Operating System Activation Aims at Piracy

Microsoft’s next operating system, Windows XP, will require retail users to get a special activation code from Microsoft within 30 days of installing the operating system on their computer. Aimed at eliminating the “casual copying” of operating systems, the activation process will prevent users from installing a single copy of the operating system on multiple machines. The new technology, tested for two years with Microsoft Office, is Microsoft’s most ambitious attempt ever to use the Internet to protect its software from piracy, and it is the most significant move against casual copying since the development of CD-ROM product keys. It also represents the first time that Microsoft has tracked installation of its operating systems. Microsoft plans to use similar technology in Office XP, and in the next version of Visio.

The software industry long ago abandoned tight copy-protection schemes that blocked use of installed software, on the grounds that the headaches they caused for legitimate users outweighed their beneficial impact on software piracy. That was before the Internet made it easy for large numbers of users to contact the software manufacturer, however, and Microsoft believes that in a world of broad connectivity it can safely return to this approach. Nevertheless, even as planned, the new activation technology will increase Microsoft’s own support costs as it deals with customers who have activation problems.