The Genuine Advantage antipiracy program will be extended to Office, and it is currently in testing for Office 2007. Originally created for Windows, the Genuine Advantage program requires users to demonstrate that they have genuine (i.e., not pirated) software before downloading from Microsoft Web sites, such as the Microsoft Download Center. The program ultimately could require Office users to validate their copies with Microsoft to get Office templates and other add-ins, even among users whose organizations bought Office through volume license agreements.

The Office Genuine Advantage program, which entered a pilot phase in Apr. 2006, will be similar to Windows Genuine Advantage launched in July 2005. Users will be required to download and run an ActiveX control that validates their copies of Office before they may download specific Office add-ons and updates. Users who activated software during installation, or whose software was activated by an OEM or with a legitimate Volume License Key, will likely find validation with the ActiveX control to be automatic. Similarly, validation will be automatic for most volume license copies, other than copies with volume license keys that Microsoft has revoked. If the ActiveX control cannot validate the copy of Office automatically, users will be required to enter a product key manually to validate their copies.

As with Windows, when validation fails Office users will have to choose: Forgo the download, or get a genuine copy of Office. Users who can demonstrate that they were cheated and provide Microsoft with the counterfeit media, proof-of-purchase, and other transaction details might qualify for a complimentary copy of Office.

Users will initially have to validate Office to obtain specific Office add-ins at the Download Center, including product updates (other than critical security fixes and service packs), templates, Language Interface Packs, and SDKs. Some subsidiaries are also considering offering local content (e.g., language-specific proofing tools) that would require validation. Initially, validation will be required for seven language versions of Office (Brazilian Portuguese, Czech, Greek, Korean, Simplified Chinese, Russian, and Spanish). Validation will initially be optional for the English version. Eventually, mandatory validation will be expanded to all Office languages.

For information on the Windows Genuine Advantage program, see "Two-Front Antipiracy Efforts Continue" on page 10 of the June 2005 Update and "Genuine Windows Pilot Expanding" on page 11 of the Dec. 2004 Update.