The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #89102 Message #1679119
Posted By: Richard Bridge
26-Feb-06 - 05:40 AM
Thread Name: Tech: Microsoft rips us off again!
Subject: RE: Tech: Microsoft rips us off again!
A licence licenses what it licenses. If it only licenses THE COMPUTER you originally put the software on and then defines a motherboard upgrade as not THE COMPUTER then it does not license the software for use on the new motherboard - although it does seem arguable to me that this term is intended to restrict or distort competition and so it would possibly be illegal under art. 81 TEU.
European law creates certain "backup rights" that cannot be overriden by the licence. Time perhaps for our masters in Brussels to do something useful (the last time they did that was when they created TUPE).