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From: cssu@cdfc.utoronto ("Comp. Sci. Student Union")
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple
Subject: Re:  Software Rental Companies
Message-ID: <8612180820.AA14752@cdfc.toronto.edu>
Date: Thu, 18-Dec-86 03:20:06 EST
Article-I.D.: cdfc.8612180820.AA14752
Posted: Thu Dec 18 03:20:06 1986
Date-Received: Thu, 18-Dec-86 21:29:03 EST
Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU
Organization: The ARPA Internet
Lines: 57


,
> I just received a catalog from a software rental company in Canada.
> They rent MacIntosh software at $15 a disk, Apple // software at $8,
> and IBM PC software at $10 a disk.  This sounds similar to all the
> other companies, right?  But what this company does is to provide the
> buyer with COPIES of the original disks sans any documentation.  They
> then ask the buyer to erase the floppies after 21 days.  Also, the
> cost is by the disk, thus, if a single program needs 2 disks, for
> example, you pay $30 for Mac software.  This company seems to have all
> the latest software including all Microsoft and Lotus products.  Also,
> they are RENTING public domain software such as Red Ryder and a disk
> with Finder 4.1 (Apple, are you there?), Megaroids, and BinHex on it.
>
> Now, for the obvious question: Isn't this blatantly illegal or do
> Canadians have f***ed-up laws where things like this can be done???
> Microsoft and Lotus (and many other large companies) should take legal
> action if possible.

The problem is, Canadian Laws lack balls.  A few placed in Toronto have been
shut down by the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police), but usually for
some charge which is pretty weak.  I believe the charge against one firm
who was distributing commercial software for "Software evaluation", was
NOT copyright infringement, but something like, "selling software without
a licence."

These "Software Evaluation Clubs", usually require people to become "club
members" before they can take any software.  One such club in Toronto,
Clubsoft, requires a $30 membership fee before any software can be "borrowed"
for evaluation.

Let's face it, most people are not going to erase the disk within the 21
day limit.  It is just a legal loophole for people to pirate.  Call it
pseudo-legal pirating, or just abuse of weak laws, but for one thing, it has
certainly been controversial.

I personally think Canadians laws should be made stricter, and from what I hear
Canadian copyright laws are being toughened...  (and from some rumours, too
tough...  I hear that copying records to tapes, even for personal use
will be illegal, so you have to buy the cassette version if you want to use
it for your walkman...  I think this is extreme, but then again, it's only a
rumour.)

Only time will tell...

--Tak Ariga

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