In a bid to dissuade forgers and illegal users, Microsoft Corp has adopted a Windows XP activation policy. Now, every customer who buys a machine from an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) would be required to call Microsoft for the activation of its Window XP software.
Attempts to activate Windows XP using the COA product key would result in denied access, and a box would appear on the screen instructing the customer to call Microsoft, which will ask the caller certain questions before giving him or her a valid override activation key.
However, if the user’s organization licenses Windows XP through one of Microsoft's volume licensing agreement programs like Open License and Select License, he or she won’t have to activate those Windows XP licenses. Also, users running Microsoft Windows XP and Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 1 will need to upgrade their operating system since Service Pack 2 would be forced on them through an Automatic Update after April 12, 2005.
Defending its activation policy, Microsoft has said that the move aims at restricting people from removing the COA labels from OEM's PCs or copying COA labels for resale to distributors and customers. Before this, Microsoft had tried restricting illegal copying through use of special authentic holograms on CD versions of Windows.
According to the company’s Web site, the technical measures introduced in Service Pack 1 for Windows XP would deny access to the Windows XP SP1 update for computers with pirated installations, validate product keys during activation, and repair cracks to activation, giving the legally licensed customers the full benefits of owning a valid license.
The concerns of Microsoft are not unfounded with the Business Software Alliance (BSA) placing the market for illegal software at around US$ 29 billion. On being contacted, a Microsoft spokesperson said that the move would cause minimal inconvenience to users adding that most large, direct OEMs use System Locked Pre-installation (SPL), which does not require end users to activate. She added that since there is no reason for individual sale or purchase of COA labels, the system makes illegal activities difficult.
