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Microsoft and Ebay

G

Garet Jax

Diamond Member
Hello all,

Does anyone here have experience selling Microsoft OSes through Ebay? I am currently trying to sell two full, retail, legal copies of Windows NT Server (one with 10 CALs and one with 25 CALs) through Ebay.

I created two auctions and within 24 hours Ebay cancelled both of them at Microsoft's request saying they thought I was trying to pirate. Now it seems I have to jump through hoops with Microsoft to proof to them they aren't pirated versions. So much for innocent until proven guilty 🙁

Has anyone else been through this? If so, what can I do to convince Microsoft that these are legitimate versions of the OSes? Also, what can I do pro-actively to prevent this from happening again?

Thanks a lot.
 
There isn't much you can do to prove that they aren't...unless you take pictures of them or something and send them to microsoft. The only way you can resolve this is to contact microsoft. And tell them your situation...and how to go about it.
 
I know your frustration, but you can't really blame MS/Ebay for it. The number of pirated copies of MS products that used to be up for sale there was staggering. I'd venture to say around 75% of the auctions on there were not legit. I myself placed a bid or two and won it, only to have the seller email me afterwards and tell me he was doing this for a "friend" and he didn't realize it was a burned copy. They're only protecting the buyer, how would you like to pay $1000 for a pirated version of Back Office server???

It's bad that it came to this, but I can see where there was no good alternative. Even lilnnjaboy's suggestion of pictures won't carry much weight. If you did that your pictures could always be copies to someone else's auction.
 
I have actually already taken pictures of the licenses, the box, the CDs, the SKU #, etc... and sent them to MS. I am waiting to hear back on the results.

There are lots of people who are selling these pieces of software and their auctions are not being cancelled. Are there any of these people here? What have they done that I haven't?

Psychoholic,

I agree that the Buyers definitely need to be protected, but I also argue that this isn't doing it. Microsoft is effectively killing the resale market and forcing people to either buy brand new or from another less visible source. This less visible source has more opportunity to take advantage of the buyer.
 


<< So much for innocent until proven guilty >>


Unless your MS, then your innocent even if proven guilty :disgust:
 
Sell it elsewhere. MS provides a Nazi force of auction watchers on ebay. You can provide all the evidence you want, they wont even listen to you. MS has no interest in helping you sell software, as they make nothing out of it. Ebay has sold itself out to MS as well, and let's not even start with how bad ebay customer support is to begin with.

One effective way of completing your transaction on ebay, though, is to post a buy-now price at a very low price, thus it will be snatched up by someone before your auction has a chance of being killed.

edit: added info
 
You do realize now that you are on a watched list of Microsoft's, right? Unfortunately lots of the conspiracy theories are proving to be true... If you were not an individual, but a small business, or worked in an office somewhere, the chances are now quite a bit higher that you will be subjected to a nice little software audit, and beleive me, you'll wish it was the IRS man when the're done with you.

This was also part of the whole XP upgrade scheme, where they were only going to allow users of Win2k or WinME to upgrade to XP, buy more software. I'm all for protecting the buyer, but I ALWAYS buy my software from a dealer like Office Max, or Best Buy, that way I know for sure I'm getting what I'm paying for. Especially since I maintain our office computers, I like to keep us legal, too many horor stories of small companies being shut down over this...

If it it truely legit software, and it is no longer installed on any of your machines when you are trying to sell it, I'd say do what Vegetation said, and set the things at a low buy-it-now price, and just let it go in a hurry for low cost...

Excidium
 
I thought I read in some article about people selling Windows on eBay that MS OS licenses are non-transferable. Thats the problem. This is just a vague recollection and I may very well be wrong but it's something to investigate.
 
Thanks to all the responses.

Unfortunately, I have come to the same conclusions as everyone else here. I will see if I can find another means to sell them.
 
Surprise! Surprise!

Microsoft has just re-instated one of my auctions for Windows NT Server. This means I won't need to do anything special!

Woohoo 😀

Now I am just waiting for the other one.
 
My friend had an auction on Yahoo where the same thing happened to him while he was trying to sell a legit office xp. Yahoo canceled it because MS said they had to. He told Yahoo it was none of MS's frikken business as to what he did with his software after he bought it. Yahoo refused to reinstate the auction and refused to give him his money back. He called the Attorney General because he was so pissed. THey didn't do anything for him. FInally he wrote yahoo this long email about civil liberties and whatnot, and they sent him the money.

I don't see how MS can tell it's customers what to do with software after they bought it? If you buy it, you own it.. I could just as soon burn it then auction it on Ebay and their shouldn't be anything MS can do.
 
BlinderBomber,

I agree with you completely.

The problem is that Microsoft's threats are a lot more scary than one that comes from little old me. 🙁
 
OMG, that is so BS. That is would be like Ford telling a newspaper to cancel your add to sell your used F250. What right do they have to tell you can't sell something you own legit. It is a good thing Microsoft does not own all the record labels in the country. You could forget about selling and buying used CDs at the Disk GO Round store.

M$=Evil

 
I've had the same problems with Microsoft and Ebay.

I once tired to sell Visual Studio 6.0 Professional. The auction was instantly canceled until I could tell them wher eI had gotten it and verified it was legit.

The policing of Ebay by microsoft is the exicution of the end user liscense agreement... Academic software is non-transferable, and not resellable, and software that has been used must be completely removed from the first owners system(s) before transfer/sale. Generally, when they cancel an auction you can express that you have met the above requirements of the agreement (even if you haven't) and then they will let you relist the auction.

At least ebay refunds your auction listing.

I have easily without cancelation sold Office XP, and Windows XP in the last 3 months. My auctions probubly got through because I advertised the product as new, still sealed, in the original security box, minus upc symbol.
 
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