Amazon introduces new policy, intellectual property issues may be strictly investigated

On July 8, Amazon UK released updated guidelines on software sales.

In the announcement, Amazon said it would prohibit the sale of copies or duplicates, digital downloads, academic versions, or software that the manufacturer does not intend to sell at retail . Following the craze for blocking accounts related to small cards and account associations, Amazon's crackdown is targeting intellectual property rights, which may be the main target of blocking or fines in the next phase.

In the details of the specific announcement, Amazon mentioned the details of the software products that are prohibited from sale.

The software that is prohibited from sale mainly includes the following categories:

1. Replicated or copied software :

Sellers are prohibited from selling software that has been copied by anyone other than the original software manufacturer.

2. Digital Downloads

To protect sellers, buyers, and rights holders from digital piracy, sellers may not sell digitally downloadable software in any form, including activation codes, registration links, license keys, serial numbers , or any other credentials associated with the software.

For the avoidance of doubt, this prohibition includes, but is not limited to, providing access /activation information via email, Amazon messaging system, third party websites, any electronic channel, or in printed or physical form .

3. Any software that the manufacturer does not intend to sell retail :

The sale of any software that is not designed or intended by the manufacturer for retail sale on the Amazon Marketplace is prohibited. Such products include:

(1) OEM software:

Original equipment manufacturer ( OEM) software that is bundled with, installed on, or included with computer hardware. You may not sell this type of software on Amazon unless you sell the software with the hardware and list the software using the hardware ASIN.

(2) Free distribution or promotion of software:

Software distributed free of charge by a manufacturer, including freeware, shareware, and promotional software.

(3) Beta or pre-release software:

Software distributed for troubleshooting, testing, and evaluation purposes.

(4) Freeware and shareware:

Software distributed free of charge by the copyright holder.

(5) Expired subscription software:

Software that cannot be used because the subscription period has expired.

4. Academic Software

Academic software is software that is marketed to and used only by students, faculty, and educational institutions. Because Amazon cannot verify the academic status claimed by sellers or buyers, most academic software is prohibited from being sold on the Amazon Marketplace. To determine whether Amazon allows the sale of academic software that you want to list, follow the guidelines below:

Pre-purchase verification:

Because we cannot verify whether the seller or buyer meets the corresponding requirements when purchasing the product, the sale of academic software that requires pre-purchase verification is prohibited on the Amazon Marketplace.

Post-purchase verification:

Academic software that requires post-purchase verification is permitted on Amazon. If the license is not transferable or the buyer does not have access to technical support or upgrades, it is prohibited on Amazon.

Amazon wants to stop sellers who offer pirated software and send instructions to customers via email or message about where to download their products. But in changing or clarifying its rules for selling software, Amazon has made the market for software sales more confusing.

Amazon wants to change the cross-border e-commerce market environment and strive to become a qualified industry benchmark. This starting point is good, but Amazon has little understanding of the market situation. The new rules announced this time are likely to affect a series of legal and normal merchants.

Although Amazon only announced the software sales in the UK, the UK may just be a pilot project for Amazon. It is not difficult to see that Amazon's next direction will be the protection of intellectual property rights. The road for a large number of traditional merchants who rely on distribution will become increasingly difficult, and brands have become the new Tower of Babel. How to build a good brand is the top priority at this stage.

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