After they told me the serial number was valid and not yet registered I ordered the software
that’s wise. you got a good deal kees! no one’s saying that EVERYTHING on ebay is pirated, but the legit ones seem to be in the minority. (at least as far as what’s been discussed here.) a careful buyer can lessen his chances of getting burned by being as diligent as you were.
Prices in Australian dollars, from a reputable retailer:
PS CS3 full version AU$899
PS CS3 Extended full version AU$1489
PS CS3 upgrade AU$275
PS CS3 Extended education AU$399
Current exchange rate US$0.92 equals AU$1.00
so converting the above:
PS CS3 full version US$827
PS CS3 Extended full version US$1370
PS CS3 upgrade US$253
PS CS3 Extended education US$367
Klaas
I bought CS3 from ebay and it seems to be ligitiment…loaded software and registered it…all seems ok….got it for $280.00…said made in usa on box.
Hey Bob…could you please shorten Jeff’s SuperLink? You could use this: <
http://xrl.us/bgge4> (Link to cgi.ebay.com.au) (as generated by <
http://metamark.net)>
For that matter, the link doesn’t even need to be there at all. A description would suffice.
Will the beta version still work at all? Seems Adobe would disable it with their online registration. I run a photography business <
http://www.atlantisphotodesign.com> and would love to upgrade my photoshop but don’t want to be out of money buying some bootleg or beta stuff.
Will the beta version still work at all?
no. not without modifications to your system.
but don’t want to be out of money buying some bootleg or beta stuff.
Then buy from legitimate resellers or directly from Adobe.
Bob
and would love to upgrade my photoshop but don’t want to be out of money buying some bootleg or beta stuff.
so buy it.
from a legit reseller, not from some fell of the back of a truck operation.
is that how you do all your business? then why would you consider doing it like that in this case, especially assuming that if you run a photog business, photoshop would seem to be a pretty critical componant of your operations?
buying from ebay? that’s not a brilliant ideea!
if someone cannot afford the photo editing power of genuine photoshop then should be aware that there are free graphic editors alternatives e.g. <
http://www.softspecialist.com/GIMP-278/GIMP.htm> (and there are also others) and limit to them. They are not as powerful as photoshop but you can use them in a honest way to do the job in photos and graphics.
Guys, that all the same PIRATES story. Dont believe that sh%t!
Hello All
Has anybody come across this problem before on the 15/06/2008 i won an ebay auction which was the adobe photoshop cs3 extended version
for £150 which i thought was a very good bargain.
The person who sold it to me answered all my questions that i asked for instance
was it a student version was it new or secondhand had it been registered and activated and also was it a PIRATED version
the answer came back to me as it was a fully good retail version like you see in the shops. So on that i was happy and i duly won the auction
As this person came from the netherlands the software would be with me in about a weeks time,over a week had passed no software
Then i got an email appologising he had been away and just got back my auction had slipped his mind a few days later i recived a S.M.S.
tracking number for my parcel which was coming from China which i thought was strange eventually it arrived
installed the prog put in the serial number and activated it everything went okay then i went to register it and put my name and address in with the rest of the details and it said okay that you will get an email shortly
This email never arrived.So i went into my account on the adobe website to have a look to see if it was in and in the registration section on my adobe elements was showing
so then i went to the page where you can put in your serial number in and it came up with an error saying it did nor reconise the number What i’m puzzled about is why did it activate and also why did it say you will recivee an email shortly if my serial number is bogus one doe anybody know ??
Also on the bottom of my box my pinumber according to google does not reconise it as an adobe photoshop cs3 pinnumber ??
await anybodys answer please
It sounds like you might have been scammed. Contact Adobe customer service and ask if the serial number is legitimate. If it’s not, contact the seller, Ebay, and your credit card company.
Some pirated versions have a hacked activation and registration system that doesn’t actually contact Adobe; it just says that you are activated and/or registered. As to not getting the email from Adobe, that’s not a very good indicator. Adobe tends to take many months to send the email with link for the registration bonus.
From my understanding, about ninety percent of the Adobe software being sold on eBay is pirated, along with most of the other software, thats the only way they can sell it for so cheap. I would steer clear of software on eBay and buy from trusted stores.
that would be nice. it would be nice to be able to confidently buy used sw from ebay at a deep discount from people who genuinely want to sell their stake in such software. as it is now i wouldn’t buy sw from ebay with YOUR credit card! 🙂 good find rick!
as it is now i wouldn’t buy sw from ebay with YOUR credit card!
….and I appreciate that! 🙂
Hi,
I just wanted to add to this post. I followed it before I purchased my copy of CS3 from a reputable Adobe dealer here in Australia. In fact the supplier was Adobe Australia’s preferred dealer and they directed me there. When I received CS3, on the box it said "Made in Singapore". I was very concerned and rang Adobe here, as well as having my son living in USA do the same thing with Adobe. Both of them verified that I have a genuine copy. Perhaps "Made in Singapore" is not a definite clue to holding a pirated copy. It may be that Adobe produce their product here for the Asia-Pacific market.
Could be the pirates got their original from there.
Perhaps "Made in Singapore" is not a definite clue to holding a pirated copy.
no. from what i understand there is a legit adobe manufacturer in singapore. it’s just that the most pirated copy seems to have been taken from an original that was made there so that many of the pirate copies out there bear the ‘made in singapore’ tag.
There are some legitimate discounts on ebay, though not so steep. As is well known, some sellers provide the upgrade version and also include a full unopened legacy version, such as 6 (how I bought cs2). This will net a full current version with a pretty respectable discount.
Nick, unfortunately, this is not always a safe way to obtain a legitimate discount either.
While the upgrade product may be legitimate, the ‘base’ or qualifying product (if it even comes with one) may not be – some sellers just supply a paper license with a serial number that may already be registered, or from a keygen…
when they do supply a legacy product, this may also be counterfeit, so it’s still a case of ‘if it sounds too good to be true… it usually is’.
Some Pirated copies DO go through the automated computer serial system, but they get flagged as Pirated. Meaning if you ever try to uninstall and reinstall you won’t be able to, or if you ever try to upgrade or sell it it won’t work. Buying software online is a HORRIBLE idea unless you buy from the software company. It’s just plain common sense.
Congratulation if you got the genuine one that cheap.
But I suggest that,next time, if you want to make sure that you got genuine one, just buy straight from the company or their authorized reseller.
And you may get some discount if they’re running promotions. But not likely that the company itself willing to sell it for very low price without running a grand campaign to public eyes.
I once bought adobe on ebay, it came in a box, shrink wrapped and all, thinking I got a good deal but unfortunately it was just filled with fluffy foam. Thankfully I did not pay much but I learned my lesson to never buy software on ebay.
Adobe had the same thing happen when they bought Macromedia.
I don’t know of anywhere that you can get CS3 in the US for $200USD wholesale or otherwise. Probably a scam.
The Link is not working for me.
It takes me to a 404 page on yahoo. 🙁
It’s an old story that’s expired. The general idea is that about 90% or so of software sold on eBay is pirated and the software companies are finally doing something about it.
Bob
Does it matter what country you buy it from? Is there any code in the software that would stop getting cs3 in the U.S and using it in the UK?
As far as I know you can’t buy it in the USA without going there. 🙁
There is a long message thread over in the Premiere lounge about buying in the US, while visiting there, and taking it outside the US to then use the software in another country
I haven’t paid much attention (other than knowing the discussion is there) but I don’t remember anyone who has done that saying they had any problem installing and running the software
The link has expired, are there any other links to the article? Thanks.
I think that it is pretty clear that these are not legit copies. As my granny used to say, you don’t get nought for nought…
Greetings,
I am a newbie here but my two cents is be real careful.
Been burned twice ordering "real" software from people on eBay. Once on Photoshop 7 and another on Win XP.
I have found it best to use local ads (in USA, craigslist) so I can actually visit the person selling. That is how I found "real" copies at a discount.
Hope this will help sone.
Terry
I’ve purchased Photoshop 6.0 via Ebay and have been pleased. Although like anything else, you need to use your own instincts and best judgement when buying anything there. Use the feature enabling you to contact the seller directly. Tell them you’d like their phone number so you can call them up and verbally ask them a few questions. If you do get a phone number, that’s a good indication the seller is 99.9% legit. Look carefully through all details mentioned about the product that’s for sale and compare it to existing items you see on the same list – do alot of cross-referencing and by all means at least email with a few questions.
if a deal is togood to be true then most of the time it is, be carefull and think with your head.
That would rather be a much better idea Terry, since you can not verify the authenticity of a software on e-Bay before you get the product so it would be better to actually visit the person selling before getting your money off your wallet.
I was woundering the same thing.
Hello,
The Production Premium CS3 selling at $999, does this sounds like illegal or is it possible being a legal copy with valid serial?
Is there any way of being confirmed about the validity of a serial key? Can one call Adobe for a confirmation about this? And where should you call at?
Thank you
dont think they are legit copies.
I am getting this message:
Yahoo – Document Has Expired
What’s that have to do with the warning about buying from ebay, Ravi?
The original post was a link to a Yahoo story. I didn’t expect this thread to take on a life of its own.
But there’s some good info in the rest of the thread so I’ll leave it be for now.
Bob
(Why not edit the link above to say "don’t", Bob. Or grab another post that points to the perils of EBay buying. Seems someone else decided to make this post sticky.)
I’ve been meaning to do that, Don. Thanks for the reminder.
Bob
I really think if it was possible for online retailers to get a hold of copies as cheap as that, then there would be more bricks and mortar stores selling it cheaper too.
Ebay is full of counterfeit clothes etc that are exact replicas of the real products. It would be even easier to make a great copy of software.
I’d avoid lining the crooks pockets!
I wouldn’t recommend you do it either. Seems really risky and that’s a chunck of change. I would go for the real version and then you know what you are getting.
It is really a bad idea to buy software from someone online unless it is in the box and sealed. You never know what you get. It could be pirated, the serial could already be used, etc.
unless it is in the box and sealed
No! No! No! No No!
Didn’t you read the thread?
Good fakes come shrink-wrapped and with a printed manual!
Not only shrink wrapped and with a manual, but the hologram labels on disc or box are reproduced
Some of these fakes are good enough to fool even the buyers for retail or online outlets… I can’t remember the name of the program (simply too many messages and not enough memory space) but I know that I read a report sometime in the last year or so that fake software was being sold by a legitimate store because their wholesale buyer got "stung"
I still buy online, but I ONLY do so from a store that has a good return policy, to cover bad software
My husband just bid on ebay and I had to cancel it.. I don’t trust ebay for software as far as I can throw them.. better off to buy from the store..
Kim
<
http://www.airtraveldestinations.com>
So to the core, it’s hard to know whether software you bought is legitimate, unless it was from a publisher/credible store?
I’ve been interested in the idea that Adobe sent a confirm email like 1 month later. does it means the registered item appears in the account after 1 month. why they don’t do that right away so we can walk at ease?
is the activation the same process as typing in the serial? since as i know, activation is totally different than registration.
is this sound like bootleg for you guys: the key is green check marked when typed in but is confirmed as invalid with an Adobe agent!!
thank you for all the suggestions from you guys
Definitely never buy on ebay.
My brother got a copy last year,what a disaster.
It is deinitely worth paying fullprice
Dominic
The old adage "if it seems to good to be true something ain’t right" is always true. Don’t try and kid yourself into believing something that in your heart of hearts you know not to be.
Yeah, even those some people don’t have a problem with pirated software, it’s really hard to find working patches <
http://www.cherrysave.com/> and serials sometimes.
I agree. Buying Adobe Photoshop from eBay may create headache. Why not buy it from authorized distributors and resellers? Amazon is a good place to buy from.
But not from an Amazon reseller!
I bought from an Amazon reseller and have had the same problem that the original writer mentioned. I contacted the seller and told him I had a problem and he said I could send it back. I won’t be able to do this for another 10 days but wonder if I should contact Amazon and my credit card company sooner. I received my software about 2 weeks ago so it’s probably already too late.
You always contact your CC company immediately!
what john says. call asap!
what about CS4 through ebay? Does it seem odd that it’s available since the release wasn’t that long ago?
Phil
Computer Based Training … cbt <
http://www.cbtplanet.com/>
I guess I deleted it while you were posting.
Bob
I purchased Premiere Pro 1.5 on eBay a few years ago. I never registered it. I have been using it for a few years.
My computer recently crashed and I have the option of downgrading Vista to XP or upgrading Premiere Pro 1.5 to Premiere Pro CS4.
Recently I used Adobe customer service chat and asked whether it is registered. Adobe customer service told me that it was not registered. I asked if it was licensed to anyone. Adobe told me that it was not licensed to anyone. I asked whether this is a legit and legal copy. Adobe told me that it was a legit and legal copy. I then asked what version it was (academic, etc.). Adobe told me that it was an OEM version. I asked whether I can use an OEM to upgrade to CS4. They told me yes.
Am I ok? Do you think I’ll have any problems?
Am I ok? Do you think I’ll have any problems?
You said you asked Adobe… so what do you think someone in a USER TO USER forum is going to do?
I don’t know about premire pro, but photoshop hasn’t been released as an OEM since about version 5, like 10 years ago or more. now premire pro is no more than a couple years old (it used to be just premire, then they split it into pro and elements versions), and if i recall it’s a pretty expensive program vs premire elements. my GUESS is it’s fake. but you gotta go by adobe, i guess.
NO…DON’T DO IT!
wrote in message
I purchased Premiere Pro 1.5 on eBay a few years ago. I never registered it. I have been using it for a few years.
My computer recently crashed and I have the option of downgrading Vista to XP or upgrading Premiere Pro 1.5 to Premiere Pro CS4.
Recently I used Adobe customer service chat and asked whether it is registered. Adobe customer service told me that it was not registered. I asked if it was licensed to anyone. Adobe told me that it was not licensed to anyone. I asked whether this is a legit and legal copy. Adobe told me that it was a legit and legal copy. I then asked what version it was (academic, etc.). Adobe told me that it was an OEM version. I asked whether I can use an OEM to upgrade to CS4. They told me yes.
Am I ok? Do you think I’ll have any problems?
I guess I have a similar question but not about eBay particularly. I have seen supposedly "legitimate" copies of CS3 on PriceGrabber storefront (didn’t even know they had one) from a "company" called "BestDealsPro" (as if that meant anything) for $164.25.
Why I thought this might be legite is I was just assuming that companies would be willing to sell the older versions of Photoshop for less to clear their inventories for the new version.
At least that’s how it works with other retail merchandise, but I’m not sure it works that same way with software.
Does anyone have any experience with a reduced-priced version from a non-eBay source for CS3?
I’m going to follow the advice and see if they "company" responds to my email asking for the serial number to verify with Adobe. My guess is that I’ll never hear back from them.
how would they get the serial number without opening the package?
I believe that since they are claiming these are OEM copies, that means the don’t come in a package or with any printed material or eve a box. They provide just the media, which presumably has the serial number printed right on the paper sleeve or the media itself. They should be able to just read it and email me the serial number, but I’m certainly not holding my breath while waiting for their reply.
Most of these "no name" businesses that have these store fronts on eBay, Amazon.com, Price Grabber, etc. could be one person working from their kitchen table for all you know. Amazon may have more stringent requirements on who they will let sell on their site but I doubt eBay and Price Grabber do. 🙂
there are no OEM copies of cs3. see? that was easy! 🙂
Over a hundred messages here and there’s always someone who thinks they’ve found the only legit dealer selling Adobe software at 75% off.
Bob
I love it when people don’t understand why adobe doesn’t give away it’s 700 dollar software with a scanner that goes for 29.99. but the "oem resellers" don’t even give you the scanner!!!
here’s a tip for people who buy software that IS oem… one of the terms of the oem software is generally you need to sell it WITH the equiptment. so an "OEM version" of windows for example is generally only legal when sold WITH A COMPUTER.
I contacted Adobe chat. I chatted with two customer service representatives and both have informed me that my serial number is a legal/legit and that it not registered to anyone. On both occations, neither mentioned anything about it needing to be sold with a computer. Both times I asked whether I can use the serial number with the upgrade CD of CS4 and they told me that I could and I need not worry.
Also, my OEM CD came with manuals.
ya. good luck with that come upgrade time. 🙂
That was a very old version of Premier Pro…There may well have been OEM versions of that back then.
But there’s none of that for the CS4 apps though I’ve seen Acrobat Standard distributed with document scanners.
Bob
That was a very old version of Premier Pro…There may well have been OEM versions of that back then
My understanding is that during the change from Premiere 6x to Premiere Pro 1 Adobe sold a bundled version (to Sony for Vaio?) that was called either Premiere Standard or Premiere 7 (I have seen both names used when people ask questions)
Every now and then someone drops into the Premiere 6x or "latest" Premiere CS forums… and they are directed to the Premiere Pro 1x forum for "close enough" answers
As far as I know, there were never any updates for that bundled version… I don’t know if Adobe ever offered a discount to update to any later version
PS – I started with Premiere with version 6, which was bundled with a Pinnacle Dv500 analog to digital card… I later used that to upgrade to PPro 2 (don’t remember the discounted price, but it was a good sized savings over regular retail)
PS – I started with Premiere with version 6,
which would be around ps version 5.5… about the last time i think ps was OEM’d… mighta been some 6 as well but that’s the time frame.
Obviously there is much confusion and lots of "opinions" about this and I’ll never understand why companies like Adobe cause this confusion in the first place, then don’t apparently do something to clear it all up.
They can certainly read this and many other threads and respond if they wanted to. Either they have licensed legal OEM copies of CS3 in the past or they haven’t. I suppose only they know for sure!
And then they wonder why people create crack versions of their software, even just one day after they release a new version.
Very frustrating for those that either can’t afford or can’t justify the full price for the latest version but would be willing to buy a legal copy of an older version for a reduced price. That seems like a legitimate and vibrant market segment to me.
Are you listening Adobe? Do you care?
Either they have licensed legal OEM copies of CS3 in the past or they haven’t
they haven’t. they’ve stated that here. just passing it on.
And then they wonder why people create crack versions of their software, even just one day after they release a new version.
because some people will pay for it… a lot less than adobe sells it for.
Are you listening Adobe? Do you care?
no. they’re not, and they don’t. 😉
My first Photoshop was version 4 and it came bundled with a scanner for a $200 extra fee. It was not called OEM, however – it was something like "For bundled purchases only" or something.
That is about the time that Photoshop stopped being bundled. For one thing, scanners dropped from the $1500 I paid for my first one, to the under $250 range (and lower since). It no longer became worth it to scanner makers to include Photoshop in their package, even if the OEM fee was only $100 or so. (Actually, if you paid $200 extra, then the OEM fee was probably a bit higher). They wrote their own limited software, and let the users buy Photoshop or get something else when they discovered how limited the included software was.
Don this sounds plausible but are you really sure about CS3 being the right time-frame for OEM bundling to have stopped? I would have thought bundling because of scanner prices dropping would have occured a LONG time ago–more like Photohop version 6!
It would be so simple if Adobe would just state when they last licensed OEM copies in the U.S.
Did I say CS3? The OEM for Photoshop probably ended before version 5.5.
I don’t think Adobe has to publicly address this issue. OEM has not been available for over 10 years, and this is well know by, at least, the regular users of these forums. Anyone claiming to be selling OEM since then is pirating.
OK, that does make much more sense and explains a lot. I’m now convinced there’s not likely a legitimate OEM version of CS3 out there so I won’t bother to pursue this.
Reading this thread and other online articles about piracy, I understand it’s sometime nearly impossible to even recognize pirated software because of the sophisticated packing done by the more serious pirates.
That leaves me with the only logical conclusion–it’s much safer to just download a cracked version of Adobe products where you know you can rely on getting a valid and fully working version and always be assured you have the latest version available.
OK, just kidding….just kidding…just kidding!
I guess I’ll have to consider buying Adobe Photoshop Elements instead. I just wish the Adobe site had a clear comparison feature for feature of the differences between the two versions so it would be easier for me to decide (for example, I don’t do any advanced color management or color profiling of my hardware and I know this is just one of the differences between the two versions).
Oh well…maybe I’ll ask that on another thread.
Thanks everyone for your input and from keeping me from potentially wasting money and time with these pirated "OEM" versions.
Steve
Chicago, IL USA
how about taking a night course at a local college and getting photoshop at an educational discount?
Wow…that’s thinking "outside the box" Dave. Nice. I’ll have to check that out. Chicago is large enough to probably have very low-cost classes (much lower than the price difference I would bet) but I’ll have to check the Adobe requirements to qualify. It just might be worth it not to mention fun!
check www.studica.com for prices and requirements
much lower than the price difference I would bet)
about 400 bux savings on standalone photoshop!
Thanks again guys. I would bet you’re right…quite a savings and I might actually learn something about Photoshop also (although I won’t have any high expectations of that). Hey I don’t actually have to attend classes after I register and pay right? 🙂
You need a student ID to buy from www.studica.com
I don’t think they require a grade report… go check
Also remember that academic licenses don’t permit the commercial use of the product… so you can’t use it for work purposes!
Adobe academic licenses permit commercial work!
Bob
Yes, thanks. That makes sense. I wouldn’t use it professionally or for business purposes anyway.
I should add that this is for North America…different regions have different rules.
Bob
Software licensing is such a complex subject, second only I’m sure to book publishing and music licensing! I’m surprised there aren’t any software licensing "police" yet like the music industry has (ASCAP, BMI). 🙂
<
http://www.adobe.com/products/eulas/pdfs/Gen_WWCombined-comb ined-20080623_1026.pdf>
Section 16.3:
Educational Software Product. If the Software is Educational Software Product (Software manufactured and distributed for use by only Educational End Users), you are not entitled to use the Software unless you qualify in your jurisdiction as an Educational End User.
That pretty much sums up that it can only be used for Educational purposes.. if you’re using it in a commercial capacity, you aren’t an Educational End User.. you’re a commercial end user.. you may have qualified to BUY the Educational version, but that doesn’t mean it can be used commercially.
J
Oops…guess I spoke too soon. 🙂
That’s not what it says. It says you can’t use it at all unless you’re qualified to use it. If you are, you can use it for commercial purposes.
Bob
Jason, you are wrong as far as Adobe software (at least in most countries) is concerned. This topic has been discussed to death in other threads and should not be further discussed here.
This is a PIRACY WARNING thread!
Jason
The educational version can be used commercially. The student version (lower price and stricter availability) cannot be used commercially.
I had a friend who bought Windows XP (to downgrade his Vista) from a private seller on Amazon. Yes, it was a counterfeit. I suggested he file a complaint through Amazon because even though it’s a private seller, it is sold under the aegis of Amazon.
He has so filed. It’s in process. I suggest that anybody stuck with such goods file a complaint. As to eBay, I bought an iPod for my daughter. It was perfectly functional but a Chinese rip off of Apples intellectual property which offended me. I demanded a return from the seller who refused. I filed through PayPal based ONLY that it violated Apples property rights – because it did work.
PayPal did a full refund over the frantic objections of the seller.
Wow…what an interesting story Paul. Thanks for sharing it with us. These are great ideas and I’m impressed that you did the right thing. I’ve personally vowed to try to absolutely avoid all Chinese imported food (toxic), all cheap dollar store items (99% imported from China and 98% non-functional or toxic) and really try hard to minimize valid purchases of made-in-China merchandise until they learn to control their illegal activities, reduce corruption and comply with international copyright and patent guidelines, not to mention free-up their currency so it floats freely with the other world currencies.
Sorry, didn’t mean for this thread to become political but it’s just not right how much that country gets away with and how much revenue they divert from U.S. companies with activities like these.
i’ve been impressed with paypal for a while now. i used them in their 1st incarnation, before being bought by ebay and got screwed over something like a 15 dollar purchase where the guy never shipped (and is STILL want the little jose cuervo bar game i won! 🙁 :))
but fast forward 10 years or so and i needed something to pay for an overseas site i wanted to use ( <
http://www.letsplaychess.com> ) without putting my credit card # overseas and paypal fit the bill. since then (about 2 years now) i have nothing but good things to say about them.
I really like their browser plugin and the auto generate a 1 time use only card.
Ahh…you learn something new every day. What’s the name of the PayPal plug-in and is it for IE 7 or Firefox?
Thanks.
it’s called, are you ready… "paypal plugin". 🙂
log into your paypal account normally and download it. you should have no trouble finding it. and it works in ie AND firefox, so there must be 2 components in the one installer.
Can I buy Photoshop in USA and then registered in Russia
This is a user forum, not Adobe support
You will need to ask Adobe about cross-country registration
