If You Don't Offer Legit Versions, Is It That Big A Surprise That People Want Unauthorized Copies?

from the if-that's-all-they-can-get... dept

Sage Freehaven points us to an amusing, but telling, customer service chat between a guy in the UK who wanted to buy the latest version of RosettaStone's Vietnamese language program, and a RosettaStone customer service rep. The guy's main concern is that it appears an older version is available in the UK, but he wants the newer version, which the company refuses to ship to the UK, even though it's been out elsewhere for a long time. He then asks if the company will give a free upgrade when it finally launches the newer version in the UK, and the customer service rep has no idea. The response, not surprisingly, is that it's just easier to get an unauthorized copy: There's simply no logical reason for Rosetta Stone to do this. I'm sure it has its excuses, with talk about localization and different regional rights and whatnot, but those things don't make much sense in a global economy these days. If a product is available somewhere, not offering a legal, authorized version somewhere else is simply setting yourself up to push people who otherwise want to buy into seeking alternatives.

Filed Under: authorized copies, unauthorized copies
Companies: rosetta stone