS like these and WALA. you've got a pretty decent computer. you can even get a decent Mac for $500 now. why oh why mess the messy windows at all when you've got so many problems.

well i honestly don't know. i have yet to truley figure it out but i almost want to say because people don't know any better and they see it everywheres. since windows is easily the most widley used OS it must be good. Right?

sorry now i'm venting and ranting and raving. arrrrrggggg!

[jcl]

being mostly a lurker on this and other boards I can't understand why everyone has to jump on the MS bandwagon and install the latest and the greatest.

They don't have any choice. There's tremendous market pressure to use Microsoft products. Part of it is the result of the normal tendency of the market to adopt de facto standards, and part of it is the result Microsoft's skillful manipulation of the market.

things are really gonna get interesting if Longhorn comes bundled with AOL as our only option.

Never happen. MS isn't about to undermine MSN, especially to the benefit of AOL.

[macmarauder]

They don't have any choice.  There's tremendous market pressure to use Microsoft products.  Part of it is the result of the normal tendency of the market to adopt de facto standards, and part of it is the result Microsoft's skillful manipulation of the market.

Well put.

Never happen.  MS isn't about to undermine MSN, especially to the benefit of AOL

at least not until they have the mind control software fully working. we're still getting a couple of people coming to the light side.

ok it's more like the gey side. Mac and Oper Source is just another darkside. we just have better looking mind control.

[bearskin]

well I see nothing wrong with using win98 or winnt 4.0 I have to admit one thing...win nt 4.0 is hard to crash. it almost has to be deliberate. I think you would be surprised by the number of people still using win 98.

[hitest]

at least not until they have the mind control software fully working. we're still getting a couple of people coming to the light side. wink.gif

ok it's more like the gey side. Mac and Oper Source is just another darkside. laugh.gif we just have better looking mind control. tongue.gif

LOL

Thanks, man! Your posts kill me! I like being on the dark side as long as I'm not gey:-) I like open source, it works for me. Many people use M$ because they don't know of a good alternative. I sometimes casually mention the word "Linux" to co-workers only to have their eyes glass over and then they slip into a M$ induced coma. Most people like the comfort of mainstream computing.

[macmarauder]

their eyes glass over and then they slip into a M$ induced coma

LOL

open source programers say that everytime someone purchases a copy of windows and angel gets junkmail.