That definitely paints a different picture of the situation.
> Evidence submitted to the court shows that one transaction alone generated $28,000 in revenue for Mr. Lundgren and his co-defendant from the sale of 8,000 counterfeit software discs.
That's quite a bit more than 25 cents per disc.
Should Microsoft charge $25 for a disc and license to run windows on a refurbished, maybe not. But, I have a hard time believing that anyone could attempt to build a legitimate business based like the one described in this case and not expect some kind of legal repercussions.
> Sentencing guidelines for Mr. Lundgren were calculated at 37 to 46 months, according to federal sentencing rules, and the judge in this case issued a below-guidelines sentence of 15 months
I'm not sure how I feel about the prison sentence. I understand that to many people this feels like punishing someone that was trying to make the world a better place, but I can also see how this falls under the piracy / copyright infringement umbrella.
> Mr. Lundgren was even warned by a customs seizure notice that his conduct was illegal and given the opportunity to stop before he was prosecuted.
If this is true I have a hard time feeling bad for the guy. He should have consulted a lawyer at that point. At the least he was aware of the possible consequences.
According to 'the defendant' that value is all of the money he got from Bob Wolff over a couple of Years not only from the discs. The discs returned a lot less. Though of course that might be a lie, I wouldn't know.
The purchase order says $28k for 8k disks. It would be funny if he's telling the truth, and the fake PO that he made for an unrelated reason came back to bite him here...
There would not be a need for that type of for profit enterprise if Microsoft was a Responsible Corporation and provided tools for Recylers to restore their fully licensed Computers legally under the terms of the license they (Microsoft) sold with the equipment
But Microsoft wants to profit an additional $25 above and beyond their original license costs for that same system
If that was the object, why the sustained effort to imitate the official packaging, rather than just honestly admitting the discs were reproductions? Is that really the issue, when part of the defense of this guy made in the linked article is that the actual disc content was available for download for free from MS?
you believe sending a person to a prison for over a year where there is a high likely hood they will be raped, beaten and abused is the proper punishment for "imitation of the official packaging"
you believe that giving a person a felony conviction where by they will be denied many rights, barred from renting property, be unable to obtain many jobs, and for the rest of their lives have their economic and social opportunities limited is the proper punishment for "imitation of the official packaging"
I am honestly shocked by a callous reactions people have had to this case on HN, either people do not really understand what it means to go to a Federal prison for over year, have a felony criminal record and how that will for ever impact this persons life... forever.
Or People have a massively inflated value of "official packaging" and the protection of corporate profits/intellectual privilege .
This guy did not murder anyone, this guy did not cost anyone a job, this guy did not harm anyone, even if you are correct that he was attempting to dupe recylcers into believing it was "official packaging" what is the actual harm to the world in that?
Yikes, there is a rapid escalation in claims. Certainly we could argue about whether the length of the sentence is appropriate. Contrary to what you have written, I don't think anyone, even violent criminals, should be subject to prison rape, beatings, or abuse, nor do I think ex-convicts of any stripe should be denied housing, and I think it is absolutely a black mark on this country's justice system that such a thing is winked at. But let's not only trot out that defense when we're looking at white-collar criminals who remind us of ourselves and look the other way for others. The fact remains, though, that this guy was engaged in a for-profit criminal enterprise, and his defenders do not seem to even want to acknowledge that.
What's the harm? It's simple. It's fraud. He led people to believe they were buying one thing when they were buying another. It's no different than slapping Chiquita labels on different bananas and then turning around and saying "what's the problem, they were good bananas" when you're caught.
> Evidence submitted to the court shows that one transaction alone generated $28,000 in revenue for Mr. Lundgren and his co-defendant from the sale of 8,000 counterfeit software discs.
That's quite a bit more than 25 cents per disc.
Should Microsoft charge $25 for a disc and license to run windows on a refurbished, maybe not. But, I have a hard time believing that anyone could attempt to build a legitimate business based like the one described in this case and not expect some kind of legal repercussions.
> Sentencing guidelines for Mr. Lundgren were calculated at 37 to 46 months, according to federal sentencing rules, and the judge in this case issued a below-guidelines sentence of 15 months
I'm not sure how I feel about the prison sentence. I understand that to many people this feels like punishing someone that was trying to make the world a better place, but I can also see how this falls under the piracy / copyright infringement umbrella.
> Mr. Lundgren was even warned by a customs seizure notice that his conduct was illegal and given the opportunity to stop before he was prosecuted.
If this is true I have a hard time feeling bad for the guy. He should have consulted a lawyer at that point. At the least he was aware of the possible consequences.