Did You Ever Read that EULA?

Microsoft has just released a new version of its EULA, which is easier to read and access on line.  You may not like what you are reading but the reading is so much easier.  There are little things in it like this:

"Warranties. MICROSOFT, AND OUR AFFILIATES, RESELLERS, DISTRIBUTORS, AND VENDORS, MAKE NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, GUARANTEES OR CONDITIONS WITH RESPECT TO YOUR USE OF THE SERVICES. YOU UNDERSTAND THAT USE OF THE SERVICES IS AT YOUR OWN RISK AND THAT WE PROVIDE THE SERVICES ON AN "AS IS" BASIS "WITH ALL FAULTS" AND "AS AVAILABLE." YOU BEAR THE ENTIRE RISK OF USING THE SERVICES. MICROSOFT DOESN'T GUARANTEE THE ACCURACY OR TIMELINESS OF INFORMATION AVAILABLE FROM THE SERVICES. TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED UNDER YOUR LOCAL LAW, WE EXCLUDE ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING FOR MERCHANTABILITY, SATISFACTORY QUALITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, WORKMANLIKE EFFORT, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT."

It has always amazed me that vendors can get away with licensing a product and saying it will not be liable for merchantability of that product.  Our local enforcers stopped a couple of young girls from selling lemonade on the sidewalk because they were concerned that it might not be properly mixed or  the temperature maintained, but Microsoft can sell you something and deny that the product has to be useable for the purpose it was sold for.

And don't be concerned about your content.  Microsoft will not claim it [ that thought never entered my mind until I read that ] and will not be responsible for it:  

" Your Content. Many of our Services allow you to store or share Your Content or receive material from others. We don’t claim ownership of Your Content. Your Content remains Your Content and you are responsible for it.

• a. When you share Your Content with other people, you understand that they may be able to, on a worldwide basis, use, save, record, reproduce, transmit, display (and on HealthVault delete) Your Content without compensating you. If you do not want others to have that ability, do not use the Services to share Your Content. You represent and warrant that for the duration of these Terms, you have (and will have) all the rights necessary for Your Content that is uploaded, stored, or shared on or through the Services and that the collection, use, and retention of Your Content will not violate any law or rights of others. Microsoft cannot be held responsible for Your Content or the material others upload, store or share using the Services."  

And the extortion of the whole idea of this kind of licensing agreement is that if you don't like these conditions you should stop using their services and close your account.  

We need a new law in this area.  Software is a product and should be useful for the purpose it is sold.  There cannot be exceptions.   Second, if the product use damages your content, they should be responsible for it, not you.  Third, you should be able to opt out of these two areas and still use the product.  This is not something lawmakers should be allowed to continue.  Write to yours and tell them licensing needs to be changed.