it's deja vu all over again

I seem to recall a similar case involving a student reselling a still-shrink wrapped copy of Windows XP. It was a tit-for-tat filing of motions and counter suits, that eventually resulted in Microsoft backing down and giving the poor student a "hush-up" compensation package, which fortunately did not result in a non-disclosure agreement (thus made it into the popular press).

So... one of the things that I remembered from my "law and computers" class in the late 1980s was that Louisiana's special shrinkwrap-license statute facilitated the modern software industry as we know it... in direct violation consumer tort law.

What is remarkable is that the shrinkwrap "licenses" have stood unchallenged as long as they have. I believe the Microsoft backed off the college student because they suddenly realized that someone who was willing to fight back, could set a precedence that would unravel the "legality" of shrinkwrap software licenses by pitting shrinkwrap case law (which there is not much of) against consumer tort law (which there is a lot of).

This is the angle to the story that most of the popular press is completely missing.

Oh, and BTW, the college student to caused Microsoft to back off was only to do so because he had access to a lexis-nexis account... American justice at it's finest: serving only the rich.