Community Expert

Question

Thinking of buying from eBay?

Forum|Forum|18 years ago
February 15, 2008
221 replies
323908 views

Edited October 23, 2008

The original article that this post referred to has expired but there's still quite a bit of good information in this thread.

The point is that eBay software is a risky purchase with much of it illegally pirated.

Bob

This topic has been closed for replies.

A

Anonymous

Hi All,

First of all eBay is not an authorized reseller. When you contact Adobe support for a software or any technical issue and say that you have purchased from eBay they do not provide support, since 99.999 % software's that are sold on eBay or any auction sites are non-legitimate (pirated). This also includes Amazon market place. However Amazon is an authorized reseller of Adobe software's.

Also, we can find here onething. If any reseller who provides the software purchase /delivery method as a download is not an authorized reseller of Adobe.com since the ESD (downloadable) version's is provided one and only by Adobe.com store. It is always recommended that purchase directly from Adobe.com which is safe and convenient rather purchasing the software from eBay store, since you end up cheated.

I have seen many people buying the software from ebay and later struggle with the license and so many issues. Also, Adobe does not accept returns for the software that are purchased from market place / auction sites. Instead if you purchase it from Adobe directly you have a timeframe to return the software. In most cases people who buy software from ebay end up contacting support and complain that the license is invalid. Ofcorse the price listed are pretty high compared to the retail outlets, why can't people think that Adobe itself selling in huge price, howcome retailers sell the same product for not even half of the actual cost?

One thing I can assure is; that people always regret for the software's that are purchased from sites like eBay.

I have seen customers who only purchase the software's directly from Adobe will be delighted always, there might be some issues which you may across in a rare scenario BUT Adobe rocks......!

M

morgandj

Participating Frequently

Hmm! I don't think anybody suggested eBay was an 'authorised' seller or that they were 'downloading' software from eBay or a seller on eBay.

Certainly from my point of view I would not buy anything in terms of software that did not come in an official retail box with all the barcodes and security devices you would find on a box in a retail (authorised) store.

Still some here (Mr. Hunt) will still assume if you purchased from a retailer that you found via eBay then you are dealing in pirated software even though the product activates on installation and Adobe are happy the serial number is legit

David

M

morgandj

Participating Frequently

My recent experience shows that maybe Adobe are their wost enemy

let me explain, I wanted to update from CS4 to CS5, I live in Australia where our $ is at parity with the $US at the Adobe US store an upgrade costs $US175 at the OZ Adobe store it costs $AUD303. I can't shop at the Adobe USA store as I don't live in the USA or Canada.

Despite twice talking to the online numbnuts I was simply told it is a marketing issue! I am trying to get an electronic download version, probably all comes from the same server.

Anyway via eBay I found a USA retailer selling a boxed version of CS5 upgrade shipped priority to me for $AUD202, the software came last week about 7 days given the festive season! I have it installed, it's the real McCoy and works great.

Moral is, if adobe weren't money grabbing, I would have used their store like I have so many times before, but because of their actions they will drive people to retailers online where some of the products might be pirated or at the best dodgy...

David

the_wine_snob

Inspiring

You know, I have see so very many people try to rationalize, or justify their dishonesty. Sometimes, it's "I'm but a poor student." Other times it's "I really need this product to make enough money to buy it." I do not recall anyone staying that their act of dishonesty was "Adobe's fault."

Odd logic, to say the least,

Hunt

M

morgandj

Participating Frequently

The title of this thread is "Thinking of buying from eBay" not piracy! my view is that not all things are bad from eBay provided you use common sense and do your research and homework.

David,

You are, of course, correct. All things eBay are not bad. However, for every purchaser of software from eBay, that is legit, and properly transferred, there do seem to be 1000 (or perhaps many more), that are either pirated, or are not legal for transfer. In some cases, perhaps the seller does not realize that if they use, say CS2 to upgrade to CS5, and install it, that their CS2 copy cannot be legally sold. Because of the ratio of bad to good, I cannot imagine that I would ever even consider buying any software on eBay.

In all of my years, I cannot recall one user saying, "hey, I just bought a copy of _____ [fill in your favorite Adobe program here], and the seller had all the proper license transfer paperwork, and everything worked perfectly." Maybe they have just never shown up in any of the fora, that I frequent, Adobe, and other. Bound to have happened, but I have never heard of it. Instead, it's usually a licensing issue, usually discovered when one tries to Activate the eBay software. Even if things seem to go well, very many then come here with "certain functions of my eBay Adobe program do not work - why?"

To me, the acquisition, and upgrade of my various Adobe products is just the price of doing business. If I can do better with it, or do it more quickly, I buy it, and amortize the price over the next year's jobs. Do I love paying top $? No, but my time is $, and if I have to troubleshoot my software, I am not producing and selling my work. Guess that I am just buying "peace of mind," and also supporting a company, that has supported me for decades.

Good luck,

Hunt

In all of my years, I cannot recall one user saying, "hey, I just bought a copy of _____ [fill in your favorite Adobe program here], and the seller had all the proper license transfer paperwork, and everything worked perfectly."

????? What happens when you go to an authorised reseller and buy an Adobe product off the shelf? are you saying this is not legit! we should only buy from Adobe!

Maybe your reference is to ebay only, but have you seen the number of legit retailers that are selling on eBay?, retailers that have actual street stores and sell many other products.

Wether you like it or not, commerce and retailers are using the internet to increase their reach and frequency and make more sales to a global community.

I again highlight my case. 1. Adobe had not adjusted it's prices in accordance with my countries strenghening dollar. 2. Adobe would not allow me to purchase from their US store which had cheaper retail prices. 3. I sorced a US retailer that sold me a product in the same manner had I walked into their NY store and bought it off the shelf.

This has nothing to do with PIRACY! it is pure and simply economic reality.

I can therefore say "hey, I just bought a copy of Adobe CS5 upgrade, and the seller had all the proper license transfer paperwork, and everything worked perfectly."

David

Doc81harley

Participating Frequently

Going on 6 months now since I bought my copy of Photoshop CS5 Extended off Ebay. I bought from a person in the United States, got the software, contacted Adobe, verified I had a valid serial number, installed copy on computer and have not had ANY problems since. It updates reguarly with no problems and all functions within the program work excellent. The program is not pirated nor was it a 30 day trial version.

So you all can think I did wrong by buying it off Ebay or not...I think a lot of what you buy online requires research and finding the right person to deal with. I am totally happy with my Photoshop program and am kicking out designs daily without problems.

And as for Acresofgreen...I did sign into Adobe and register the program, got an Adobe ID#, and all the free add-ons that come with purchasing a new copy of Adobe Photoshop. I was verified by Adobe as having a legit program and that it would work perfectly well on two computers. I think this about sums it up, it is possible to buy off Ebay...just do your homework. I don't buy anything from China off Ebay. If it is not available in the US then I look elsewhere.

So no woe is me, I bought off Ebay and got ripped off...it did not happen!!!!

R

remotepcaccess

Participant

$600 dollars is a lot of money to lose. Sorry to hear that.

Glad I read this, because other people i know say to buy software from ebay. I didn't know it had problems like this!

Thx

T

tmboyz

Participant

what about Amazon?

V

Valathome67

Participating Frequently

I didn't contact them don't realy know what to do or how.

ipod163

Participant

Prices in Australian dollars, from a reputable retailer:

PS CS3 full version AU$899
PS CS3 Extended full version AU$1489
PS CS3 upgrade AU$275
PS CS3 Extended education AU$399.

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Nannypro

Participant

Wow, I was just about to buy design premium from a seller on ebay.It looks so legit! I guess the price is too good to be true.

Thanks for the info!

Denise Overseed

N

NaughtyNeo

Participant

I wonder why is eBay allowing people to sell Adobe software, when people can actually go to Adobe website and get a genuine copy.

My guess is that eBay clearly knows that most of them are pirated copies and few genuine sellers. But they just like the money they get as commission.

the_wine_snob

Inspiring

Yes, that would certainly have to figure into the business model, and the decision to allow such.

Hunt

E

emlouis

Participant

I bought PS CS5 on ebay, knowing that there was a risk.

Got the item and installed ok. The problem was when I opened it after the install,

the pop up window appeared, says trial. I gave the serial number again and this time

was invalid. Looks like I have less that 30 days to use as it has started to count the days remaining.

I found out this is a pirate when it was posted from China, even though the seller was from the US.

I do not know too much about the computer but all I want is just to be able to use the thing!

Can anyone tell me what I can do, please?

BobLevine

Author

Community Expert

You knew there was a risk and you got suckered. All you can do now is request a refund from the seller. If he/she refuses report it to your credit card company.

Bob

L

Lou1917

Participant

So having read all the responses from 2008 to 2010, I still am not sure if the questions has been answered. Here's my dilemma. I want to upgrade from Premiere 3 to Premiere 8. Ebay is auctioning a copy of 8 at around $30 to $40. Adobe sells it for $80. Can I assume that the Ebay product is fraudulent and I should buy from Adobe for the full retail price. The Ebay price is very tempting but after reading all the comments, I'm 75% convinced that I should forego Ebay altogether.

David Ayars

Participating Frequently

Lou,

I have stopped buying software on eBay because most of it is counterfeit.Most of what's being discussed in this thread pertains to Adobe Photoshop (not Elements), which is a $650 piece of software, not $80 as Elements is. So you might think that there's little incentive for counterfeit fraud with the $80 software. But that's not true. Inexpensive software is often counterfeited as well and sold on eBay.

Without looking at the specific auction you have in mind, it's hard to offer an objective opinion about any one auction. If you post the link, they'll edit ithe link out of your post here, so don't bother.

I did just look at the active eBay auctions for PE8 in the price range you mention. I didn't see any Buy It Now auctions in that range. There are half a dozen auction listings starting in that range that will most likely end with a selling price closer to $50-60, not $30-40, even though they're starting at $30-40. There is one seller who has listed dozens of copies of unboxed Photoshop Elements 8, some in this price range as auctions, others as Buy It Now or auction sales starting in the $50-60 range. Selling dozens of copies, unboxed, are strike one and strike two, for increasing likelihood of fraud, as far as I'm concerned. He doesn't specifically say so in his listings, but he implies that he is selling OEM copies which must be distributed with hardware, because he includes hardware in the auction. I don't know whether PE8 is legitimately distributed in the way described in his listings, but it can be counterfeited, stolen, or purchased wholesale that way, easily.

There is only one auction in this price range that looks like it might be for a retail copy of PE8. Someone is selling only one copy, and he's never listed and sold other copies before. He claims he got it as a gift but already had it, so he's selling his extra copy. That's one good reason to sell software as a bargain. One concern: he admits opening the box, to see if what was inside matched what he has. A little odd, but maybe we overlook it. Another concern, did the person buying this as a gift for him buy a legitimate retail copy, or did he buy a fake one, too, or even steal it? There's no way to know, although the fact that his copy comes in the box helps a bit. Boxes can be and are counterfeited, too, though.

Nobody is going to sell multiple legitimate copies of retail Adobe software at half price, until the product has been discontinued, because it's too easy to sell it for more. You could wait until PE8 is discontinued for PE9 and snap it up on clearance from a legitimate retail outlet. You could also check legitimate online retailers such as Newegg and amazon or stores for a better price than Adobe's. Those are safer bets than buying on eBay.

L

Lou1917

Participant

Thanks a lot for your answers. You have confirmed for me what was always in the back of my mind that this was too good to be true. I think I'll pay the extra and get a legal copy from Adobe. Thanks again. I really rely on people like you to help software-challenged people like me!!

J

J4e8a16n

Known Participant

Is this place safe?

Link deleted

BobLevine

Author

Community Expert

Any place selling academic versions with no requirement for credentials is not legit, IMO.

Bob

John T Smith

Community Expert

>Any place selling academic versions with no requirement for credentials is not legit, IMO

I work at a University, so buy education versions where the license allows personal use outside the education organization (pretty much all of them, as far as I know... but I do check first to make sure I can use the software at home)

Your "IMO" is actually fact... an education reseller is supposed to require proof of school identity... looking around at Adobe's product or store information area will lead to a link where Adobe describes their requirements for someone to sell education versions of their software... ah... here are some links

http://www.adobe.com/education/students/studentteacherlicensing/school_listing.html

http://www.adobe.com/education/students/studentteacheredition/eligibility.html

http://www.adobe.com/education/students/studentteacherlicensing/

The only two I have bought from DO require proof http://www.studica.com/ and https://www.academicsuperstore.com/

Even the bookstore on my campus requires a student or employee ID