Pirates Can Legitimately Upgrade To Windows 10 For Free

[Fanghawk]

Pirates Can Legitimately Upgrade To Windows 10 For Free

If you're running Windows 7 or 8 - even a non-licensed copy - Microsoft will still let you get Windows 10 for free.

Remember when it came to light <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/137704-Windows-9-Will-be-a-Free-Upgrade-For-Windows-8-Users>that the latest version of Windows could be downloaded as a free upgrade? Well, even though <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/137744-Microsoft-Windows-10-not-Windows-9>Windows 10 hadn't been revealed yet, Microsoft is still moving forward with its plans. What's surprising is the update won't distinguish between legitimate and pirated copies - if you're using a cracked version of the system right now, it will become a licensed copy as soon as Windows 10 launches.

"We are upgrading all qualified PCs, genuine and non-genuine, to Windows 10," Terry Myerson told Reuters. Myerson also noted that Windows 10 would launch this summer, outside of Microsoft's traditional fall release window.

Why give pirates copies of Windows 10 for free? As it turns out, it's to combat the ludicrous piracy figures in China, where approximately three-quarters of PC software isn't licensed. According to Myerson, upgrading unlicensed copies of Windows will help Microsoft "re-engage" with hundreds of millions of potential customers who otherwise would slip through the cracks.

"Anyone with a qualified device can upgrade to Windows 10, including those with pirated copies of Windows," a Microsoft representative later confirmed at the Verge. "We believe customers over time will realize the value of properly licensing Windows and we will make it easy for them to move to legitimate copies."

This perfectly explains why last year's "free upgrade" story came from Microsoft Indonesia, where the issue is more prominent. Thankfully, the free upgrade will be available worldwide - so anyone reading from Windows 7 or 8 will be definitely be able to check it out this summer.

Source: <a href=http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/18/us-microsoft-china-idUSKBN0ME06A20150318>Reuters, via <a href=http://www.theverge.com/2015/3/18/8241023/windows-10-free-for-software-pirates>The Verge

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[ccggenius12]

Jeeze, I wish they'd let me upgrade from Vista for free. I misplaced the disks that came with my laptop and its in desperate need of reformatting...

 

[Parasondox]

I don't get it. Why pirate it when Microsoft said those who have Windows 7 and 8.1 will get it for free.

Its like that fool I saw who missed Doctor Who special and said "Oh well, I will just torrent". ITS ON IPLAYER FOR FREE, STUPID!!!

They were from the UK for those who may say region lock might come into play.

Fuck sakes.

 

[Signa]

Microsoft's previous upgrade policies have involved invalidating your old license. I'm very hesitant to invalidate my Windows 7 license, even for a free upgrade, because it could mean trouble in the future if I wanted to use W7 again.

If this article is true, all I would have to do is install a pirate copy to get around my fears. On the other hand, if they are being this indiscriminate for this upgrade policy, they might not invalidate my license at all. Either way, I have a Win8 laptop that I definitely will be upgrading.

 

[Rednog]

Okay, so it's sounding more and more like it's going to be a "freemium" product of some sort. Because if not, there'll literally be absolutely no reason for anyone to spend money on this.

Call me cynical if you must.

Considering all the Ad type bullshit, they might just be going down that route to make cash. The advanced users will probably jack the software anyways and remove it, but your average schmo is going to be stuck with it. Hand out the OS for free and make it back with the ads and integrated marketplace.

Microsoft's previous upgrade policies have involved invalidating your old license. I'm very hesitant to invalidate my Windows 7 license, even for a free upgrade, because it could mean trouble in the future if I wanted to use W7 again.

If this article is true, all I would have to do is install a pirate copy to get around my fears. On the other hand, if they are being this indiscriminate for this upgrade policy, they might not invalidate my license at all. Either way, I have a Win8 laptop that I definitely will be upgrading.

Have licenses actually held up over time? I know when I upgraded to a new rig and tried to pull my old key the system was like lol nope. And when I called MS and gave them my key they were like oh this isn't a key for consumers it needs to be deactivated right away. It was a key that was sold to students bundled with office and other software by my university. I'm just wondering if it just got to a point where Microsoft just has had a hard time keeping track and said screw it, let's just validate everything.

 

[Kenjitsuka]

Sweet news! Not that I need it. But some family members and friends might be pleased
I wonder if my Ultimate edition will stay Ultimate, or I would be VERY dissapointed.
Legal standalone (FPP) Win 7 x64 Ultimate cost like, what, 900 euro's?!!!

 

[Kotoriii]

Beware pirates! Something fishy will probably happen!

 

[Qvar]

And not even then am I going to install that.

 

[DrOswald]

Okay, so it's sounding more and more like it's going to be a "freemium" product of some sort. Because if not, there'll literally be absolutely no reason for anyone to spend money on this.

Call me cynical if you must.

Steam is free, and yet Valve is making money hand over fist off of it. My guess is that Microsoft wants to move windows to a platform style product like steam. They don't really care about selling the product, they want people using it so they can get their store out there. Most people will take the easy route of buying off their store and that is how they make their money.

Right now everyone is used to paying for windows, so Microsoft is taking advantage of that habit to make it look like they are giving away highly valuable software. That makes people more likely to pick it up, they think they are getting something for nothing.

Not freemium, because that implies that product is crippled until a premium is paid, but a platform. Completely different monetization scheme from what they are doing now.

At least that is my guess.

 

[ForumSafari]

Okay, so it's sounding more and more like it's going to be a "freemium" product of some sort. Because if not, there'll literally be absolutely no reason for anyone to spend money on this.

Call me cynical if you must.

To put it bluntly no one was spending money on it anyway.

Microsoft doesn't really make money from boxed OS sales to consumers anyway, they may as well give it away free and get increased marketshare for the Windows app store. Microsoft makes money from products that run on Windows, from volume licensing/software assurance and from OEM sales rather than making mad cash on standalone individual licenses. In fact it wouldn't surprise me if white-box OS license tracking and the associated support eats more cash than it makes.

 

[Charli]

Beware pirates! Something fishy will probably happen!

What you mean they'll get extra money from sources that previously could have generated zero money seeing as it is a digital product?


..Yeah that's pretty damn diabolical.


Also like many others I'm waiting to see what's broke before I go diving into the Windows 10 pool.

 

[VincentX3]

Yea no.
I'll stick to Windows 7 untill everything unbreaks from Windows 10 (Let's face it, this day an age nothing launches without bugs)

Also even with the free upgrade, I'm 100% certain it wont be the same as owning the product then upgrading. I fully expect some kind of DRM\bullshit to those who ran pirated copies.

 

[WeepingAngels]

Microsoft's previous upgrade policies have involved invalidating your old license.

Are you sure about this? I reinstalled my OEM copy of Windows 7 from the recovery disc when my hard drive died, had no activation issues. I upgraded from that W7 version to W8 when it came out in 2012.

 

[Signa]

Microsoft's previous upgrade policies have involved invalidating your old license.

Are you sure about this? I reinstalled my OEM copy of Windows 7 from the recovery disc when my hard drive died, had no activation issues. I upgraded from that W7 version to W8 when it came out in 2012.

Did you buy a Windows 8 upgrade, or just install the full version over Windows 7? If it's the former of the two, it should invalidate your license. Then again, since you're questioning it now, I am realizing I haven't had confirmation of that policy since Vista, maybe earlier. I know that's how it's supposed to work, because that's why they sell you the upgrade software for cheaper than the full. It's also why you don't need the old copy installed (or at least back in the old days!) to install the upgrade, because you can just use the key to get the upgrade install going.

 

[EHKOS]

I am terrified of upgrading from 8. But I hate 8. I think I'm going to sit back, and watch patiently until I know if it's safe or not. But this doesn't inspire confidence that this is a quality product.

 

[WeepingAngels]

Microsoft's previous upgrade policies have involved invalidating your old license.

Are you sure about this? I reinstalled my OEM copy of Windows 7 from the recovery disc when my hard drive died, had no activation issues. I upgraded from that W7 version to W8 when it came out in 2012.

Did you buy a Windows 8 upgrade, or just install the full version over Windows 7? If it's the former of the two, it should invalidate your license. Then again, since you're questioning it now, I am realizing I haven't had confirmation of that policy since Vista, maybe earlier. I know that's how it's supposed to work, because that's why they sell you the upgrade software for cheaper than the full. It's also why you don't need the old copy installed (or at least back in the old days!) to install the upgrade, because you can just use the key to get the upgrade install going.

I bought the upgrade and upgraded from within Windows 7. Did it again once I got the new hard drive, reinstalled W7, W8 and then 8.1.

I always thought the idea behind the upgraded version was that it rewarded previous users of Windows and that it could not be installed on a new system (without a previous Windows product key).

 

[Scars Unseen]

This is pretty brilliant if they're looking for an early boost to adoption rates. Even if they never make any money off the pirates at all, being able to claim that Windows 10 is the most quickly adopted Windows OS ever would have value(a claim that would be a near certainty if the assertion that China is the target of this move is correct).

The DirectX 12 exclusivity might also be a factor. More official adopters of the new version(and from everything I've been reading, it may be worth the upgrade in a way that DirectX 11 never was) will make it more attractive to developers, something that would surely be desirable to Microsoft in the face of the Vulkan OpenGL successor(which will be supported by Source 2). Given DirectX's dominance over the PC gaming industry, a lot could be riding on the success of Windows 10.

 

[K.ur]

If i aimed for world domination, i would go a similar way. Like making printers cheap, then make money with the ink. Then making sure i am the only producer of ink.

 

[Anti-American Eagle]

First they tell the pirates it's free. Second they give it to the pirates. Third it scans the pirates computers for pirated MS software. Fourth it bricks computers of anyone who has "software with unforeseen conflicts."

If not that. Then I still don't trust it. Microsoft aren't the kind to hand out things for free, especially an OS. There's going to be something glaringly wrong with it.

 

[Signa]

Microsoft's previous upgrade policies have involved invalidating your old license.

Are you sure about this? I reinstalled my OEM copy of Windows 7 from the recovery disc when my hard drive died, had no activation issues. I upgraded from that W7 version to W8 when it came out in 2012.

Did you buy a Windows 8 upgrade, or just install the full version over Windows 7? If it's the former of the two, it should invalidate your license. Then again, since you're questioning it now, I am realizing I haven't had confirmation of that policy since Vista, maybe earlier. I know that's how it's supposed to work, because that's why they sell you the upgrade software for cheaper than the full. It's also why you don't need the old copy installed (or at least back in the old days!) to install the upgrade, because you can just use the key to get the upgrade install going.

I bought the upgrade and upgraded from within Windows 7. Did it again once I got the new hard drive, reinstalled W7, W8 and then 8.1.

I always thought the idea behind the upgraded version was that it rewarded previous users of Windows and that it could not be installed on a new system (without a previous Windows product key).

I'm having trouble digging up info either way. Because of the longevity of XP, they could have revised their policies ages ago, but since that was only 2 or 3 OS generations ago, I don't know what is what anymore. What I recall didn't even really affect the OSs of its age, because until XP, you didn't even have to activate Windows, so it was all unenforceable EULA stuff.