Question: Is it O.K. to buy OEM software?
Are cheap OEM software offers for real?
Answer: Be very cautious with offerings of cheap software or free software when the software involved is normally not free or costs much more.
Top financial software is sold all over the internet at unrealistically cheap prices, and most of these sellers are selling OEM versions of the software. OEM software is meant to be bundled with new computers and not for general resale.
Often, these software sellers do not reveal that you are buying OEM software, although some are upfront about it. The problem with OEM financial software is that you probably will not be able to register the software to get access to all features, software updates and support.
The Software and Information Industry Association Anti-Piracy Division deems the selling of OEM software to be illegal. Bottom line: do not buy OEM software. The "savings" aren't worth it. Instead, check out Ebay or other websites for last year's version of software you are interested in to buy the software at a lower cost. Be sure software you purchase online comes packaged in an unopened box because OEM software usually comes in a sleeve with no packaging.
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