Hardware

Ask something
Discussion Locked

Creative Labs sad support

0 helpful
3 replies

by shepherd66

Closed to new repliesThis discussion is closed. It stays readable, but it takes no new replies.

The following is from the Creative Labs forum. It is a sad testament for their customers. Go to their forum to read the responses.

Dale-CL
Moderator
Posts: 2395
Registered: 07-13-2006

Message 1 of 620

Viewed 103,600 times

Message to Daniel_K

Daniel_K:

We are aware that you have been assisting owners of our Creative sound cards for some time now, by providing unofficial driver packages for Vista that deliver more of the original functionality that was found in the equivalent XP packages for those sound cards. In principle we don't have a problem with you helping users in this way, so long as they understand that any driver packages you supply are not supported by Creative. Where we do have a problem is when technology and IP owned by Creative or other companies that Creative has licensed from, are made to run on other products for which they are not intended. We took action to remove your thread because, like you, Creative and its technology partners think it is only fair to be compensated for goods and services. The difference in this case is that we own the rights to the materials that you are distributing. By enabling our technology and IP to run on sound cards for which it was not originally offered or intended, you are in effect, stealing our goods. When you solicit donations for providing packages like this, you are profiting from something that you do not own. If we choose to develop and provide host-based processing features with certain sound cards and not others, that is a business decision that only we have the right to make.

Although you say you have discontinued your practice of distributing unauthorized software packages for Creative sound cards we have seen evidence of them elsewhere along with donation requests from you. We also note in a recent post of yours on these forums, that you appear to be contemplating the release of further packages. To be clear, we are asking you to respect our legal rights in this matter and cease all further unauthorized distribution of our technology and IP. In addition we request that you observe our forum rules and respect our right to enforce those rules. If you are in any doubt as to what we would consider unacceptable then please request clarification through one of our forum moderators before posting.

Phil O'Shaughnessy
VP Corporate Communications
Creative Labs Inc.

Forum Moderator
Creative Labs

03-28-2008 10:02 AM

3 replies

by nicknielsen

[i]By enabling our technology and IP to run on sound cards for which it was not originally offered or intended, you are in effect, stealing our goods. When you solicit donations for providing packages like this, you are profiting from something that you do not own.[/i]

Creative decides not to support older hardware under Windows Vista. This guy steps in to make it possible to use that older hardware with Vista. The guy then decides to make Creative software work with other sound cards and ask for money and Creative gets upset.

I don't see how this is a problem.

by Former member

in the issue of Creative Labs believing that enabling older cards to work with newer software cuts into Creative Labs sales of new cards.

The other side of the coin is that Creative Labs set themselves up as an audio card standard so that they should not be complaining. As a standard, Creative Labs in effect receives free advertising.

by nicknielsen

But I'm not sure of that. I don't think Creative had a problem with him creating Vista drivers for sound cards that Creative is trying to make obsolete. The excerpt below implies that the problem is with him modifying SB 16 drivers to support Audigy cards (or whatever he was doing).

[i]We are aware that you have been assisting owners of our Creative sound cards for some time now, by providing unofficial driver packages for Vista that deliver more of the original functionality that was found in the equivalent XP packages for those sound cards. In principle we don't have a problem with you helping users in this way, so long as they understand that any driver packages you supply are not supported by Creative. [b]Where we do have a problem is when technology and IP owned by Creative or other companies that Creative has licensed from, are made to run on other products for which they are not intended.[/b][/i] (My emphasis)

Edit: added emphasis

This discussion is closed to new replies.