Provide a way so you can have automatic updates (if you don't already) but
only via an active subscription account. So at the least, after they figure
out how to bypass all other protections, if they don't have an active
subscription account they can't get any updates. But all valid users won't
have a problem with this because they will be active subscribers. If you
see too many updates from the same subscription account, then you can simply
deny the updates. This seems to be quite effective, it's not easy to hack
this scheme, although they can capture what gets updated and do a diff, it
should still be effective.
Hardware keys are despictable, but I prefer them over the current
"Activation" scheme that MS uses. With "activation" per se, after you
upgrade your PC and pull your hard drive out and plop it in the new Unit, or
change a number of peripherials or system components, you no longer can use
your product, besides, it is hardlocked to your installation unit. At least
with hardware keys, you can install on as many machines as you want but can
only simultaneously use the project on whatever machine has the key plugged
in. eHelp Robot uses a scheme where if multiple installations use the same
product key and are running simultaneously and exceed the number of licenses
for that key, they all lock out and you actually have to go find a registry
key and remove it so you can ever use the product again on some of the
machines.
You should use a licensing scheme,
www.xheo.com comes to mind (I have no
experience with it). You should use an obfuscation utility to make it
harder to reverse the IL. I despise activation and except for MS products,
refuse to purchase any product that uses similar activation schemes
(increasingly, less and less commercial software finds its way into my
machines these days because of that) and I suspect I'm increasingly not
alone on this.
One activation scheme I am in support of, is
www.libronix.com (it's an ebook
reader for religous texts). Their products require being activated and each
collection of texts you acquire are hardlocked to that particular activation
(the activation of the initial ebook reader install -- which is personally
identifyable). But, you can "backup" a special unlock key it generates (and
re-back-it-up each subsequent ebook addition). Then, each time you wish to
install the the books on any other system (they intend for it to be the same
system) you just use the key but it doesn't seem to care how many system
components change or how many times you install as long as it isn't
thousands of times (indicitive of an internet sharer). This certainly blows
away the treat-you-like-a-criminal approach that MS takes and that others
are starting to take.
Others issue product keys that are only active for certain lengths of time
or until they are leaked to the Internet. If the program is modified in
anyway then none of the updates will update or the key will be deactivated.
Combine all these techniques and you'll find yourself able to minimimze the
effect of piracy but you can't eliminate it, especially in an Asian market.
The key is to make sure it is not intrusive to the end user. And to not
make them feel like "gee, I purchased this for $xxxx dolllars and now
because I got a new network card, modem, video card, and cd-burner I can't
use the product anymore." That's a good way of making sure you're customers
never return. That is why I don't use Norton AV anymore, Turbo Tax, (I
can't avoid MS products), and a few others. I refuse to keep paying for
something I should have perpetually (considering I am always and constantly
changing hardware to keep up-to-date) or have to keep renewing every year or
so (unless it is worth it, like Virus updates and OS's) (but it isn't worth
it for a dev tool and photo editing applications and email clients and
such). Open source isn't much of an alternative, either. I just find other
commercial alternatives and I know many people who do the same so you must
at least keep it non-intrusive.
Hardware keys problems aren't unreasonable but require a heftier investment
because of costs. Often this is passed on to the consumer. Remember, tho,
everyone says that all these anti-piracy measures are necessary and
ultimately will cause some savings to be passed on the the consumer. In
reality, prices only go up with more elaborate protection schemes. Whether
the schemes work or not, companies rarely lower their prices. And, these
scheme cost and will drive prices up. What can the Asian market offord to
pay? Probly not as much as the US market and the US market will suffer more
for the cost of "protection". Most vendors say it makes the software easier
to use. That's crap. I avoid them because it's too intrusive and
noticable.
In the end, Rational software uses
www.globetrotter.com for their protection
schemes (problem not a very cheap solution to licence) but, they have a
license server installed locall and you can get "floating" licences where
you can install as many times as you want but during use, each user consume
1 license. That is reasonable, IMO. But the server is hardlocked tot he
server machine.
Hope this helps.
Thanks,
Shawn
