Ever since Microsoft began its pilot testing of the "Windows Genuine Advantage" validation procedure last fall, there's been something about it that's bothered me. But I couldn't quite figure out what it was until this week's announcement that the validation procedure will become mandatory later this year for downloading updates.
As anti-piracy measures go, after all, this is pretty mild stuff. Even when it does become mandatory, users with copies of Windows XP that prove invalid will just be prevented from downloading updates and other software from Microsoft's site. So what about it was bugging me? But as I read all the quotes this week from Microsoft officials saying how Windows Genuine Advantage is really about protecting customers, it occurred to me what the problem is.
Part of it is the type of user the program is aimed at. According to Microsoft officials, almost one of every four Windows users in the U.S. and other developed countries is using a non-genuine version. And the majority of those don't realize it, because the counterfeit copies are often very hard to tell from the real thing. And they will be the ones who Windows Genuine Advantage tags as having ungenuine software, because those who did consciously get a cracked copy of XP probably aren't going to bother trying to validate their copies.
So we're not talking about people who were trying to rip off Microsoft. Instead, an awful lot of people who paid their money for Windows in good faith are going to discover that somebody along the line - a distributor, a reseller, an OEM -- cheated them. They are just as much victims of the counterfeiters as Microsoft. More actually, because they were in less of a position to defend themselves. Perhaps we should call them Windows' Genuinely Disadvantaged.
But at least this validation procedure will protect them in future, right? Well, maybe. But there's another aspect to the problem that I can perhaps best illustrate by quoting from a Microsoft FAQ:
"Q: How do customers benefit from this approach?"
"A: Over time, reduced piracy means that the software industry can invest more in product development, quality and support. This ensures better products and more innovation for customers.... (It) also helps prevent unsuspecting customers from purchasing counterfeit software. Customers who purchase counterfeit products could find they are missing key elements, such as user manuals, product keys, certificates of authenticity and even software code. They may also find that the counterfeit software contains viruses or does not work as well as the genuine product does."
How sweet. But while these sentiments are now echoed in Microsoft's explanations for why Windows Genuine Advantage will help customers, this is actually from a much older Microsoft FAQ page, back when Windows XP was new. And the approach it's talking about is product activation.
In other words, we've heard this all before. And, at least in terms of protecting customers from counterfeit software, product activation obviously was a complete failure. Is there really any reason to believe that this new validation process will be anymore successful at guaranteeing that honest customers in the future don't unwittingly become one of the Windows' Genuinely Disadvantaged? I sure don't see it. And, given that neither activation nor validation is likely to deter the real software pirates, one has to wonder what anti-piracy process Microsoft will require next.
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