Sign up for a new account or log in here:
Although you can usually click through most software license agreements with little consequence, you should probably skim Microsoft's terms before spending $140 to $400 on a retail copy of Office 2013 as two key parts have changed from previous versions of the suite.
If you purchased a retail edition of Office 2010, the end-user license agreement (EULA) permits you to install the software on up to two devices at once (a desktop and a laptop) and if you retire one or both of those systems, your license is transferable to new machines.
Neither of those permissions exist with Office 2013. Microsoft's updated EULA only lets you install the boxed editions on one computer, and only that computer -- forever. If we understand the terms right (and they seem pretty clear), you aren't allowed to transfer your license:
"Can I transfer the software to another computer or user? You may not transfer the software to another computer or user. You may transfer the software directly to a third party only as installed on the licensed computer, with the Certificate of Authenticity label and this agreement. Before the transfer, that party must agree that this agreement applies to the transfer and use of the software. You may not retain any copies."
We're not sure how "new" this news is, but it definitely hasn't gotten the exposure it deserves and many TechSpot staffers were surprised to learn about it. The updated EULA essentially demotes retail builds to OEM status, which seems comically restrictive given the price of Office -- especially the Professional edition. Are you really supposed to spend another $400 on a new copy if, say, your computer croaks?
The quoted EULA text above sure seems to suggest so, but Adam Turner of The Age set out to get a concrete statement straight from Microsoft. After various frustrating encounters with the company's PR and tech support departments -- the latter of which was totally clueless about the new terms -- Turner received a candid response: "No, the customer cannot transfer the license from one PC to another PC."
It remains unclear how or if this policy is enforced, though Turner suggests that it may be accomplished through your Microsoft cloud account. It's also unclear how Office 2013 determines what counts as a new computer. Would your license be toast after a RAM upgrade? Turner says he's still waiting on answers to these questions, but it took several days of contacting Microsoft to get the comment above.
User Comments: 39
Got something to say? Post a comment-
misor said:
I just bought a 3-pc license mso 2010 home and student; qualified to download/install 1-pc license mso 2013 home and student.
my previous 3-pc license mso 2007 home and student is semi-retired (all installed in 2 old laptops and 1 old desktop)
-
Duckula22 said:
I'm with you, I uninstalled MS office from my desktops and laptops then installed Open Office. I only use MS office at work but have the convenience of Open Office with the file formats.I like LibreOffice, the concept, but I find MS Office 2010 more enjoyable to use, it's more responsive, and somrething very important to me... the grammar and orthography for both EN and SP are superb, compared to those available to LibreOffice, or OpenOffice. It seems to me that LO and OO are pretty much the same thing.
-
Forgive me but as a LO user I can say nothing more than:
Hahahahahaha! GTFO M$.
-
Duckula22 said:
I read somewhere that LO's version 4 is out, and that it came with a bunch of improvements and new features, I'll take a look and see if the grammar and spell checkers are any better than what was available a few months back.
-
gooderguy said:
It's very clear to me they simply want to push people to the 365 version where you have to pay every year, I mean, how many more features can they cram in there to try to convince people to buy a newer version every couple years
-
I'll stick with my LibreOffice (which is a fork of OpenOffice when they got purchased a couple years back).
Either way the open source software is the way to go - especially for the casual home user. As for having something compatible with what is used at work? No sweat - for the most part it all works quite well.
At home sure, I can understand why businesses continue to favor office though... If you need to create macros or build spread sheets that pull data directly from databases or custom design something in access you really need to have all the VBA (visual basic for applications) stuff running under the hood.
-
It does not matter.. same as the OEM EULA does not much to M$'s dismay. It holds no legal weight due to 1st sale doctrine.. and ANY winbloze license can easily be transferred LEGALLY to another system despite M$'s tantrums. This has been proven in court as well.
However this is once again a typical slime ball move by M$... and one more reason why Open Office is FTW.
-
Just install OpenOffice, LIbreOffice, or whatever freeware you prefer and enjoy the freedom
-
ChadL said:
What if you are constantly replacing parts in your desktop? What makes it a new computer? What if I replace my motherboard and processor but nothing else?I replaced my mobo and cpu and I had to reactivate Win8, didn't have to do that with Win7. So you may just have reactivate Office again, its just an automated phone call. But really MS should use plain language in its ULAs and spell out what you can and can't do with the software.
-
But really MS should use plain language in its ULAs and spell out what you can and can't do with the software.Until they do, I'm not gonna worry with the fine print as long as I can activate.
-
Why don't you quit quoting everyone on the forum. If you have something to say, just say it. There is no need in quoting 50 people.Dude, just report it, don't try to reason with it. You either get an electric shock, or the corn kernels. In this way, learning forum etiquette by trial and error, can be made to mimic other types of standard teaching methods..
Moving on...
....[ ].....I think if M$ was smart they would make another lower end of office 365 with just word, excel, and powerpoint for 2-3 computers for 1 year for like $40-50.For those of us who got here late, M$ used to make "Office Lite". They called it, "Microsoft Works". It had a word processor, a calender, a lightweight graphics app, and more. It cost maybe 30 bucks as a standalone, and came as "value added software" on many OEM computers.In fact, it worked so well, and fulfilled so many people's needs, that M$ discontinued it. I think they're trying to force you to buy office. And now, they're trying to force you to buy it for every machine. Next stop likely will be"the cloud", and by subscription only.
So, don't let your "good idea" fly too far from the nest, and whatever you do, don't put it on a resume you intend to hand in to M$......:eek:
-
Oh yes indeed. OpenOffice for Windows, or the more recent version, LibreOffice for Windows. FREE forever, folks. Why would anyone give Bill Gates any more money?
-
Scavengers said:
Apache is awesome.
Dave
-
I just moved my 500Gb Seagate HDD from a Dell Vostro 1520 I purchased from Dell Outlet 4 years ago, to a Used Dell Latitude E8400 I purchased off Ebay.
I have Windows 8 Pro W/MediaCenter installed along with a new 2013 Office Pro installed.
Once the updating finished at the I/O level, I immediately received a request to reactivate Windows by calling and entering all those numbers and then receiving a complete new set of numbers and POW, I was reactivated.
Then I attempted to open up Word 2013, and a box popped up requesting that I reactivate office 2013, and I clicked accept and it immediately:
REACTIVATED without so much as a whimper...and so this tethering to ONLY one machine isn't ALL true!
I don't know if Office 2013 reactivated without a hitch because I moved the O/S and Hdd to the new/Used E6400 machine and because Windows 8 Pro successful reactivated so therefore Office didn't protest or if their saying it was Tethered to a single machine is just the Company Line being adhered to or what.
Anyhow, it was a 0-Problem reactivation for my Office 2013 Pro that I own but I'm glad the usual procedure of beating your head against the wall for 3 hours of hold, then told no can do, but then shuffled for another hour from ***** to *****...ohh...I meant from tech to tech.
So maybe others have had a similar experience but All I can vouch for is my experience and I'm still scratching my head as to how "easy" it was!
Good luck to the rest of you folks out there, and hope...hope...hope!
Respectfully,
BKetcham
-
Unfortunately for Microsoft this is now illegal as I understand it under EU law where if you have a perpetual license you are free to sell it, and therefore move it to another machine!
Wonder if Microsoft is really wanting to break the EU Law and possibly have another large fine?
Most Popular
| Trending | Featured |
-
Microsoft backtracks: Drops daily check-ins, used games restrictions on Xbox One
-
Noise cancellation technique harnesses magnets to silence CPU fans [video]
-
Cookie-blocking browser plugin Ghostery feeds data to the ad industry
-
China reclaims world's fastest supercomputer title
-
Games get traded in because they are too short, Avalanche boss says
Subscribe to TechSpot
Get free exclusive content, learn about new features and breaking tech news.