Indeed, pirated software tends to be more up-to-date than that found in the few Hong Kong stores still selling legal software.
According to a 2010 Business Software Alliance (BSA) study, seven in 10 users say they support paying for virtual property, and eight in 10 say they value legal over pirated software.
FORBES: Education Is Best Weapon Against Web Piracy, not SOPA
"The fact that he said this is a pretty clear sign that there's a worrying division which is opening up between Europe and the U.S. on this matter, " said Alec Burnside, a legal adviser to software association CompTIA, which supported Microsoft in the European Court of First Instance.
Genomics Law Report has a detailed legal analysis of what our software means for the Myriad case.
Another possibility is Apple, current top-dog in the small but rapidly growing market for legal music downloads with its iTunes software.
Microsoft lawyers have argued in court that there is no valid technological or legal distinction between digital music and software code.
First there was the hassle with the Writers Guild over text-to-speech, and then Amazon threatened MobileRead with legal action for merely linking to software they didn't take kindly too.
ENGADGET: Amazon suspends Kindle account after too many product returns
Credit the BSA for an aggressive media campaign and a few high-profile legal battles against companies found to have pirated software on employee's machines.
He beat the software giant's high-priced legal team the way Tiger Woods would whip a local club pro.
And he is looking for people with skills in software development, marketing, finance, legal, and sales (with expertise in packaged goods and retailing).
Cross-tracking of this sort has not previously been feasible or legal, but firms such as Syntek Technologies, Mr Poindexter's most recent employer, have devised the necessary software, and the Homeland Security Act signed last month began the process of lowering the legal barriers.
"Nothing could be less content-neutral than doing self-help law, " says Stephen Elias, associate publisher at Nolo Press, a privately held Berkeley, Calif. book and software company that publishes WillMaker, Small Business Legal Pro and other self-help guides.
The fact is that this strategic tariff aversion plan, which is as legal and common as off-the-shelf tax minimization software at Best Buy, was the brainchild of the U.S. domestic furniture industry before it filed the case in 2004.
FORBES: Why Antidumping Duties On Chinese Furniture Don't Save U.S. Jobs
Bill Gates's software firm is not only facing a host of legal challenges to the way it does business, but is also confronted by a formidable alliance of competitors who are out to end the Windows monopoly of the desktop operating system.
Other recommendations from the commissions include more powers to remove legal jargon from the contracts entered by consumers when they purchase computer software, designed to limit the product's use.
And software is already covered under copyright law, which offers extensive legal protections against wholesale copying.
FORBES: At CES, Companies Large and Small Bash Broken Patent System
They design and manage every aspect of online contests offering software, strategic contest design, account management, marketing, legal help, and contest rules development.
"I think it is just another giant, flashing warning light to bitcoin exchanges: If you're not compliant, there are some serious risks, both at the federal and state levels, " said Patrick Murck, legal counsel for the Bitcoin Foundation, a trade group that promotes bitcoin software and security standards.
WSJ: U.S. Alleges $6 Billion Money-Laundering Operation at Liberty Reserve
P2P software makers are not liable, because the product is capable of legal uses.
But regardless of who has created unlocking software first, a larger question may be whether it's legal.
Although it is not (yet) legal to place buy and sell orders over instant messaging, Communicator's software lets financial professionals discuss sensitive information between two or more banking institutions or even one-to-one with individual clients.
Lodsys, you may remember, is a business based in Texas which has acquired a number of software patents and has set about threatening a series of developers of popular smartphone apps with legal action unless they agree to pay licensing fees.
Mr. Glueck says because Skyfire is by contract liable for legal costs stemming from a customer's use of its product, he essentially had to put his software on hold with customers until the lawsuit was resolved late last year.
Though hobbyists may continue to write file-sharing software away from American jurisdiction, investors are likely to steer clear of commercial P2P operations for fear of legal repercussions there.
应用推荐