A couple from Washington state who are accused of trying to sell counterfeit software say they were only trying to pay for their late nephew's headstone when they placed a copy of the Rosetta Stone that he had owned on eBay, the Columbian is reporting.
As it turned out, that copy was pirated, so eBay pulled the listing and the couple now owes Rosetta Stone several hundred dollars, which they say they cannot afford to pay.
Hoefer and his wife, Susy, said they came across the software -- still in its packaging -- while going through their nephew's things and that they had no idea it wasn't legitimate.
A spokesperson for the company responded to the Colombian with the following statement.
"Rosetta Stone is in an ongoing dialogue with the parties involved in this particular case to potentially resolve the issue so that counterfeit software is no longer being offered by this individual to unsuspecting consumers."
Counterfeit software has been a popular item for people to try to sell on eBay for years. According to Ars Technica, it's estimated at 90 percent of the software on eBay is counterfeit.
As of February of 2011, the Software and Information Industry Association had filed more than 100 lawsuits against sellers of such items. In April, they won a five figure settlement against a software pirate in California.
In 2009, a Virginia man was sentenced to three years in prison for selling more than $1 million worth of pirated software on eBay and was ordered to pay Adobe more than $700,000 in restitution.
Couple Faces $700 Tab For Listing Copy Of Rosetta Stone They ...
Felida couple face punishment for good intentions | The Columbian
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The Huffington Post | By Katherine Bindley Posted: 05/22/2012 2:31 pm Updated: 05/23/2012 8:47 am