Current Supreme Court issues

Article briefly describing recent and upcoming Supreme Court issues. Not many details, but a jumping off point for issues that may interest y'all.

Here's the Supreme Court article from WTOPnews.com.

It's gonna be an important year.

Licencing--working around copyright

It seems that most software companies have gotten around certain copyright issues by licencing the product rather than selling it. Feel free to discuss. I find it a creative approach to protecting intellectual property, but certainly there are flaws in the system. Feel free to discuss!

As a side note, I wonder if downloaded "iTunes" (or similar) are "purchased" or "licenced." If the latter, there may be no legal issue of fair use copies, or expectation of maintaining the music once the iPod is no longer made.

Customer Service at Best Buy

Since others are giving customer service nightmares, here's mine from last night.

I like online role-playing games. I was addicted to Asherons Call for a couple of years, and played Everquest for a while. Currently trying out World of Warcraft, thanks to a recommendation from terlan, hopefully I'll see him in game sometime.

This week, there is a sale at Best Buy for City of Heroes, the super-hero MMORPG, for $15, that's half price. Whoo-hoo! I get there, it's on a end-display shelf (with other premium games), sitting over the sale price, $15. I grab it and go to the check out. It rings up as $30. I question this, and the cashier goes to rack, then goes to the main shelves of games, and brings back a different box of the game, and says, "this one is $15."

OK, the one I picked up was the DVD collectors edition, and the one on sale was the original CD box. Both are normally $30. The end-display only had the DVD version (and no "blank space" for the CD version), the price under it did not specify DVD or CD, though it clearly said "City of Heroes." The main shelves with the CD version did not have a sale sign.

If this is not "bait and switch" I don't know what is. I complained to the cashier last night, and e-mailed Best Buy when I got home. If they haven't reorganized the display by tonight, I plan to ask for the displayed price on the DVD version, and if not given it, send another e-mail to Best Buy, CC Consumer Protection Agency.