By Martin Stone, Newsbytes
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A.,
04 Feb 2000, 7:57 AM CST
(Embedded image moved to file: pic07685.gif)A
number of software high-rollers, including
Microsoft Corp. [NASDAQ:MSFT], along with some
industry associations, are reportedly promoting
the passage of country-wide state legislation
that would reduce consumer rights for users of
purchased or leased software and database
information.
According to a report in today's Los Angeles
Times, the drive comes as software companies are
eyed as cash cows by local communities, which
envision job creation and other economic
advantages.
The proposed tech legislation has also been
endorsed by Intuit Inc. {NASDAQ:INTU], Novell
Inc. [NASDAQ:NOVL] and the Lotus Development
division of IBM [NYSE:IBM], among others, the
report said.
The suggested legislation springs from Uniform
Computer Information Transactions Act (UCITA),
which calls for, among other stipulations, the
right to remotely disable programs should
lessees fall behind on their payments, the
report said.
Further, the proposed bills include a provision
allowing e-mail to serve as formal legal notice
of a change in terms of the contract or a
warning that service will be terminated, without
evidence that the e-mail ever reached an
individual, the report stated.
UCITA opponents also fear that bans against the
future sale or donation of the property would
mean computers could not be passed along to
schools or other organizations without being
stripped of software, the report said.
One of the bills is expected to be soon
introduced in California, and other UCITA bills
are already before state legislatures in
Maryland, Virginia and Illinois, the Times said,
adding that many players in the software
industry are aggressively lobbying for passage,
touting the proposals as overdue modernization
of contract law to keep pace with electronic
commerce. The report suggested that lobbyists
expect the bills to pass in several states
within a few months.
The bill's concept is aimed at protecting
software, much of which can be easily copied,
according to industry sources cited by the
Times, which also reported that law professors,
consumer groups, more than 20 state attorneys
general and some corporate software buyers are
beginning to organize an opposition to the UCITA
campaign.
Both sides believe that if a few states pass the
measure, other states will feel compelled to
follow in order to compete for high-technology
company headquarters, the report stated.
But, some industry powers take issue with UCITA,
including Sun Microsystems [NASDAQ:SUNW], which
argues that any change of such complexity would
cost countless hours and dollars to organize and
could overhaul a legal system that has been
working fine, according to the Times.
The state debate mirrors similar database
protection issues taking place in Congress,
which is contending with UCITA in database and
digital signatures legislation.
Reported by Newsbytes.com,
http://www.newsbytes.com .