The Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act (UCITA) was signed into law by the governor of Virginia last week.
The legislature in Virginia is the first to adopt UCITA, a uniform law bill that has some software resellers concerned.
The act is under debate in the Maryland legislature and several other states, according to the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA), which lobbies Congress on high-tech issues.
| VARs Voice Concerns |
While there is a certain logic in creating standard contract schemes, some observers fear provisions of the bill could erode their rights to sell some shrink-wrapped software. The act covers software, multimedia interactive products, data and databases and online information.
Although Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore signed the bill, the state legislature formed a joint subcommittee to study, review and make recommendations on how it will be implemented. The subcommittee expects to submit its findings and recommendations by Dec. 1.
In states that adopt UCITA, software licenses cannot be transferred without vendor permission, leaving some solution providers and distributors stuck with inventory they would be unable to legally unload, said John Hernandez, president of SoftShop Corp., a Grants Pass, Ore.-based solution provider.
"It hits at the basic level of freedom in the United States,the freedom to buy and sell," he said.
Hernandez is organizing a national lobby of solution providers to join consumer advocacy groups, such as the National Consumers League and the Consumer Federation of America, in combating UCITA in state legislatures.
The consumer advocacy groups that oppose UCITA claim it would further allow vendors to disable software remotely as a means of repossessing products; make shrink-wrap licensing terms more enforceable; prevent most license transfers from one party to another; outlaw reverse engineering; and let vendors disclaim warranties.
While the act may threaten traditional software resellers, other channel players already practicing licensed software models are not as concerned.
Howard Diamond, chief executive of Norwood, Mass.-based software integrator Corporate Software & Technology Inc., said 97 percent of his business is licensing.
"Most of what we do is manage license programs. If someone wants software for 5,000 desktops, they call us. If they [only] want a few copies, they don't,"
Diamond said.
The 108-page bill, drafted by nearly 300 lawyers over a period of eight years, is backed by major software vendors, including Redmond, Wash.-based Microsoft Corp. The National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws (NCCUSL) passed UCITA last July, but it does not go into effect until the legislatures adopt it.
For more on UCITA, go to: www.crn.com/thisweek
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