how-to block ads
|
|
Uniqs:
1405 |
Share Topic
 |
 |
|
|
|
| Meraki - EULA changes even legal? Hello all. It's been brought to my attention that Meraki has decided to slap their customers in the face once again with a wonderful new amendment to their license agreement. Check this out:
3.5 Restrictions on Use. Meraki Hardware may only be used with Meraki Software. Customer agrees not to (i) disassemble or attempt to reverse engineer the Meraki Hardware, (ii) remove or erase the Meraki Software from the Meraki Hardware, or otherwise try to disable or alter the Meraki Software functionality; or (iii) load any other software onto the Meraki Hardware. I pulled that directly from their site ( »meraki.com/legal/end-user-license-agreement/ ). I've been accumulating Meraki Mini's and experimenting with various 3rd party firmware and I find this a real slap in the face. Further, I question how it's even legal. How can they possibly tell you what software you can or can't run on equipment you have purchased from them? I compared this elsewhere to Dell giving me a hard time for replacing Windows with Linux on their equipment. It just doesn't seem right. Their OS is based on free open source software for crying out loud! Whatever happened to their hacker friendly attitude?
Even if the change isn't legal or valid, I'm through giving Meraki my money. First they pulled the overnight pricing changes and instituted the advertisement bar crap, and now this...
- Tate
--
Happiness is an OC-48 in your basement... | |
 superdogI Need A DrinkPremium,MVM
join:2001-07-13
Lebanon, PA | said by Done_Posting:Even if the change isn't legal or valid, I'm through giving Meraki my money. First they pulled the overnight pricing changes and instituted the advertisement bar crap, and now this... - Tate I won't say "I told you so", as you and I have never talked about this before, but I had a premonition that this would be the end result. While they did make it very clear they were going to change some things after the product took off, this is really going to the extreme. Oh well......... 
While I have never bought one of these units, you can bet your a$$ that if I ever did?, they can go to he!! on a rocket, cause once I bought it, it belongs to me, and I can do whatever I want with it, PERIOD! 
--
»www.wavecrazy.net Join WISPA today! »www.wispa.org/ | |
| said by superdog:I won't say "I told you so", as you and I have never talked about this before, but I had a premonition that this would be the end result. While they did make it very clear they were going to change some things after the product took off, this is really going to the extreme. I figured they'd eventually make a move to discourage modding, albeit in the form of higher prices. When they increased the price of the Mini 300% without warning, I guess that should have been a sign of things to come. Then when the new Outdoor model was released with "mysterious" rebooting symptoms if re-flashed to different firmware, that should have been a dead giveaway that something was up.
The one good thing I'll say about the situation is that I'm happy I've only purchased five Mini's so far. I can only imagine how pissed I'd be if I sunk some significant capital into their gear before they decided to pull this.
While I have never bought one of these units, you can bet your a$$ that if I ever did?, they can go to he!! on a rocket, cause once I bought it, it belongs to me, and I can do whatever I want with it, PERIOD! Damn straight. I hope I can get the word out enough to save other budding entrepreneurs some headaches.
- Tate
--
Happiness is an OC-48 in your basement... | |
| reply to Done_Posting
Meraki is not going to survive the first legal challenge.
They appear to believe that they can encourage everyone with a DSL circuit to allow anyone on the planet to share it. That is a violation of any TOS the ILECs ever wrote.
What will eventually happen, in San Fran, is that the number of users sucking on the free tit of the ILECs will burden their networks enough that the ILECs will attack the only target they can ... Sanjit and the other idiots at Meraki ...
Technically, brilliant, otherwise ignorant as a kumquat... go back to the lab kiddies, it is dangerous out here.
So when Verizon and AT&T and whatever Cable company is in SF are done with Sanjit and his idiot practices the venture capital will be gone as will a neat little piece of hardware, a technically smart design, and a totally screwed up business model...
See ya, Sanjit... | |
lutfulPremium
join:2005-06-16
Ottawa, ON Reviews:
 ·TekSavvy DSL
| reply to superdog
said by superdog:cause once I bought it, it belongs to me, and I can do whatever I want with it, PERIOD! I hacked mine already. 
Meraki could legally restrict us from re-selling units with modified firmware but otherwise we could do as we please. | |
| reply to Done_Posting
said by Done_Posting:How can they possibly tell you what software you can or can't run on equipment you have purchased from them? - Tate Monkey see, monkey do?
Apple has done a similar thing with the iPhone... potentially bricking the phone if it's hacked, and voiding the warranty if any unauthorized software is installed on it.
The same argument is used on Internet connections. "They're my bits, I should be able to do what I please with them."
I forsee many legal battles. P2P usage, alternative firmware on devices, connection sharing, hacking and unlocking phones.
IMHO, It's good for the consumer - competition and innovation in all regards. But, from the business side of things? Of course we don't like users sucking our bandwidth using P2P or using different firmware to enable a device to do something we don't want it to do and possibly lose business in the process.
Will companies resolve to have 2 versions of a product? 1 with a right to do as we please with and 1 that is limited and cheaper? We want our stuff cheap, AND we want to do with it as we please.
*shrug*
Aaron | |
ssprengePremium
join:2006-10-09
Chaska, MN | said by SlickNetAaro:said by Done_Posting:How can they possibly tell you what software you can or can't run on equipment you have purchased from them? - Tate Monkey see, monkey do? Apple has done a similar thing with the iPhone... potentially bricking the phone if it's hacked, and voiding the warranty if any unauthorized software is installed on it. The same argument is used on Internet connections. "They're my bits, I should be able to do what I please with them." I forsee many legal battles. P2P usage, alternative firmware on devices, connection sharing, hacking and unlocking phones. IMHO, It's good for the consumer - competition and innovation in all regards. But, from the business side of things? Of course we don't like users sucking our bandwidth using P2P or using different firmware to enable a device to do something we don't want it to do and possibly lose business in the process. Will companies resolve to have 2 versions of a product? 1 with a right to do as we please with and 1 that is limited and cheaper? We want our stuff cheap, AND we want to do with it as we please. *shrug* Aaron This seems to be an apples to oranges argument. What you do with a physical product even with software installed on it, and what you do with a subscription for your own consumption are two different things. When you subscribe to cable tv, or internet service for your home, you can't share that with your neighbors, legally. When you buy a cable set-top box, you can use it to decode the cable signal for your viewing pleasure, for which it was intended, or you can tear the guts out of it and use it for food dish to feed your dog.
The point being that I don't think Meraki is standing on anything firm legally when they try to restrict your personal use of something that you have purchased for your own consumption. Repurposing any product for your own consumption should be legal in my opinion.
And in the case of software, if you don't use their software, how are you violating the terms of their end-user license? In the case of the hardware, if you open the box, it only voids their warranty. Big deal... we already knew that going into it.
So, the question is can a merchant sell something, and restrict your use of that product in any legal manner?
This is interesting, but I don't think Meraki can do anything about people buying their product, and repurposing it for whatever application they so choose.
By reflashing the Merakis or FONs, or anything, we are not using their software, and we are not reselling their hardware. Why is this any different than buying their product and using it for a food dish for my pet Spot? Not too smart because dog food dishes cost far less than a Meraki mini, but I fail to see any legal wrongdoing.
Any lawyers want to chime in?
--ssprenge | | |
|
|
