Microsoft spins out software protection tech
Microsoft, which already had a business selling its software licensing technology to other companies, now plans to spin that out into a separate company, known as InishTech.
(Credit: Microsoft)Microsoft said on Tuesday that it is spinning out as a separate business a two year-old effort that licenses its software protection technologies to other companies.
In the past two years, Microsoft has signed up 120 companies to use the software activation and licensing technologies, including its own eHome unit. But it decided creating an independent company was the way to go.
The new venture, dubbed InishTech, will be based in Ireland. Microsoft will retain a stake in the company as well as an observer seat on its board of directors. Microsoft also plans to be a customer of the company.
The effort is the latest example of Microsoft spinning out its technology to a start-up. A number of past efforts, such as Inrix and Zumobi (formerly ZenZui), have come from technologies developed within Microsoft's research labs, while others have come from various product teams.
It's part of a broader effort at the company to , a push that dates back to late 2003.
Not all of the start-ups have continued with their original business plans, however. Microsoft spun out a social-networking technology, known as Wallop, in 2006. A start-up by that name hoped to launch its own social network based on the technology, but ultimately decided to join, rather than try to beat the likes of Facebook and Bebo. The company now develops applications for social networks.
During her years at CNET News, Ina Fried has changed beats several times, changed genders once, and covered both of the Pirates of Silicon Valley. These days, most of her attention is focused on Microsoft. E-mail Ina. 
I see this as a future blackmail attempt when this company goes out of business.
The price to reauthorize installed will double and so forth.
I see nothing good of this.
So again, what reason do you have for reinstalling Windows every 6 months?
@ Mr. Dee there are some that advocate reinstalling a clean version of Windows on a regular basis. Unless the license is special in some way, reinstalling shouldn't be a problem. Worst case you have to call Microsoft.
Oh should they not be able to protect their software?
"Then how do you propose they tell whether your installing it on the same machine or handing out the key genius?"
Depending on the EULA, installing a copy on a different machine maybe legitimate. The people handing out the keys probably have already hacked around the activation or know where to get such information and are giving it out with the keys.
"Oh should they not be able to protect their software?"
They can certainly try, but given the history I don't fancy odds for success.
It's funny that because the UK government my government is seeing if we would like to vote for opinions istead of th real people who would then get into power after a general election. How nice of them you might say although this would mean you could not then work with that personal touch of democracy and would instead be stuck with whoever you get not of course a man or woman made from cut out best bits of all the people you had a pulic opinion about.
In other words it is not a good idea to keep reinstalling the main OS to do anything almost what that voting system is suggesting accept reinstalls would require lots of mud not simply a install disk unless that is your one damn scary and powerful bloke/women then a reinstall would be easy oh wouldn't it just.
In others words yet again changing the deck chairs around is usually ends you with more dysfunctional issues not less problems actually the best functionally improvements usually come from people with initiative and hard graft .
Like say in politics where it was changed so local representing people wanting to be voted for any given part of government were instead all voted in at different times. Meaning that you voted people in because you wanted them to represent you personally and less because of any political bias regarding a what would then be non existent general election day(see initiative and hard graft). Such a voteing type would mean things change at the will more of the people in less of a knee jerk big occasion sort of style mean consensus of people would become more advanced in it integrity as opposed say in America to the types of consensus or more like contentious and yes contented and even some time out right condemned issues FOX and the other cronies of public voice Project down your throat ever day when they can get away with it.
Difference see .
Windows windows windows and screw the rest (likely your government and likely mine)
or windows a system built by people for profit serving with people interested with a degree of profit interested personal driven support and new apps (you know something that has a good chance of lasting not that those crafty sob s behind the shadows I'E Screw them over spots somewhere nowhere near umm you and your possible cali crumbs say don't think they could rule akhmm sorry stall forever)
Stalling now we finally got a good reason why people would indeed reinstall windows every six months if the system keeped stalling . Oh yes I know that issue well every where ther words monopoly are around the fringes of such escapades.
So what would Linux do with such a problem as that.
Activation schemes are the reason I don't buy some games.. unfortunately I have found playing with a hacked/cracked version instead of the activation or rootkit software installed is a more stable experience.
Back on subject, I have legal copies of vista and xp and when my reinstall credits expire I sure as hell won't pay for the operating system again... no I will find other alternatives or way to get around it.
Period.
That's the purpose of Activation, to protect the intellectual property.
Easy.
From my experience working with computers since 1984 that a computer works much better and faster when newly installed. No amount of registry cleaning or defragging or using super cool programs like systemmechanic can ever amount to or equal to that of a freshly new installed clean OS EVER! Will I agree to in the future to pay $5,$10,$20 to reauthorize an activation routine when I am a ligit customer who bought a retail store copy of said OS? I bought it and I should only need to activate it once and thats it and no more payments as long I hold the store reciept for that product it is mine!
What some of you are thinking is like making me pay more than once for my underwear that I already have worn over and over again.
This software allows developers to include licensing and copy protection in their own commercial software. You can either use Microsoft's hosted servers or host your own (depending on your business size).
This technology was for .NET developers but in the current version lacked some features compared to other Obfuscation tools (ie. generics support. Doh)
How is this evil?...How do this always come back to Vista?
Hopefully the spinoff company improves the product...
If Microsoft had spent more time working the kinks out of Vista instead of integrating more DRM, maybe it wouldn't have been such a failure. Vista is the new Windows ME.
Windows Vista is like the new Windows 2000. Windows 7 is like the new XP.
- by June 14, 2009 10:22 PM PDT
- Many of these posts are misplaced, this is nothing to do with MS activation technology, this is an Israeli company they bought and have now spun out as its not core to their business, they dont use this technology in their own products at all.
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(23 Comments)This new company is the 2nd attempt to enter the software licensing market and to compete with the largest player in the market Nalpeiron (www.nalpeiron.com) in providing ISVs with technology to control, license and protect their software.