You're new to Ebay...you log on, do a search, and discover that, wonder of wonders, that Microsoft OFFICE software that you were just about to pay $300 for at COMPUSHACK is available right here at Ebay for $30! Lo and behold, not just one lucky find, but multiple vendors, day after day, selling it.

Your first thought: "Yee Ha, I've just saved myself a bundle of money! Now I can buy myself that DVD player I've always wanted". A few minutes later, your second thought: "Maybe I should buy 10 of them, and set up a table right outside of COMPUSHACK selling them for $150. I'll retire at age 30..."

Well, before you quit your day job, you may want to read on...

First, a digression in law. No, we're not lawyers, so don't take what we say here as 100% accurate (of course, when you're talking law, who is?). However, there are some general principles you should be aware of.

First, unlike so-called "personal property", such as a TV, you technically don't *purchase* software. In other words, when you go to Sears and buy a TV, you give them the money, and they hand you a TV. >From that moment on, "title" to that TV has passed to you, and you are essentially free to do with it what you want - watch it, blow it up, plant flowers in it, etc.

However, software is different. You actually "license" it from the software company. The difference is that you technically don't own the actual software, you are allowed to use it. And there will be a number of restrictions on that use, such as no copying the code, etc. There will often be restrictions on your ability to "sell" the software as well.

As a practical matter, what that means is that, just because you have a CD in your hot little hands, doesn't mean you can do with it what you want. Unlike a TV set, where possession of the physical box is everything, actually having the CD itself is almost an afterthought. What you are really paying for is the license. In fact, most companies will sell you a license alone - no real CD. The idea being that it costs extra money to make and distribute CDs and manuals, so they will sell you the license for a lower cost, and then you find a copy of the CD. For large companies that may buy, oh, a thousand copies of software, this is actually the norm. No company actually wants to install some software a thousand times on a thousand PCs, they will more likely install it once on their server, and then use the server thereafter.

We should note that the law concerning software, licenses, etc., can be both confusing and changing over time.

Now that you're armed with that background, we can proceed.

There are a number of possible sources of low-cost software. Some are very legitimate, others are completely reprehensible, and the rest fall something in the middle of this confusing issue.

There is no doubt that some of the cheap software comes from illegal copies. The machines to make CDROMS used to be rare and expensive, but now you can get a CD-R burner for a couple of hundred dollars, so anyone can now make illegal, "pirated" copies of software, sad to say. (Note: making a backup copy of a CD for YOURSELF is, of course, very legal, and even recommended. CDs are tough, but certainly not indestructible, especially if you have, say, 5 kids at home!)

Another practice that is extremely dubious is selling CDs separate from the licenses. In other words, as in the example above, some company needs a thousand licenses (they have a thousand users), but they only want, say, 50 actual copies of the CDs to have around. Depending on how many physical CDS they actually order, there will probably be CDs just sitting around somewhere, not in use (since the software has been loaded onto a network server). These CDs often spontaneously develop legs and walk home with some employee. Selling these copies is a no-no, since they were bought for use by the corporation (who has the 1000 actual licenses). Again, possession of the physical CD is meaningless, and these would be "illegal" copies if sold. Note that the term "fulfillment copy" is basically the same concept here - a copy of a CD sent to a company to fulfill an order for a certain program.

On the other end of the spectrum, when software gets obsolete (either due to a new version or just plain old age), they will be "dumped" for a few bucks each by distributors, who figure a few bucks is better than none at all. Since Ebay is a fairly inexpensive venue to sell in, low-overhead sellers can still make a fair profit even at very low prices. Don't expect any support from them, and probably no manuals, but for low-cost software, this is hard to beat.

Falling somewhere in the grey zone is the case of a person selling their own software. Either they don't use it anymore, or it came bundled with a new computer and they don't want it, or whatever. Usually these kinds of sellers have only one copy of the software. How "legal" this practice is can be a VERY confusing issue, depending on the exact license, how the user received the software, whether they ever installed it (a lot of the licenses are now on the CD itself, so if you never install the software you can't have seen the license, so it would be hard for the company to claim you violated the terms of the license...). Generally, most people at Ebay seem reasonably comfortable with incidental sales of personal software. Some kinds of sales seem more "iffy" than others, however, such as selling "academic" versions of software that were acquired at a deep discount, and were supposed to be used for educational purposes only.

One pragmatic note: it is unlikely that a buyer on Ebay will ever get in much trouble from buying illegal software, as long as it was clear they were acting in reasonable faith. Now, if the listing says "pirated software" and you go ahead and buy 10 copies to resell, don't be surprised if the police come knocking at your door...

A couple of acronyms to define:
1. EULA - End User License Agreement. The all-important "document" that actually proves that you are allowed to run this software. For some programs, this is a file on the CD. Other software (lower end) this license may be almost hidden or non-existent.

2. COA - Certificate of Authenticity. Microsoft issues a hologram with its CDs, to try and combat physical CD duplication. All this means is that Microsoft made the CD, not that you have approval (i.e., a license) to use it.

Note of course that both of these items can be forged...

So where does registration fit into all of this? Its basically a side issue, in that the presence or absence of registration (and support by the software company) varies somewhat by the kind of software, how it was sold, etc. Even if it is missing, you can usually register software (assuming it was legal and came with support); conversely, the fact that you have a registration card doesn't prove that the company will recognize you as a valid user deserving of support.

In summary, where does that leave us? First, by the way, a lot of low-end software actually does consist of just the CD (no COA, no separate license agreement or registration, etc), in order to save costs. These items may be stored soft-copy on the CD itself. However, these low-end copies are less likely to have illegal copies made or sold, so chances are good that the item for sale on Ebay is legitimate.

It's software from premier companies like Adobe and Microsoft that is likely to be pirated. Make sure for expensive software that it comes with a license. Registration and COA would be a bonus, but not really required (and may not even exist for a lot of software).

If you are concerned, ask questions of the seller, until you are satisfied...

In most "types" of software, the actual program itself is usually the same. What differentiates these kinds of software is what accompanies the actual program.

The most expensive software "type" would be Retail. This is what you get when you buy software from a retail store, like Compusa. This software comes in a nice shiny cardboard box, with lots of air, and some colorful pictures on the box. You typically get full support/registration priviledges, and often a printed manual. If you don't like the software, or it won't run on your machine, you'll get the most flexible return/exchange priviledges.

Below that, you will find "jewel case" software, and "value priced" software. This software will be lower priced, and you often won't get the box, printed manual, and support. This is often how older software is sold - when software is first introduced, it is sold in retail form, since this generates the highest margins. However, retail stores can't afford low-priced software that takes up a lot of shelf space in those air-filled boxes, so they will sell this lower-priced software only in smaller form.

Similar to the category above is "OEM" software. OEM ("Original equipment manufacturer", in the English) means that the software company that wrote the program has sold, at a substantially reduced price, their software to another company. This second company will then include this software with their own products. For example, video card manufacturers will often include several games that showcase their card. Again, don't expect a box or manual, and support is often limited. Specifically for Microsoft products, OEM versions definitely get NO support directly from Microsoft (well, you can get support, you just have to pay for it yourself).

The term "bundled" software is usually the same as OEM - the software is "bundled" with some related hardware item.

Similarly, "NFRS" (Not For Retail Sale) software is typically the same as OEM/Bundled.

Academic Versions - versions of software that are sold to schools specifically in support of their classes. This software can be exactly the same as regular software, except the prices are a lot lower. The lower prices are due both to supply and demand (many students being dirt-poor), plus the software companies realize if they can hook you on their software in college, you'll keep using them later (and buying them at retail prices). (note: any resemblence to marketing policies of tobacco companies is strictly coincidence). Academic versions may be restricted in some fashion (for example, database software may not allow huge databases).

Manuals and support, again, are on a case-by-case basis.

"Shareware" is software that is written by someone, and distributed freely (you can download it from the web, or buy CDs packed with it). The idea behind shareware is that you can try it for a specified time period (usually 30 days), and then the author asks you to pay a fee. In return for the fee, you then get to use the software like any other software you would normally buy. Support, manuals, etc., may be part of the fee. However, shareware tends to be put out by individual authors; do not expect the same amenities (800 numbers, web sites, etc) as the big software companies do. Of course, fees for registering shareware tend to be less than the purchase price of "normal" software. Be aware that if you pay a fee to buy a CD filled with shareware, the fee is not the registration fee for the software, but merely the "media charge". If you use software from the CD, you are still expected to pay any applicable fees. Sometimes certain features of a program are disabled until you pay the registration fee (often the printing/file save features), or sometimes features become disabled after the trial period if you do not pay the fee.

"Freeware" is software that is available for all to use, free of charge. Don't expect fancy software. Don't expect any support. If it works, great, if it doesn't, too bad.

eBay Info Query http://webhelp.ebay.com/cgi-bin/eHNC/query-ebay.tcl