Fw: [Litestep] UCITA bill passed in Virginia

["Michael Valcarcel" <mvalcarcel home com>]

For what it's worth...I thought you guys should see this.
---
Michael Valcarcel

----- Original Message -----
From: "Johnson, Russ" <Russ_Johnson@csx.com>
To: "Litestep (E-mail)" <litestep@litestep.ru.ac.za>
Sent: Tuesday, February 15, 2000 12:45 PM
Subject: [Litestep] UCITA bill passed in Virginia


>
> This is a little off topic but this is a MAJOR hit to the open source
> software community.  It seems the state of VA has passed the UCITA bill,
and
> this same legislation is due to come up for vote in all of the other 49
> states!!
>
> Here are some of the issues that will hurts us as consumers (from a post
on
> the Linux mailinglist)
> <snip>
> UCITA hurts us as customers by:
> * Approving the practice of hiding the most offensive terms of a
> contract from the customer until after the customer has paid for the
product
> and started using it.
> * Allowing publishers to avoid accountability and even charge for
> support for known defects.
> * Allow publishers to evade lawsuits by choosing a favored state or
> country's law, by mandating arbitration, and by specifying the location
> (state or country) in which the customer's complaint will be heard.
> * All publishers to eliminate the market in used software by
> forbidding us from lending, selling or even giving away software that we
> have bought, paid for, and finished with.
> * And by giving publishers dozens of other goodies that, collectively,
> have caused every consumer advocacy organization that has studied the
matter
> and many other organizations to recommend that this legislation be
abandoned
> Part of this act will actually allow software company to VOID the contract
> at their discretion and use "self-help" to turn the software OFF! This
means
> they could broadcast a signal over the internet that would make your copy
> stop working at anytime for any reason!!!!!!!!!!
> Also, they also don't have to reveal the terms and conditions until after
> you have bought the product and are subject to its conditions!
> Great site for further information on UCITA. Remember information is a
> powerful weapon in our hands. Lets make the government work for us!
> <http://www.nwu.org/pic/ucita2.htm>
> </snip>
> Sorry for the OT post but, again, this is a MAJOR deal!
>
>
> Neo
>
>
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
> To unsubscribe, e-mail: litestep-unsubscribe@litestep.ru.ac.za
> For additional commands, e-mail: litestep-help@litestep.ru.ac.za
> Get the LS FAQ: http://floach.pimpin.net/lsfaq
>
>
>