So what? I fly commercial airlines even though they are terrible because sometimes I have no alternatives. I still pay for my ticket instead of sneaking on board.
Microsoft gets to extract a high price for Office because its popular and the product has a strong network effect. That's one of the advantages of having an immensely popular product. Either use it or don't--don't try to justify pirating it.
I didn't justify pirating it, I said it would drive numbers up, there's a difference.
And your comparison is flawed. When you buy an airline ticket you know you are buying a single use ticket. If you want a travel comparison then it is like buying a car and saying you can only use it in a single state.
Microsoft gets to extract a high price for Office because its popular and the product has a strong network effect. That's one of the advantages of having an immensely popular product.
Sure, a high price is one thing but charging people twice for different devices or charging again for changing your machine is going a little too far. The _price_ is not the issue, it's the pricing model.
Either use it or don't
Like I said, it's not as black and white as that. With this pricing model I won't use Office 2013.
Microsoft gets to extract a high price for Office because its popular and the product has a strong network effect. That's one of the advantages of having an immensely popular product. Either use it or don't--don't try to justify pirating it.