People looking to off-load their old Microsoft software to make way for Windows XP have to be careful about selling it online. For more than a year, Microsoft employees have kept tabs on eBay and other online auctions for software sales that the company believes violate its copyright or trademark rights. When they surface, Microsoft and the auction house work together to shut them down. Under the licensing agreement with Microsoft, people who buy a computer with pre-loaded software cannot break out the software and sell it. But if they buy the software separately, they can sell it.
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