At 6:48 AM -0500 3/13/05, dhbailey wrote:
The tethering of software is becoming industry standard, and no matter how much we might not like it, it is not the rogue action by a single board member taken against the advice of experts, but rather an action taken gradually by an entire industry at the advice of its anti-piracy experts.
That is why I don't think any of us would have a legal case against individual board members when/if MakeMusic goes under.
...sigh...
My "example" was purposely meant to be extreme to make a point: In the example case we can clearly posit the outcome. In less onerous cases we will have to wait for judicial guidance.
If you really don't believe that there will come a time when the officers a bankrupt corporation that used a tethered copy-protection scheme will have to face litigation then you don't see sharks in 2K suits the way I do.
I believe that such litigation will eventually happen. You do not. No problems. We'll agree to disagree and watch the future.
Two observations that may be pertinent:
1) The industry pushed really hard to get UCITA passed as quickly as possible and with a minimum of public scrutiny. They actually got it through in Virginia and Maryland before anyone noticed what was going on. Protections which would make exactly this sort of lawsuit more difficult (if not impossible) were one of the reasons for industry support of UCITA.
2) The new law designed to make it more difficult to pursue class-action lawsuits, by making it difficult (if not impossible :), to shop for litigation venues may actually make this particular type of suit more feasible: The corporations cannot "shop" for their venue as easily by choosing their state of incorporation and arguing that venue as necessary for defense.
I do agree that the pool of Great White's circling a dying Coda is likely to be small. There just aren't enough Finale users to attract the largest predators.
But:
Phrases like "Loss of income," "Loss of future income," "Extreme monetary damage," "Willful disregard of purchasers' rights," etc. are blood in the water.
I think that such a suit will eventually happen. The potential ROI for the class-action lawyers will be too great to ignore when the affected class reaches some critical size.
When that happens the decision will hit the rest of the industry with a seismic jolt at sonic speed.
Personally, I hope that the slimeballs in the high-dollar Armanis make a mint when they finally find a wounded mammal they think worth hitting.
Anyway:
This horse is a bloody pulp and we're looking at it from different directions, so we might as well let it lie. It should be interesting to see what the status of tethered copy-protection is five or ten years down the road.
Best wishes,
-=-Dennis
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