Avoid purchasing software from these companies!

I don't know about you but my PC is my property and when there are a lot of updates, lots of drivers and software updates, I like to format or restore back to an image I created right after I installed Windows / configured it in order to have a fresh start. Yes I know I can uninstall them via special uninstallers or do registry cleaning, but I have had a lot of false positive removals of registry keys that are not pertaining to that particular program with the likes of Revo Uninstaller and Total Uninstall so I prefer the image restoration. Nothing better than a fresh start right? Well not if you own or have purchased anything from these companies.

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CyberLink:

I have purchased every product in their lineup, CyberLink YouCam Deluxe, PowerDVD Ultra, Audio Director, Photo Director, and PowerDirector, Power2Go Platinum 9 & 10 every year, like a fool (yes I admit) for getting nothing but a few cosmetical changes in the interface and no real added value or functionality.

But CyberLink still doesn't see me as a valued customer who doesn't want to pirate their software and pays the full price to be a legit user. What do they reward me with? Limitations and appalling customer service.

CyberLink YouCam, PhotoDirector, and Audio Director allow me to reinstall them so when I do format or restore back, I have no issues reinstalling them. BUT PowerDVD15 and PowerDirector.......2 or 3 re-activations and your license key is blocked......

Initially, I would sit and wait for 3 - 7 business days until I received a response from their customer service who even though they see the ticket was created from my CyberLink account, they still require me to send them proof or purchase and screenshots of the error message I receive when I try re-activating. I did that a few times but then I was bored of waiting, I will not accept being under the mercy of some lame customer service reps who all they do is cause inconvenience to the paying customer.

So being tired of this, I told them to cancel all my CyberLink licenses and issue me a refund! Their response was that they have a 30 day period for refund and nothing can be done at this point. I asked them to escalate the case to their management but they refused. Well that 30 day window is meaningless because by the time one would discover that there is a certain activation limit on the license, the 30 days are already up and you would be stuck.

I then contacted PayPal with 0 hope that they can do anything since some of the licenses go back to March 2014.......surprise! PayPal refunded every single one of my purchases, Cyberlink YouCam 6, YouCam 7, Audio Director, Photo Director,
Power2Go Platinum 9 & 10, PowerDVD 14 Ultra, PowerDVD 15 Ultra. They left no stone unturned! They taught those suckers a lesson not to mistreat their customers!

Still not enough? When you buy a product rather than opting for a free one, it is usually because you want better support, no PUPs or other injected programs that you didn't ask for. Well with CyberLink, installing Media Espresso which I was given as a freebie (a media converter) would automatically and silently install DivX for me which in turn tried to install some PUP. WOW!

When you open any of CyberLink's programs that you may have installed, if there was an update, it would prompt you to download an update, great, try to install it and it would install Google Chrome for you as the option is checked by default! Why?!? why in God's name do they bundle programs for paid programs I don't understand!
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Kaspersky:

2 or 3 activation attempts and your license is blacklisted! Contact their customer support, they would reply back within a whoooping 10 day period asking you for proof or purchase, which after you submit, is another 10 day wait for them to reset your key.

Even though Kaspersky gets great reviews and detection rates and appear to be one of the lightest security solutions these days according to AV-TEST and AV Comparatives, I would never buy anything that has Kaspersky on it due to this horrible customer service and really outdated way of checking the license key whether it was really being used on the same computer or if the user is misusing it.
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The point I am trying to make is, I know the companies want to protect their business and their licenses, but there are smarter ways to do this! For example, with other antivirus programs, you are given an online portal where you can manage your licenses to de-activate one and use it on another or the same computer as a reinstallation. Other companies check the computer name / specifications to make sure it is being used only on one computer; and other companies check the IP address from which updates are being made such as the case with ESET so you never have a problem no matter how many times you reinstall, it is a very user friendly method that doesn't make one regret making a purchase from the said company.

Please share your experiences with bad companies to avoid.......

 

This is why I don't use either of those software and for Kaspersky and those so called AV-TEST it is so biased I believe their test like rubbing salt into a open sore......

 

True, they state some AVs as the lightest for example in their performance tests, but then look at the same results from AV Comparatives and it's a different story.

Just as an example, let's compare a few, check the performance rating of Trend Micro on AV-Test then check it on AV Comparatives.... Same goes for F-Secure......it's like each one of those testing entities lives on a different planet


AV-TEST

AV-Comparatives Performance Test

 

In real world usage I had no problem with MSE and I have been using it since 2007 without problems.

 

ive never had a issue with power director
updated from 10 to 12 about 2 years ago and when i ordered i had the option of the dvd backup for as far as i can remember an extra £5
no mention of limited re installs so will keep an eye on that one.
thanks for the heads up.

 

Lots of software when you uninstall the trial version it sends your browser to their website giving you a questioner asking why you uninstalled it, and a lot of the time they give you an discounted price.

John.

 

Like to mention Kaspersky is now being accused of knowing targeting competitors A/V program and corrupting their A/V program. So there again A/V problem now shouldn't be looking for just Virus/Malware but others like Kaspersky attempt to gain your system and corrupt your current A/V if it isn't Kaspersky.

 

Wow! this is evil man!! I would freakin' use it if only they didn't have this 3 activation and BAAM you're out limit! but this is beyond any morals or ethics

 

Avoid anything online by MSFT, owing to its Paragraph 3 of aka.ms/msa . Which means, Windows 10 (which incorporates aka.ms/msa wholly by reference in its EULA paragraphs 1b(i) and 14, but you can't know that, since you can't paste the link into your browser until you HAVE one, and the browser is one of the 'services' covered in aka.ms/msa so you're on the hook the moment you install); Bing, Office 365 (newly, as of August 1), Skype, Edge, Outlook.com, any MS mail, go look it up yourself.

Why? CODE OF CONDUCT is unilaterally imposed on you with NO recourse to due process of law, in Paragraph 3a. Paragraph 3b arrogates to MSFT the rights to SLURP and STOP and REMOVE or otherwise bork whatever it wants, on your machine. Again, no due process of law (i.e., it doesn't need a warrant from the police, no court order from a judge, no appeal to ANY duly-constituted authority, to justify doing this).

There's much more wrong, I tried to summarize here: http://brainout.net/frankforum/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=59 . The immediate context with official MSFT links, is Win10, but the same terms apply to pretty much all the ONLINE stuff MSFT offers, and of course to Windows Phone.

It applies obliquely to other products, like Office 2016, since much of that software interfaces with the online stuff covered (similar hook as with Win10).

So if you use an earlier Windows or earlier Office and not Office 365, you're likely okay. But since MSFT can change the terms at any time, and the 'services' covered, PERIODICALLY check here to be sure: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/servicesagreement/#serviceslist

BOYCOTT MSFT until this is changed, for if we don't, then they not only will keep spreading it (to justify the datamining and hence advertisements and fees from companies to mine the info), but other software houses will mindlessly ape the practice as well.

This will become the biggest software scandal in the 21st century. Will make Ashley Madison and all the other data breaches look like Mary Poppins. And NONE of the pundits are paying attention to how evil is Paragraph 3 of aka.ms/msa, how lawsuit-generating it is, how hitlerian it is. NO ONE.

Which is ominous.