eBay's liability for auctions of pirated and other illicit material have long remained a point of contention among pundits. Now it seems the company is finally taking matters into its own hands, proactively working with Microsoft to prevent and detect pirated software being listed. Microsoft claims that already more than 21 000 auctions have been pulled between August and October 2005.

The sale of pirated software in classifieds is an old problem made more pressing by the relative anonymity of online auctions and the massive scope of the eBay marketplace. Its prevalence has made legitimate software auctions all but impossible, though some hapless purchasers continue to pay for the poorly-photocopied jackets and printed gold CDs that are the mainstay of backyard software piracy.

Although this is undeniably a serious problem, it's not the Digital Apocalypse many publishers have decried. They belittle eBay as a hangout for degenerates, a cesspool of scams consumer fraud (thanks to Google, you too can make eBay say bad things about itself). The reality is, of course, more complicated: yes, piracy and scams will always have a place on eBay, but relative to other online markets, eBay offers a comparatively high level of buyer protection and proactive policing of their listing rules. Software piracy notwithstanding, a free and diverse marketplace isn't necessarily a bad thing.

Originally by The Register - Internet and Law: Wild Wild Web, 2:33 PM

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