Sony is on strong crack!

I am all for original content owners doing whatever they need to to protect their product. I am also all for those who find a way to circumvent those methods to allow me to test a product before I plunk good money down on total crap. Apple's iTunes and the music store that feeds it are great ways to sample music before you have to buy it. This is long overdue and helps one avoid paying fourteen bucks for an album of two songs and ten tracks of dribbling nonsense. This model works great for music but what about software for the computer or games for the consoles as well as the computer?

Well, in terms of console games, you do have the ability to rent them at various places and most will apply the rental to a future purchase of the same game. There are the odd game and productivity developers that will produce demo or time-limited full function versions so that you can try before you buy. However, thse companies and practices are more the anomaly than the norm.

I have more than my share of crap in my collection that I had no avenue to return because of the typical store policies on software. That policy states that the package must be unopened in order to be returned, otherwise a new copy of the same item will be exchanged for a defective copy. Short of that, if the item totally sucks balls, you are SOL. I understand that the prolific copying of software led to a lot of this but they started it first in not having a realistic return policy. If I cannot return it, why would I buy it? Hell, even the automakers had to abide finally by a "lemon" law in the US; if the car is totally crap, you can get a refund upon return in a specified period of time. Most dealers will never admit to this law upfront because it would cost them customers and money, but they have to abide by it.

The software and music industry has too long ignored the cries of their customers for better quality and better treatment. Sucks to be them now that consumers are ignoring their cries of lost of profits and poor sales due to piracy. Tell you what Sony, Paramount and the others - give back your stolen profits from years of overcharging and prolific dumping of crap into the market and we'll stop "trying" your software before purchase, discarding the crap like so much flotsam.

No? We didn't think so. Then let's do a Dicarprio shall we? Catch Us If You Can.

Peace.

BBC NEWS | Technology | Sony tries to patch up piracy row