If we ignore the nasty EULAs, will they just go away? After last week's heaping handful of bad terms, more than one reader expressed that sentiment.
"I have been reading you since forever, but I think I'm going to have to stop --- I get way too upset," wrote one reader. "Don't get me wrong, you have great material, but your latest issue has put me over the edge. I think that most EULAs are indefensible. I can't consult an attorney to make sure what I'm agreeing to for a $200 program! I also can't take the time to read every EULA to make sure that I need to! So here is my plan. I'm just going to use the software or hardware that I buy assuming that the company I purchased it from is being reasonable and just. If they really are not reasonable and just and want to prosecute their remedies, then let them. If that action causes me enough pain then I will make it my life's mission to make sure they pay. I will let the whole world know about their actions. I will not be silenced. I will then make it my life's mission to reform the whole concept of EULAs so no one else will have to put up with this kind of stuff."
Boy, I must admit that the reader's plan sounds awfully tempting. After all, he's quite right that real people in the real world don't have the time to read all the terms they are supposedly agreeing to on a daily basis. And, of course, most of the really awful terms would never fly in court. If Hilton wants to force people to hire a lawyer to visit their website, or Autodesk wants to repossess all copies of AutoCad owned by companies that are in financial straits, then let them explain it to a judge.
Unfortunately, though, there's something else we have to take into account here: DRM. Whether you think the acronym stands for Digital Rights or Digital Restrictions Management, it's an everyday part of life now. What hoops will you need to jump through to reload your software applications if you have to replace your hard drive? Can you cut that tune you paid 99 cents for to another CD without the RIAA storm troopers breaking down your door? And, given the leaning of industry and government, it's likely to be all the more commonplace. Will the broadcast flag on the TV show you're watching permit you to fast-forward through the commercials? Or will the RFID chip in your car keys lock you out if you miss a monthly payment?
So what's the connection between DRM and sneakwrap terms? The common thread is that with both, customers don't really know what they're buying when they put their money down, or at least not without reading through multiple layers of fine print. And they might as well not bother to do that, because the deal can be changed retroactively by the seller as you go along. Hey, you have been granted certain rights, up until the time we decide to take them away from you, at which point you have no rights.
For the vendors, of course, DRM also means never having to go before to judge to argue that their unconscionable EULA terms should be enforced, because the DRM is judge, jury and courtroom, all rolled into one. I don't think it's just a coincidence that the terms readers found most objectionable in last week's poll were from an adware company that is suing another adware company over its software being automatically removed by the competitor's software. The case is really one of EULA vs. EULA, with both companies claiming virtual ownership of your computer because you supposedly agreed to terms allowing them to do so. And, as spyware expert Ben Edelman reported from his research, it's quite possible for both programs to load through security holes without users having the chance to know it's happening, much less "click OK" to the terms signing over control of their computer.
So, yes, I like our reader's plan. But he and the rest of us all have to understand that is already time for his Plan B. The whole concept of the EULA has to change, or we are faced with a world where our computers, our privacy, and our lives can be controlled by whichever outfit was the last one that slipped some sneakwrap terms past us. Next, we'll discuss one small step we can take to try to do just that.
Post your comments about this story here and read what your fellow readers have to say. You can also write me directly at Foster@gripe2ed.com.
1:09:42 AM 
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