Win 7 on ebay

E

Emil

Level E
There are several offers on ebay selling "Genuine" serial number keys for Windows 7 at a fraction of the price of the boxed versions.
I would like to seek clarification here.
Are those genuine keys or cracks? Is this a clean legal deal or is piracy involved?
Guys who shout "fire" without reading or understanding a post please note that I am not promoting or encouraging piracy. Just want to ask whether the channel is clean.
 
If you are getting a key without a Disc, then in most cases, its not legit. OEM Versions are meant to be sold as a bundle along with a computer. Brands like Dell and HP who provide a unique OEM key with the machine you buy and some sellers often sell them of as genuine keys. Such keys are not legit to use on any other system than the one it was intended for. High profile computer assembler's also often sell fresh OEM copies of windows. These are legit only if the assembler is registered with Microsoft as a manufacturer and was issued OEM licenses to sell. Selling a OEM copy implies that the seller sold you a computer and a copy of Windows to use on the computer. Reselling/distribution of just the licenses is not legit.

Even if you get a OEM license from a legit manner, the license remains legit only as long as you use it with the same system it was original installed on and registered with. If you decide to do a major upgrade on you system after a while (which involves a motherboard change) you would need to buy a new license as your upgraded system would be treated as an entirely new system. Personally I would recommend you get Retail copy from a genuine source.

Some people also indulge in selling keys that they get via MSDN subscription. MSDN keys cease to be legit if used by anyone/anywhere other than the registered developer/software company they were assigned to.
 
@prashantrana - there are several of them on ebay.in who offer such a key. some even say they will send you a CD which is copied from a original DVD. the key is stated to be a genuine key, never used before.

@Lord Nemesis - that was a very educative post. reps are in order.

--- Updated Post - Automerged ---

OK here is the actual text for one of the sales posted on ebay:

***********************************************************

Windows Seven Ultimate Retail Product Key
Windows 7 Ultimate Full Version Retail License KEY

ONLY KEY

Window 7 Ultimate One PC, 32/64bit All Language

I am selling Retail Product Keys , Keys Purchased from Retail Shops

This is for the key only. Works for both 32bit & 64bit as well as any language.

You will receive the Activation Key within 24hrs after that your payment clears CD WILL BE SHIPPED.

Genuine & Unique Authentic Serial Number

Valid on ANY ONE(1) computer, which includes updates and support.

100% Legit, 100% Authentic, 100% Retail

Serial Key Passes Microsoft Genuine Validation

(This is for a Retail Key to activate Windows 7 Ultimate, no physical delivery!)

New and official key. Never used before. It can be used for One PC.This is a retail version key, and has no expiration date on it. You can use the windows 7 as long as you wish. Some other sellers are selling RTM key, which is a key used for public test and will expire on August 28th 2010.CD copied by original DVD. The key can be used for windows 7 Ultimate 32/64 bit (any language). If you are running a trial version, simply input the key and you are ready to go. Otherwise, you will need to download the windows.

***********************************************************
 
I guess you are referring to this sale

eBay India: Genuine Windows Seven Ultimate product Key with CD (item 280551765282 end time 28-Aug-2010 12:23:40 IST)

Definitely looks fishy to me. He is either stealing keys from retail copies and selling them off (I think a Microsoft authorized reseller was recently booked in Delhi for indulging this very thing) or he is selling MSDN keys. Neither of them is legit. What he wrote is also ambiguous. He says that he is selling key only and at the end he says CD will be shipped once payment is cleared and that the CD was copied from Original DVD. MSDN keys usually require the ISO to be downloaded from MSDN. If he is providing both key and Disc, its mostly a MSDN version and if he is giving key only, then it would be stolen retail key.

As a thumb rule, If you are getting a unused retail serial of Win7 Ultimate for anything less than 8k, then rest assured that it will not be legit.
 
harishgayatri said:
Look where the seller resides

It is Lucknow,UP.

Definitely not genuine.
Look at the level of English
Click to expand...

The 'English' and 'location' are definitely NOT a criteria to determine whether a seller is genuine or not. It is purely ridiculous. Are you trying to say that sellers from Delhi and Mumbai are genuine? Or those who speak fluent English are authentic people? That's simply outrageous.

I am from a metro myself but wouldn't want to classify people based on their location and linguistic skills.
 
harishgayatri said:
Look where the seller resides

It is Lucknow,UP.

Definitely not genuine.

Look at the level of English
Click to expand...

Sorry if this offends you but I think your post reflects a good deal of bias.

First to conclude that anyone from a particular place must be a cheat.

Second to conclude that a genuine seller must have a good command of the English language.

I hope you were just kidding.

@agantuk - Your post has already made exactly the same points. Sorry I saw it only when my page refreshed after I had posted my reply.

--- Updated Post - Automerged ---
Lord Nemesis said:
I guess you are referring to this sale

eBay India: Genuine Windows Seven Ultimate product Key with CD (item 280551765282 end time 28-Aug-2010 12:23:40 IST)

Definitely looks fishy to me. He is either stealing keys from retail copies and selling them off (I think a Microsoft authorized reseller was recently booked in Delhi for indulging this very thing) or he is selling MSDN keys. Neither of them is legit. What he wrote is also ambiguous. He says that he is selling key only and at the end he says CD will be shipped once payment is cleared and that the CD was copied from Original DVD. MSDN keys usually require the ISO to be downloaded from MSDN. If he is providing both key and Disc, its mostly a MSDN version and if he is giving key only, then it would be stolen retail key.

As a thumb rule, If you are getting a unused retail serial of Win7 Ultimate for anything less than 8k, then rest assured that it will not be legit.
Click to expand...

I did not include the link with my post because I may have been considered guilty of promoting piracy.

Anyway His posting explicitly claims that it is a Retail Key. Now that claim would be false if it was a MSDN key wouldn't it?

Does Microsoft also have a retail sales channel that sells just keys to enable you to activate the trial version after having downloaded and tried it for a month or two? If such a thing is there then it could be genuine and he may send off the CD to those who want something physically delivered when they pay. BTW there are people like that.
 
^^ If the guy is providing a copied Disc as well, then there is no chance for an inexperienced person to find out whether its a retail version or MSDN Version. As for what he said don't take everything a eBay seller says as the truth. All pirated game sellers on eBay put up listings for a "original/genuine PC DVD Game" for all of 150 bucks when the actual game costs 999/-. eBay does not allow piracy, so they just list them as original games, most potential sellers understand that its a pirated copy just by looking at the price.

Anyway even if someone is selling out authentic Win7 retail keys, it would cost 8k+ in the very least if it was form a genuine source. Remember that the cost you are paying for is for the license (i.e the key), not for the disc. The retail disc and packaging does not take 5 bucks to mass manufacture. Also do note that the seller mentioned copying the disc from original DVD. He is not sending out original discs if someone requests them. 1500 bucks would not even get you a OEM copy of Windows let alone a retail key.

So simply put, if the key is being sold for less than the price of the full retail pack, its definitely not a retail key from a genuine source. If its a stolen key, it could land the buyer in a lot of trouble. I have known of cases where authorized retail sellers themselves sell of retail keys illegally. The same would not be found out till someone actually buys the retail pack and use the key. I know this because a while back, a local dealer back in AP offered to sell me a genuine Win XP retail key for 1200 bucks.
 
Sorry if this offends you but I think your post reflects a good deal of bias.

First to conclude that anyone from a particular place must be a cheat.

Second to conclude that a genuine seller must have a good command of the English language.

I hope you were just kidding.

@agantuk - Your post has already made exactly the same points. Sorry I saw it only when my page refreshed after I had posted my reply.
Click to expand...

ok Guys sorry for that.

Mate Tell me,

Looking at that Price did you feel like buying or you felt that somebody is trying to rip you off buy Rs 1599/-

I mean seriously, dont you think there would be people pouring in ebay for such a beautiful price for such a pricey product which costs Rs.8000+

First suggestion is stay away from ebay for Genuine MS products. If you want genuine then get it from MS itself.

To do that just validate your windows and when it says Product is not Genuine then choose the purchase option from MS and get it from them.
 
RS4 said:
Buy it from here:

Windows 7 Home Premium, Buy Windows 7 Home Premium Online in India

In india,microsoft is selling windows7 at a cheaper price than even US,so why dont you buy it from official sellers, its better to spend some more money and get guaranteed genuine stuff than risking your money on some random ebay cheats.
Click to expand...
You have recommended the best place to purchase genuine win7 at good price.

+1 for Microsoft Software: Buy Original Microsoft Software Products Online in India
 
@harishgayatri - In this case it was certainly a suspicion based on the principle "Too good to be true" and that is why i asked the question. No way would I blindly buy when there is so much discrepancy in price. However, I asked the question because I wanted to know if there was any possible legal way in which it was feasible for someone to sell at that price. Just because a product carries a MRP of Rs X does not mean one cannot buy it at significantly lower prices. Have you checked the MRP on the boxes of hardware you have bought recently? Would you assume that you have got a fake or that the supplier is a cheat?

Re: buying on ebay, Many members here including myself have bought a lot of stuff on ebay. The system is well setup and it is not easy for anyone to defraud and still stay in business. So I am pretty confident that the key the vendor will supply will be genuine and will work. The point is whether it will be legitimate or not. The distinction between genuine and legitimate is well made implicitly in this thread by Lord Nemesis.

--- Updated Post - Automerged ---

@ RS4 and ravi_9793 - Lynx offers it at a much lower price and I would trust Lynx to sell me legit stuff.

Anyway at the moment I have decided to try our Ubuntu and if it works for me there is going to be no purchase of Win 7. Thanks for the help anyway.
 
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