Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!mnetor!seismo!rutgers!ames!ucbcad!ucbvax!cdfc.utoronto!cssu 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 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- UUCP: {utzoo, decvax, ihnp4, cbosgd, utcsri, mnetor}!utcs!utcdfc!cssu ARPAnet: cssu%cdfc.toronto.edu@csnet-relay.arpa CSnet: cssu%cdfc.toronto.edu@csnet-relay.csnet University of Toronto -- Toronto, Canada -----------------------------------------------------------------------------