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Microsoft Mandates Office 2000 Registration

Suite will shut down if you don't register, but Microsoft says it will guard your identity.

By Alexandra Krasne, PCWorld   

Office 2000, Service Release 1 will run, prompting you to register, 50 times. If you don't heed the nudge after 50 uses, the software shuts off. The restriction applies to retail (not multilicense) versions.

To avoid this conundrum, you must register the software via e-mail, phone, snail mail, or fax by sending a 16-digit code and the country in which you live to Microsoft. In return, the company will send you an eight-digit code that entitles you to install the software on up to two machines.

When you register electronically, the Registration Wizard passes an installation ID to Microsoft's server, similar to the way a Web site cookie puts identifying information on your PC. But Microsoft says its registration process doesn't identify you as a person--it just identifies your PC.

In order to get that eight-digit installation ID, the company needs an e-mail address, phone number, street address, or some way to send the code to you. Microsoft won't use that information for marketing or pass it to third parties without your consent, promises Jackie Carriker, group manager for worldwide antipiracy marketing.

Microsoft makes exceptions to the two-computer rule if you buy a new PC or your system crashes and you must reinstall the program. But you must contact Microsoft to get a workaround.

Only Pirates Should Fear

If the mandatory Office registration program is successful, you may see similar programs implemented on other Microsoft software, says Jon Magill, director of Microsoft's business licensing group.

"Legitimate customers don't have issues with this process," Magill says. "The only people who have concerns are people trying to pirate [the software]."

Software companies have long argued that they must charge more for programs in order to recoup for piracy. Office--including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook--runs more than $400 per new copy. But Microsoft won't confirm that requiring registration (and theoretically cutting down on counterfeiting) will reduce the price of Office. Rather, Microsoft is requiring registration to protect its own intellectual property and assist consumers, officials say.

Last March, after receiving flack from privacy advocates, Microsoft released a free software tool that lets you delete identifying numbers that are generated when you register Windows 98. A similar fix was deployed for Office 97.

But online discussion group participants were anything but welcoming to Microsoft's newest registration mandate. For some, this was the deciding factor in moving to another office suite, such as those offered by Corel or Sun. Others questioned how private Microsoft would keep their personal information.

Microsoft is also making it more difficult to pirate Windows 2000, which is due to ship next week, by etching holographic images onto its CD-ROM discs. Windows 2000 will also ship with certificates of authenticity, which will also come with PCs loaded with the operating system.