The catch-22 situation is ridiculous

It's about time somebody took them on properly with this.

It's like posting a letter to someone which says "By opening the envelope that this letter came in, you have agreed to give me your house" and then expecting the courts to uphold your right to the house!

I'm all for licensing software, but I see no reason that you shouldn't be able to transfer the license to someone else if you no longer want to use it.