>Tom,
>
>>A vision one or perhaps two years down the road. You go to install the latest greatest software from Microsoft. A check is made - is I.E. installed (nothing new here) and is Microsoft your ISP? If not kick out user.
>
>...yep...and all in the name of "consumer benefit". Actually, I have faith that folks will rebel far before that, and I just pray there are still enough viable alternatives around (like Linux) so that people have somewhere they can switch to...
>
>JoeK

I hope that you're right, Joe.
But there have been replies here that talk about 'nothing to worry about if you are 'in compliance'" referring to a BSA "audit", inferring that such audits are "matter of course", in the same class as an EPA audit, IRS audit, etc. And good old copyright law is (apparently) the basis for such audits.
Others simply say that "it is in the interest of the shareholders" and so is legitimate. I can see institutional shareholders being all for this, cause they just look at "the numbers" and see more profit, not to mention that they never work with this stuff (install/reinstall) themselves.

So we have "any audit is justified" and "for the shareholders' benefit" and I'm afraid that there may NOW be more in those camps than in the "I'm doing it right so leave me alone" camp.
JimN