Multiven: Cisco Software Licenses Now Freely Transferable in Switzerland and the European Economic Area
Zurich, Switzerland - Tuesday, October 21, 2014, Multiven today announced that as a result of its advocacy efforts in Europe which began with a complaint to the Swiss Competition Commission (“ComCo”) on January 30, 2012, owners of Cisco Systems, Inc, (“Cisco”) software are now free to transfer their software licenses in Switzerland, the European Union, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein. This unprecedented ruling ensures that owners of Cisco software can freely trade or give away their software either as is, or embedded in a Cisco hardware, directly or indirectly, to new owners that will inherit all the software licensee rights and privileges without having to pay Cisco re-licensing fees as was wrongfully practiced before.
Multiven’s complaint to ComCo advocated for the opening up of the Internet network maintenance and security services market for Cisco, the dominant Internet networking equipment manufacturer, to free and fair competition thus enabling greater consumer choice. In its recently published report, ComCo ruled that:
- Cisco software licenses are now freely transferable in Switzerland and the European Economic Area
- Owners of Cisco software are now entitled to all critical Cisco software updates
- Owners of Cisco software are also entitled to all Cisco security software bug fixes
- Cisco must publicly communicate and acknowledge the aforementioned to customers factually
Prior to this ruling, consumers that acquired previously owned Cisco software were forced to pay exorbitant re-licensing fees in order to be;
- recognized as the new rightful owners of the software license by Cisco
- eligible for software licensee benefits such as software updates
This software re-licensing and non-transferability malpractice earned Cisco Billions of Euros in the European Economic Area and Switzerland.
“It’s a great day for worldwide consumer rights led by Switzerland” stated Peter Alfred-Adekeye, Multiven Founder & CEO. “Multiven is honored to be at the forefront of these advocacy efforts that are enhancing the security, integrity and reliability of Swiss and European Internet networks. This is yet another milestone that further democratizes the way the Internet is secured and maintained because owners and operators of Cisco equipment now enjoy the same benefits with Multiven services as they do with Cisco’s.”
“Multiven has been a steadfast advocate of consumer rights since its early years,” said Deka Yussuf, President of Multiven. “We are proud to have contributed to bringing about this much needed change in the Internet networking industry and remain dedicated to providing customers worldwide with the freedom to get the most out of their purchased Cisco hardware and software for the useful life of their equipment.”
Multiven advocacy milestones include, but not limited to:
- December 1, 2008 - Multiven filed Multiven v. Cisco - a landmark US Federal Antitrust Lawsuit to end Cisco’s tying of software updates to its maintenance services (“SMARTnet”).
- July 19, 2010 - After failing to deter Multiven by wrongfully having its CEO arrested on false charges, Cisco settled Multiven v. Cisco by providing Multiven customers with free software updates thereby transforming Multiven into Cisco’s first credible maintenance services competitor worldwide.
- January 30, 2012 - Multiven filed the aforementioned complaint with ComCo after Cisco continued with its anti-competitive practices.
- Today - ComCo has ruled that software licenses are transferable in Switzerland and the European Economic Area while further reaffirming customers right to Cisco software updates and bug fixes.
The Swiss Competition Commission’s final report can be found here
About MultivenHeadquartered in Switzerland, Multiven is the world’s first and leading provider of independent cyber-defense and maintenance services for all Internet networks. By offering service-as-a-utility, powered by its cloud-based global network of elite experts, while leading consumer advocacy that ensures customer choice and value, Multiven is realizing its mission of making the Internet globally available, reliable and affordable for all mankind. Multiven prides itself at its hardware, software and political neutrality. For more information about Multiven, please visit www.multiven.com.
Multiven is a registered trademark of Multiven, Inc. and Multiven GmbH. All other company and product names may be trademarks of the respective companies with which they are associated.
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