Vista to Take Hard Stand Against Piracy

[BuckNaked]

Text

Oct 4, 9:20 AM EDT

Vista to Take Hard Stand Against Piracy

By ALLISON LINN
AP Business Writer

Technology Video


SEATTLE (AP) -- Microsoft Corp.'s forthcoming Windows Vista will take much harsher steps to curtail piracy than previous versions of its operating system, including crippling the usefulness of computers found to be running unlicensed copies of the new software.

The world's largest software maker said Wednesday that people running a version of Windows Vista that it believes is pirated will initially be denied access to some of the most anticipated Vista features. That includes Windows Aero, an improved graphics technology.

If a legitimate copy is not bought within 30 days, the system will curtail functionality much further by restricting users to just the Web browser for an hour at a time, said Thomas Lindeman, Microsoft senior product manager.

Under that scenario, a person could use the browser to surf the Web, access documents on the hard drive or log onto Web-based e-mail. But the user would not be able to directly open documents from the computer desktop or run other programs such as Outlook e-mail software, Lindeman said.

Microsoft said it won't stop a computer running pirated Vista software from working completely, and it will continue to deliver critical security updates.

The company also said it has added more sophisticated technology for monitoring whether a system is pirated. For example, the system will be able to perform some piracy checks internally, without contacting Microsoft, Lindeman said.

Microsoft also is adding ways to more closely monitor for piracy among big corporate users, who tend to buy licenses in bulk.

Microsoft plans to take similar tough measures with the forthcoming version of its Windows server software, dubbed "Longhorn," and to incorporate it into other products down the road.

The crackdown shows how much more seriously Microsoft has started taking Windows piracy, which for years has been extremely widespread in areas such as Russia and China. The Business Software Alliance, a software industry group, estimates that 35 percent of software installed on PCs worldwide is pirated.

In recent years, the market for Windows - one of Microsoft's main cash cows - has become more saturated. That's left the company eager to make money from users who may otherwise have obtained illegal Windows copies.

Microsoft has already instituted tougher piracy checks for Windows XP users who want to get free add-ons such as anti-spyware programs. But until now, the warnings and punitive measures were mainly seen as annoying, rather than debilitating.

Cori Hartje, director of Microsoft's Genuine Software Initiative, said the company now wants users to notice the difference between legal and pirated copies of Vista.

"Our goal is to really make a differentiated experience for genuine and non-genuine users," Hartje said.

Analyst Roger Kay with Endpoint Technologies Associates noted that Microsoft has the right to curtail illegal distribution of its software. The new piracy measures, he said, "seem harsh only in comparison to how lenient it has been."

Nevertheless, Kay said he expects that the anti-piracy tactics will keep some people from upgrading to Vista from the current operating system, Windows XP.

"There will be an XP backlash, which is to say people (will) cling to XP in order to avoid this," he said.

Kay also doesn't expect the new piracy measures to be that effective against hardcore pirates, who have built de facto businesses selling illegal Windows copies. But he thinks it will stop some lower-level piracy.

After many delays, Redmond-based Microsoft is expected to release Vista to businesses in November and consumers in January.

Not that this really affects me, but I am just not that anxious about getting Vista upon release. I will be interested in seeing how well the anti-piracy works when it comes out.

 

[6StringSamurai]

Well shiver me timbers.

 

[Specop 007]

Still using 2K here. I really have no reason to switch over to anything newer either.

 

[FoBoT]

its about time
maybe it'll help drive people to linux
unless you need to play games on your PC, who needs winders?

 

[OrganizedChaos]

didn't they say the same thing about Xp?

 

[lokiju]

People will find a way around it.

 

[jfall]

they waste so much money trying to prevent piracy and it NEVER works!

 

[MX2]

Originally posted by: OrganizedChaos
didn't they say the same thing about Xp?

 

[jlbenedict]

Originally posted by: jfall
they waste so much money trying to prevent piracy and it NEVER works!

How is this a waste of money?

Microsofts methods are to prevent casual pirating; you know.. that one person that shares the software with their buddy.
Eventually.. the casual piraters get scared and end up purchasing Vista; therefore Microsoft wins in the long run.

It will never prevent piracy all together; especially from the elite/enthusiasts crowd

 

[OrganizedChaos]

Originally posted by: Specop 007
Still using 2K here. I really have no reason to switch over to anything newer either.

same here. the ONLY thing i need or want an OS to do is run applications.

 

[aceO07]

I'm curious to see how good of a detection rate they have. I remember reading on slashdot or somewhere else that the false alarms percentage was high.

 

[mugs]

Originally posted by: jfall
they waste so much money trying to prevent piracy and it NEVER works!

Sure it does. It doesn't stop the really determined pirates, but it definitely stops the less knowledgeable pirates - the people who borrow their friend's Windows CD, etc.

 

[AnyMal]

Has anyone seen my "I care" button?

 

[Bateluer]

Originally posted by: jfall
they waste so much money trying to prevent piracy and it NEVER works!

Not entirely, but it curtails casual piracy. The more effort it takes to circumvent anti-piracy measures, the fewer people will do it.

Obviously, there will always be people who pirate though.

 

[MisterJackson]

Millenium Edition FTW!!!!!

 

[Brainonska511]

None of the Vista stuff bothers me. I won't be using Vista until I get a new computer, which won't be for another 2+ years.

 

[Syringer]

Windows 3.1 fTW!

 

[Specop 007]

Originally posted by: OrganizedChaos

Originally posted by: Specop 007
Still using 2K here. I really have no reason to switch over to anything newer either.

same here. the ONLY thing i need or want an OS to do is run applications.

Exactly! A do-it-all OS is like anything else do-it-all. It does it all well, but dedicated apps do it better.

I'm more then happy with 2K, aside from its horrid DOS abilities which limits or prevents some older games from running. But, with 98 being no longer supported whats a guy to do. Sure, XP has that legacy support feature but its still a work-around.

 

[j00fek]

give it a month, someone will bypass it

 

[jlbenedict]

Originally posted by: j00fek
give it a month, someone will bypass it

ha

more like a week.. if it takes a month, then those damn hackers are slacking

 

[Journer]

all this is going to do is piss off newbs...before it even releases there will be plenty of working cracks to solve this problem...i dont plan on switching until SP1 comes out

 

[Vic]

I installed a copy of Vista RC1 for the hell of it and couldn't really find a reason to upgrade from 2k. I found Vista to be pretty, and in many ways an improvement over XP, but it's still just an annoying as XP (if not more so). Great for the average user, I suppose...

 

[funboy6942]

Sorry to say but if it runs on a PC it will be cracked and worked around at some point. There will always be smarter nerds out there, wish I was one though
Find away around protection and instead of jail time get paid big bucks to stop others like you.

 

[NanoStuff]

The world's largest software maker said Wednesday that people running a version of Windows Vista that it believes is pirated will initially be denied access to some of the most anticipated Vista features. That includes Windows Aero, an improved graphics technology.

Oh no3s, not my Aero!

Seriously, aero sucks balls, classic all the way. Even so, as with XP, the operating system will be cracked before it's released.

 

[judasmachine]

dammit, and i was waiting on them to crack it........................