Why is Office 97, etc. so cheap?
How is it possible for Microsoft to just give away programs such as
windows 98, and office 2000. I'm confused as to why they would do this.
rmorrison (22) on 02/02/99 at 11:55:33 PST
slawson1 --Microsoft rarely "gives" software away. Much of what you
see offered here is, in my opinion, grey market material, where
Microsoft has made a deal with hardware vendors to bundle this material
with a new machine. The buyers of these machines either had different
software and didn't want this bundle, which is then sold here, or they
have purchased multiple machines with copies on each and have decided to
unload "extra" copies of the software. This practice is against
Microsoft's license agreement, but the legality of selling that software
hasn't been challenged in court to my knowledge. It may turn out fine,
or Microsoft may demand their "pound of flesh" at some later date. Be
aware that the software may be anywhere from completely legitimate to
pirated copies. Find out from the seller before you buy!
captain-kirk (148) on 02/02/99 at 11:56:24 PST
slawson: where are they giving them out? you can rest assured they
aren't giving away MILLIONS of copies. However, they do "give away"
copies to people who will beta test new software, for example (after
all, it costs microsoft about $5 to send them a CD, and they get
hundreds of dollars of free testing in return..). I'm not sure who else
they give them away free to...
trust-no1 (32) on 02/02/99 at 13:22:16 PST
I noticed that there are a handful of people selling MS-Office 97 on
Ebay for $30 or less. Shrink-wrapped version with no manual. I ordered
a copy and noticed that it did not have the EULA or COA enclosed. Called
MS piracy hotline - 1-800-RU-LEGIT. According to MS, it's illegal to
sell such software. Opinions? Please post to this board.
captain-kirk (148) on 02/02/99 at 13:41:16 PST
trust: well, the "right" answer is whatever contractual terms bound the
seller on eBay when he acquired the software determine whether they are
selling the software legally or not. Chances are very very good that any
Microsoft product without a COA and EULA are being sold improperly, but
to tell for sure you'd have to trace back the seller's copies to his
supplier, and so on, all the way back to Microsoft (or to where the
first illegal sale took place). Now, if Microsoft has a blanket policy
that all software is always supplied with an EULA/COA, and these don't
have them, then someone, somewhere, has violated their license agreement
by selling the copies without them.
kquad4 (72) on 02/02/99 at 15:20:48 PST
I think the OEM and easy fulfillment copies question should be listed
as a FAQ. The Easy Fulfillment copies are provided without individual
license to companies that have a license for multiple users. They have
one paper that provides for X number of copies. Microsoft provides
several CDs, but in some cases the company only uses one (for there
software installer or over a network) and the other copies get sold very
cheap since the company gets them for a very low price if any. The
company is actually using the license, but does not need the ind. CDs.
OEM copies are something else entirely. OEM authorized people get them
cheaply to sell with hardware or bundle with other software (depending
on the company and ind. piece of software). There are also NFR copies,
which entail copies that are sold cheaply to companies to try and also
to demo, but the company -usually software reseller - is not allowed to
sell them or even give them away in Microsoft's case. Then you also have
software that has just parted ways with its piece of paper license,
like thrown away over time.
..back..