mIcrOSOFt
Lift up your laptop. Lean down to your computer Microsoft will be leading development on over “Unlicensed use is use that should be paid for via
tower. That multicoloured, rectangular sticker— the next two to three years.” a licence. Adopting S+S means that this use can be
the Certificate of Authenticity (COA)—is a paid for.”
guarantee to Windows users that their software is Avoiding the middleman
genuine. It’s Microsoft’s stamp of IP approval.
The use of Microsoft software through S+S can
End-user piracy happens when a user installs
be monitored over the Internet. This means that
The COA can be found in a remarkable number
software onto their computer that they don’t
licensees can be billed based on actual use. This
of homes and workplaces worldwide. But it is
have a licence for. It can happen intentionally, if
new billing method benefits Microsoft as the IP
a user chooses not to pay for a licence, but also
also just a taster of Microsoft’s true global reach owner, because it is guaranteed the correct payment
inadvertently, if a company grows too quickly or
and IP capacity. Its full strategy is intelligent for the use of its IP. But it could also benefit its
has insufficient internal controls.
and pragmatic, differentiating smartly between licensees, because it should eliminate any surprise
when to set an example and when to negotiate,
“There’s some sloppiness in practice when
licensing costs. Licensees should also be better able
and recognising the importance of enforcing for
it comes to loading and unloading software
to control and monitor their software overheads;
social value, not just financial gain.
products,” says Arthur. “If it’s not managed
those that might previously have paid a high cover
properly, a company can find it has a significant
price for a product they rarely use may only pay for
But beyond that, it is also fundamentally
amount of unlicensed software that it suddenly
occasional access.
innovative and constantly pushing its entire
needs to pay for. That’s not great for us or for
industry forward. At the heart of this innovation Perhaps more importantly, the new method brings
the user.”
right now is what it calls its Software Plus risk management advantages. Accessing software
Services (S+S) strategy—a new way of delivering
Microsoft’s S+S strategy will avoid these pitfalls,
directly from Microsoft avoids the risks associated
its products that could also deliver a substantial
because the user will rarely need a disc to install
with black market software.
drop in piracy. the software onto their own hard drive. Instead,
“When people use software that is not genuine,
the crux of the S+S strategy is that software will be
“The S+S strategy will reduce inadvertent end- particularly software that is downloaded
accessed through “the cloud”—over the Internet.
user piracy, which is a big problem for Microsoft unlawfully, it can result in computers being
and other software houses, and a big problem for “The S+S strategy makes a difference, because infected with malware,” says Arthur. “That means
our customers,” says Graham Arthur, anti-piracy Microsoft is not losing the revenue that it would the user’s computer is being remotely used to send
attorney at Microsoft. “It’s a business strategy that otherwise be entitled to recoup,” says Arthur. spam or host unlawful material, or to transmit data
16 World Intellectual property review September/October 2009
www.worldipreview.com
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