Newsletter Archives

• PC or Mac — any legal difference?

  Posted on January 27, 2025 at 02:43 CST by Max Stul Oppenheimer • Comment in the Forums

  LEGAL BRIEF

  

  By Max Stul Oppenheimer, Esq.

  If you are trying to decide whether to buy a Windows-based PC or a Mac, one of the factors you will certainly consider is a comparison of the strengths and weaknesses of their respective license agreements.

  We’ve previously reviewed the Microsoft Terms of Service. Today, we look at the license terms for the Mac.

  Do not be discouraged when you look at the terms of Apple’s 726-page Software License Agreement online. We’ll whittle that down for you. How, you may ask?

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (22.04.0, 2025-01-27).

  Legal Brief Apple, Legal, Macintosh, Newsletters, Terms of Service

• Microsoft’s new Master Services Agreement

  Posted on September 2, 2024 at 02:43 CDT by Will Fastie • Comment in the Forums

  MICROSOFT

  

  By Will Fastie

  Get it while you can.

  Microsoft has been notifying users about its updated Master Services Agreement (MSA), which goes into effect on September 30, 2024.

  This is not exactly a surprise. Microsoft seems to be on an annual schedule when it comes to MSA changes, although this is not assured. Updates to the MSA are announced in July, giving users two months to review the changes.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (21.36.0, 2024-09-02).

  Microsoft Comparison, Master Services Agreement, Microsoft, Newsletters, Terms of Service, Word

• Your government at work

  Posted on August 26, 2024 at 02:45 CDT by Max Stul Oppenheimer • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 21.35 • 2024-08-26

  LEGAL BRIEF

  

  By Max Stul Oppenheimer, Esq.

  While most of the world was distracted by the question of whether anyone in their right mind would voluntarily swim in the Seine, there were major legal developments affecting the tech world.

  In a two-part series, I’ll first summarize what the US federal government has been up to. In the follow-on column, I’ll cover some notable actions taken by state governments and private individuals.

  First, the feds.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (21.35.0, 2024-08-26).
  This story also appears in our public Newsletter.

  Legal Brief AI, Antitrust, ByteDance, Credit cards, Deepfakes, Federal Trade Commission, Generative AI, Google, Newsletters, Targeted Pricing, Terms of Service, TikTok

• The hidden cost of WFH

  Posted on January 22, 2024 at 02:43 CST by Max Stul Oppenheimer • Comment in the Forums

  LEGAL BRIEF

  

  By Max Stul Oppenheimer, Esq.

  Working from home — or anywhere other than the employer’s official office space — certainly has advantages, especially if the employer provides things that make the job easy, such as a laptop, an Internet connection, and software.

  Remote work, however, is not without its downsides. For example, you should check your homeowner’s insurance policy to be sure that your work from home doesn’t adversely affect coverage.

  A less obvious potential downside is employer-provided or employer-mandated software.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (21.04.0, 2024-01-22).

  Legal Brief Agency, Liability, Licensing, Newsletters, Terms of Service, Working from home

• Will PayPal fine you $2500 for trading artistic nudes?

  Posted on November 21, 2022 at 02:43 CST by B. Livingston • Comment in the Forums

  PUBLIC DEFENDER

  

  By Brian Livingston

  PayPal, the giant online payment-processing service based in San Jose, California, put itself in hot water last month by releasing, and then disavowing, a document that threatened to deduct $2500 or more from PayPal users’ financial accounts if any of their transactions “appear to depict nudity” or “promote misinformation.”

  Setting aside that vague and confusing language for a moment, PayPal’s checkered history with regulators is worth recalling. For instance, the company was recently subjected to a number of actions.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (19.47.0, 2022-11-21).

  Public Defender Financial, Newsletters, PayPal, safety, Terms of Service

• Click here to agree

  Posted on May 24, 2021 at 01:04 CDT by Max Stul Oppenheimer • Comment in the Forums

  ISSUE 18.19 • 2021-05-24

  LEGAL BRIEF

  

  By Max Stul Oppenheimer, Esq.

  Any time you install new software or a new service, you are faced with a seemingly simple task: checking a box confirming that you agree to the company’s terms of service.

  If you’ve followed the associated link, chances are you’ve encountered 20 or 30 (or 40) pages of pseudo-English. Using the ubiquitous Microsoft Services Agreement as an example, here’s what you are typically agreeing to. For simplicity, we’ll stick with basic U.S. accounts. Most specific products and some special types of account (for example, accounts for minors, education accounts, and organizational accounts) have additional rules. Other rules apply in other countries. Your mileage may vary.

  Read the full story in the AskWoody Plus Newsletter 18.19.0 (2021-05-24).
  This story also appears in the AskWoody Free Newsletter 18.19.F (2021-05-24).

  AskWoody FREE Newsletter, AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Legal Agreements, AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Legal Brief, Microsoft, Microsoft Service Agreement, Terms of Service

• Adobe license revoked … Hello, Updated Terms

  Posted on May 8, 2020 at 15:21 CDT by Kirsty • Comment in the Forums

  Yesterday, while busy working in Adobe Acrobat Pro (as part of Creative Suite 6), I had an unwelcome pop-up appear while I was in a hurry, telling me that my license had been revoked, and that to continue working on the document that my client was waiting for, I had to re-enter the software’s license number.

  This isn’t a cloud product with a dreaded monthly fee, but one of those where I paid a pretty penny for the software in advance, and don’t owe the company to be able to use it after that purchase.

  Finding the license number slowed me down a little. Then when I entered it, I was advised that a log-in was required or I would be in demo mode for up to 7 days, when it would again fail. I had to waste more time searching out the log in details, and in that log-in process, I received a screen headed Updated Terms – accept or else. I was rushing, and flustered. You can imagine how much time I had to read screeds of legalese.

  Now, this isn’t the first time I’ve had an issue with Adobe needing to have the license number reinstalled to take me out of demo mode for a paid suite, usually at an equally inconvenient moment. But I did wonder if I was the only one getting a license revoked pop up now.

  A little searching led me to find:

  Adobe General Terms of Use

  Published March 16, 2020. Effective as of April 16, 2020. These Terms replace and supersede all prior versions.

  THE MANDATORY ARBITRATION PROVISION AND CLASS ACTION WAIVER IN SECTION 14 (DISPUTE RESOLUTION) BELOW GOVERN THE RESOLUTION OF DISPUTES. PLEASE READ THEM CAREFULLY. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE WITH THE MANDATORY ARBITRATION PROVISION AND CLASS ACTION WAIVER IN THE TERMS, PLEASE DO NOT USE THE SERVICES OR SOFTWARE.

  Yes, I have been using the product since April 16th. So why now?! Have you seen this?

  If you’d like to read the new terms, you can find them here

  Other Adobe, Adobe Acrobat, Terms of Service

• Microsoft’s new Terms of Service take shots at Google but leave loopholes

  Posted on June 13, 2014 at 14:00 CDT by woody • Comment in the Forums

  It’s not nearly as simple as you might think.

  InfoWorld Tech Watch.

   

  Windows Patches/Security Microsoft Service Agreement, Terms of Service