Over the next few months, the software behemoth will begin to more broadly adopt the program, called Windows Genuine Advantage, that urges users to provide proof their Windows copy is authentic before receiving some software updates.
By mid-2005, the program will become mandatory for Windows users to get virtually all updates, including security fixes available through the company's Windows Update Web site. But users who have pirated copies of Windows will be able to continue to get security fixes if they sign up to automatically receive security updates.
The operating system is one of the company's major cash cows, and the move comes as Microsoft is moving aggressively into emerging markets where piracy is thought to be more common."The reality is that shareholders of Microsoft would like to see them get all the money they are owed," Cooper said.Microsoft said the company has no current plans to require users running automatic updates to provide proof that their copies of Windows are genuine.
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