#Market Survey
9 messages in this thread
Perry,
I understand your desire to copy protect the game. Though I deplore copy
protection, if a program is good, I will still buy it. I wouldn't buy a
program that I couldn't use for at least a week.
Sorry that I don't have any better suggestion, but I feel that conventional
copy protection is better than your proposed method. Maybe you can have some
sort of necessary guide to play, etc., that is sent only on registration. This
could be necessary to complete the game, thus, people would be encouraged to
register. If you do this, just make the game playable for long enough without
the guide that people wouldn't likely get to that point while waiting for the
guide. If it is an arcade game, maybe the word could be required to be entered
before one of the higher levels.
Rodney Somerstein 73167,2165
I do not intend copy protection. I mean purchase verification. There is a world
of difference.
I think you've got to change your attitude about games, Perry. They are not
hardware or business software. They have a shelf life of about 12 weeks, tops.
They are like record albums. You can only count on the first few weeks of
sales, and nothing more. Even in a piracy-free world, these facts would remain
paramount. Games do not have a long lifetime.
A second question: Presuming you do collect the names, addresses and urine
samples you want from your buyers, what will you do if you can trace a pirated
copy? Call their mom? Threaten legal action? How can you prove the piracy?
The copy could have been made when they weren't looking at a user group
meeting, for example. Or maybe a pirate came in their window one night, and
made a copy. It's all so hard to prove, and just as hard to prosecute.
er, make that "then laws need…"
-John
That is a very very unrealistic approach. I agree, it would be wonderful if
you could prosecute someone for piracy. The facts say otherwise. Perry can't
afford the legal work to chase down a single user. The FBI looks the other
way. On top of all this, you ignored by point about proof and/or blame. Even
if you find X's copy on a BBS, are they responsible for putting it there? Or
was it stolen from them? How are you going to prove that?
I agree, it becomes a very difficult process. Going to user groups, I am very
wary of leaving my disks unattended. I often carry a copy of beta software or
other new, highly prized software, so I think I'm an easy target. At the
recent World of Commodore show in Toronto, Aegis lost a copy of VideoTitler,
and EA lost a copy of Interceptor. Both programs were spotted on the pirate
boards *that* afternoon.
Perry,
If I can't make a completely useable copy when I get the game, it amounts to
almost the same thing as copy protection.
If you are so intent on purchase verification for a game, do you intend to
prosecute when you find someone with an illegal copy? If not, what good does
purchase verification do in this case? If you do plan to prosecute, good for
you, maybe it will help educate others not to copy software illegally.
Rodney Somerstein 73167,2165