Bonum Certa Men Certa

Microsoft's Live@Edu Scam Finally Leaked

Addiction, lock-in with strings

“They’ll get sort of addicted, and then we’ll somehow figure out how to collect sometime in the next decade.”

--Bill Gates



Summary: Microsoft's programme for attaching lock-in to schools and schoolchildren (or colleges) is exposed

LIVE@edu remains predatory lock-in which is targeted at children and adolescents. We previously covered this problem in [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6] and we finally have proof and details, not just examples of the consequences.

“This is a glaring example of schwag-giving.”As this leaked Microsoft Live@Edu offer [ODF] shows, they use the programme to push lock-in like Windows Vista and Exchange along with the rest of the bundle. The person who sent this to us labeled it "evidence of Microsoft bribes." We append the document at the bottom, as text.

Check out this part:

6. Become the most sought-after person on campus 7. And yes, win cool prizes –
  • All MSPs who successfully deploy and launch Live@Edu or MSDN AA using ELMS in their college will receive a Live@Edu goody bag


  • Top 3 colleges with maximum number of active LiveIDs and software downloads at the end of 31st of December win 4 Windows Mobile Phones (one each for the Principal, your department HOD, Faculty Champion and one for you!)


This is a glaring example of schwag-giving. We have seen that before, e.g. in Vista 7 promotion and European campuses. Even professors get bribed.

Also noteworthy:

4. What if my faculty does not agree or doubts me? In such a scenario, please organize a call for us with your faculty. We will try to convince them to participate in the program.


This happens to also refer to ELMS, which was leaked quite recently. There might be more leaks coming pretty soon because not every academic institution is pleased to have Microsoft, a vicious monopoly abuser, behave in such a fashion. Some people suppose that even the Democrat's CIO, who was hostile towards Microsoft's offerings, is being targeted by Microsoft. He got pulled out and into 'leave' -- maybe permanent.

Yesterday afternoon someone sent us this article about Microsoft in Malta. These moves from Microsoft in Malta's education we recently wrote about in [1, 2] and it may be related to EDGI.




Appendix: Microsoft Live@Edu, as Text










Microsoft Live@Edu



With Microsoft Live@Edu, each student in your institute can have their official college email ID, hosted with Microsoft using either Windows Live Hotmail€® or Exchange Labs for free. €  Microsoft Live@edu is a platform that supports the collaborative campus of the 21st century. With 10 gigabytes (GB) of storage (using Exchange Labs), Office Live Workspaces, Windows Live SkyDrive, Microsoft SharedView and other Live offerings, you can participate in online tutorials, collaborate on € assignments, debate with faculty, and build lifelong relationships with your institution. €  Read more about Microsoft Live@Edu at - http://get.liveatedu.com € 

MSDN Academic Alliance



MSDN Academic Alliance provides the easiest and most inexpensive way for universities to make the latest Microsoft software available in labs, classrooms and student PCs. With one simple agreement and a distribution system created for academic needs, MSDN Academic Alliance offers immense value, flexibility and convenience for your institute (and not to mention genuine Microsoft software for all of you). €  This software may be installed on any number of departmental lab machines. The software must be used only for instructional and research purposes. It may not be used to run the infrastructure of the department. In addition, the department's faculty and students may check-out or download the software to install on their personal computers for non-commercial use at no additional charge (Did we mention that Windows Vista is part of MSDN AA? :-)). €  Read more about MSDN Academic Alliance at http://www.msdnaa.net €  €  So, here’s the plan… 1.€ € € €  Read all about Microsoft Live@Edu and MSDN AA 2.€ € € €  Contact your faculty and get a faculty champion who will support you to deploy Live@Edu and/or MSDN AA and sign up your institute for this initiative before 15th October 2008 3.€ € € €  Help us deploy Live@Edu and MSDN AA 4.€ € € €  Provide your peers with their official email IDs and genuine Microsoft software 5.€ € € €  Collect 140 activity points on www.student-partners.com 6.€ € € €  Become the most sought-after person on campus 7.€ € € €  And yes, win cool prizes –
    € € € € € € € € 
  • All MSPs who successfully deploy and launch Live@Edu or MSDN AA using ELMS in their college will receive a Live@Edu goody bag
  • € € € € € € € € 
  • Top 3 colleges with maximum number of active LiveIDs and software downloads at the end of 31st of December win 4 Windows Mobile Phones (one each for the Principal, your department HOD, Faculty Champion and one for you!)
€ 




Are you game? Sign up your institute for either Live@Edu or MSDN AA today by replying back to this email with the following information – € € € € € € € € - College Name: € € € € € € € € - Faculty Name: € € € € € € € € - Faculty Designation: € € € € € € € € - Faculty Contact Number: € € € € € € € € - Faculty Email Address: € € € € € € € € - Interested in (Live@Edu or MSDN AA or Both): Once we receive this information, we will contact you with next steps to sign up. €  Frequently asked questions – 1.€ € € €  Does my college need to sign up for both MSDN AA and Live@Edu? While it is recommended that your college sign up for both, they could go for either one program as well.

2.€ € € €  What kind of support will we be provided? Microsoft, will provide you with step-by-step guides and marketing collateral (check out http://go.liveatedu.com/ for all the content that we are putting together for you). We will also, set up a license management server to help your institute distribute the software from MSDN AA to all the students. Additionally, if you get stuck, we are there to help you on the way. Just drop us an email at msdnaain@microsoft.com.

3.€ € € €  Till when is the program valid? While there is no time limitation on when the institutes can sign up for the program we would strongly recommend that you confirm your institute participation before 15th October 2008. We may not be able to provide strong support to institutes which confirm after this date.

4.€ € € €  What if my faculty does not agree or doubts me? In such a scenario, please organize a call for us with your faculty. We will try to convince them to participate in the program.

5.€ € € €  Is a faculty champion must? Since the sign up procedure for Live@Edu and MSDN AA requires someone from the institute to register for the program, we must have a faculty champion. We also believe that having a faculty supporting is essential for the long term success of the program.

6.€ € € €  Are there any costs associated with these programs? Live@Edu using Hotmail is completely free while if you choose Exchange Labs for deployment, it is for students but there is a small fee in case the institute wants to use the same for their faculty or alumni. There is small, annual, subscription fee for MSDN AA.

7.€ € € €  How will I know how many active IDs and software downloads my peers are doing? Don’t worry, we will share this information (along with the leader board) on a monthly basis so that you can keep track of you score.

8.€ € € €  Can I know if my college already has MSDN AA or Live@Edu? Please drop us an email and we will let you know if you college has already subscribed to MSDN AA or Live@Edu.

Recent Techrights' Posts

Representing and Speaking for Animals
If I ever choose to take this matter to tribunal with animals-centric NGOs on my side, it'll get some press coverage for sure
 
The UEFI 9/11 - Part III - Chaos is Scheduled to Happen Second Thursday of September (No Matter What the Microsofters Tell You)
The clock is ticking
Downplaying the Impact of "UEFI 9/11" is a Losing Strategy
we won't publish much whilst on holiday
Government Sites Should Run Free Software
Not proprietary bloatware with buzzwords
LLM Slopfarms Take No Breaks
When people run sites by bots they don't need to worry about "breaks"
GNOME Having a Meltdown Again
Thanks and farewell to Steven Deobald
Gemini Links 30/08/2025: Low Tech and Hunchbin 1.0.6
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, August 29, 2025
IRC logs for Friday, August 29, 2025
Financiers and Sponsors of the Slop Hype (Pyramid Scheme Waiting to End, Bubble That Will Inevitably Implode)
It's also burning the planet
Slopwatch: Fake Articles About "Linux", Google Helps Ponzi Schemes and Slopfarms in Google News
Slopfarms are a real pain
Gemini Links 29/08/2025: Retiring at 62 and URL Filtering HTTP(S) Proxy on Qubes OS
Links for the day
Links 29/08/2025: Lisa Cook Sues Convicted Felon and Backdoor Mandate in UK Resisted
Links for the day
Links 29/08/2025: Arti 1.5.0, War on Public Health (CDC), and Slop 'Bros' Made to Pay for Their Mass Plagiarism
Links for the day
No, 4Chan is Not Fighting for You by Lawyering Up Against Ofcom (UK)
Don't mistake proto-fascists for people who "fight for you". They don't.
In Many Places in the World Vista 11 "Market Share" is Going Down, Not Up
In some countries Windows is already down to third place or lower
More Microsoft-Connected Layoffs, at Least Third Time This Month! (Also Another Death on Campus)
Microsoft as a "gaming" company is where studios, projects, games, and even developers come to die
Slopwatch: Fake Articles About "Linux", Slop Images in VentureBeat, Linux Foundation Spam Made With LLM Slop and Slop Images
The only relief or upside - if any exists - is that the pace of slop was down a bit this week
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, August 28, 2025
IRC logs for Thursday, August 28, 2025
Gemini Links 29/08/2025: Poems, Games, and Java 25 Performance
Links for the day
Links 28/08/2025: Greenland 'Interferences' by US and Skinnerboxes to Get Banned in Korean Schools
Links for the day
Richard Stallman (RMS) Talk in Ethereum Cypherpunk Congress Will be Remote
This past week RMS received lots of accolades online
The Register MS (Run by Microsoft Operatives): Free Software is Putin, Hence Evil and Dangerous
The current editor in chief is an American Microsofter, the previous one went to work for Google (US)
Links 28/08/2025: Chatbots Distorting/Fabricating History and Also Driving Suicide
Links for the day
Gemini Links 28/08/2025: Back in Japan and Why "Hacker News" Sucks
Links for the day
A Much-Needed Wake-up Call to Users of Wordpress.com, Blogspot, Substack and All Those Other Outsourced (and Centralised) Platforms
There are several lessons in there
The UEFI 9/11 - Part II - Campaign of Censorship and Defamation Against Critics
In dictatorships, humour serves an important role. It's tragic.
Open Source Initiative (OSI) Resists Software Freedom, Even by Attacking Its Own
The OSI is compromised
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, August 27, 2025
IRC logs for Wednesday, August 27, 2025
Slopwatch: linuxsecurity.com, Slopfarms in Google News, and More
Some readers of ours end up sending us links that are from slopfarms, not realising those are slopfarms