is it legal to sell cd keys ? is tehre a safe way of doing this over the net? i just read the other thread about teh guy getting scammed....this happens all too often.
Steal whatever you want. Of course it is okay. I can't think of a single reason why not - can you? I drove by a car dealership the other day and they left some keys in the cars. My wife and I each took just one. Sweet!
Of course you can't sell CD keys to anyone. When you bought the software, you only bought the license to one copy of it. You can't sell a key that would make multiple copies of the program work in violation of your agreement with the software company, which I'd guess you agreed to when you bought the software and opened it. Deena ________________________________________________________________________ Any opinions are offered without knowledge of the specific law of your jurisdiction and with only the limited information provided in your post. No advice given here should be reasonably relied upon by you or any third party without consulting an attorney who is aware of all of the facts and law surrounding your situation. Any advice given here is not intended to create an attorney-client relationship in any way.
Most places online allow you to sell cd keys assuming you still have the orginal disc etc. This offers some protection against people just pirating keys and selling them.
I could be wrong, but I don't think he's talking about selling the CD key a single time for software he owns and is selling. I think he's planning on selling the key to multiple people... OP? Deena
I don't think the game companies let you load the game and then resell the key. It would make no sense for them to allow that type of resale as it would be impossible to verify that the original buyer was no longer using the key. We all know what is going on.
no. will you stop jumping to your own damn conclusions ? everybody knows the only reason you buy cdkey is because they want to play online. we all live in a world of keygens. i want to trade online cdkeys for another old game.
Ah, I was confused. If you bought the CD key, you should be allowed to resell it under the first sale doctrine. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First-sale_doctrine Hope that helps... Deena _________________________________________________________ Any opinions are offered without knowledge of the specific law of your jurisdiction and with only the limited information provided in your post. No advice given here should be reasonably relied upon by you or any third party without consulting an attorney who is aware of all of the facts and law surrounding your situation. Any advice given here is not intended to create an attorney-client relationship in any way.
wiat.... so if i own the game and the cdkey (online multiplayer), then i can resell it ? so its not illegal ?
It shouldnt be illegal as long as the cd key was not generated by a keygen, however i owuldnt condone it.
You need to be careful with the legal advice you are giving in this area. There is a difference of opinion on how this applies to software - especially once the first user has agreed to the EULA. You should not be so definitive in your reply. You should also use some common sense and see what is going on here.
Browntwn, I am careful about how I give advice. I said you "should" be able to resell under the first sale doctrine. Also if you look at the Wikipedia link that I provided, it gives information about the problems and differences of opinion in courts across the country regarding the first sale doctrine's application to software. You may not be aware, but in many places in the US, the first sale doctrine has been upheld regardless of the EULA. My common sense meter is fine, and I'm only answering the question being asked. I try not to jump to conclusions about his motives. He asked if he can resell the key that he bought legally. If he's selling a single copy of the key (i.e., the one that he owns) then, yes, he should be able to (depending on where he's located) under the first sale doctrine. Apparently, you and I have a difference of opinion in this matter. That's not really surprising considering that the federal courts in the US differ in their opinion on the matter as well... We'll just have to agree to disagree... Deena ______________________________________________________________ Any opinions are offered without knowledge of the specific law of your jurisdiction and with only the limited information provided in your post. No advice given here should be reasonably relied upon by you or any third party without consulting an attorney who is aware of all of the facts and law surrounding your situation. Any advice given here is not intended to create an attorney-client relationship in any way.
I did not mean any offense, I think you giving the OP the benefit of the doubt with his intentions, but I think to be clear to others, a more complete explanation of the rights to re-sell would be necessary. I am not very familiar with this area of of law myself, so perhaps I am wrong - but I doubt it. Do you think the doctrine applies to used software that has already been loaded on the sellers computer or machine using the key/serial? My reading is that it allows people to resell the item they bought but not if they retain a copy or have installed it on their machine already. Basically the doctrine says you can sell something you bought without running afoul of copyright law. In most of the cases someone is selling the exact thing they bought, not selling the serial/license/key after they have already used the product themselves. Some of the common examples are someone who buys bundled software and then unbundles it and sells each part separately for a profit. The is okay and legal under the doctrine. I have yet to see a case that would make what the OP proposes to do, legal. That is a very big distinction and one which I did not think your answer took into account.
Some people are jumping the gun here. Your question is a valid one and realistically you have to read the license agreement from the game. I suggest you send them a contact email asking if you can sell your CD key to another person. They might respond more favorably than the people in this thread.
You could only sell such a key with the blessings of the copyright owner of the game you are selling.
Under my reading of the relevant caselaw, you can resell a game that you've used as long as you don't retain the copy on your machine... An example would be if you owned an outdated version of Windows. You've bought the new version and don't need the old one anymore. It has been overwritten on your hard drive by the new version. You have every right under the first sale doctrine to resell the outdated version (assuming anyone wanted to buy it)... __________________________________________________ Any opinions are offered without knowledge of the specific law of your jurisdiction and with only the limited information provided in your post. No advice given here should be reasonably relied upon by you or any third party without consulting an attorney who is aware of all of the facts and law surrounding your situation. Any advice given here is not intended to create an attorney-client relationship in any way.