| Abandonware is a designation given to software that developers no longer support or sell. Old arcade and console games generally are labeled as abandonware, as are old computer games and outdated applications. Abandonware should not be confused with freeware,
which the authors or owners intended to be free from the outset, nor should it be confused with shareware, which is created to make a profit.
Abandonware is commercial software that once sold for a price and is no longer available.
The Internet has magnified the issues surrounding abandonware by making it easier to distribute, but all Internet users should be aware that it is illegal to download most of the abandonware you find online. Although the software may no longer be supported
or sold in stores, the individuals who own the rights to the software still have the right to distribute it as they see fit.
The fact also remains that a company potentially can begin selling its old software again, and abandonware distribution in the meantime will cut into any future profits it would receive by doing so. For these reasons and many more, most companies are sending
cease and desist letters to the leading abandonware sites and
occasionally taking legal action to protect their software. The IDSA (Interactive Digital Software Association) is perhaps the most proactive antipiracy group trying to stop the spread of illegal abandonware, but individual companies, such as Nintendo, also police the Internet and attempt to shut down sites illegally distributing copies of their software.
Sometimes designers, developers, or people with the rights to
distribute their software grant the computing community rights to copy and distribute their old commercial titles, and this is the only
circumstance where obtaining abandonware is legal. |
