So.
I recently had a bad experience: I lost a USB copy-protection key containing software authorizations for many of the programs I rely on for my work. Or maybe it was stolen;
This has not yet been determined. The net result was that I was in an unfortunate position -
I had to contact all of the software companies whose product authorizations were contained on the key and see about obtaining replacement authorizations (worth thousands of dollars in total) for my hurriedly-purchased replacement key. My point? It's worth noting that all of the companies were willing to provide replacements for prices ranging from free to modest. All, that is, except for one:
A company called Waves.
I had previously bought one of their packages, costing about $1200, and they of course had a record of this on file. I had reported my lost key missing to the company which makes the key and handles all the coordination of software authorizations to and from their users' keys, and notified Waves of this. However, I was informed that the best they could do on a replacement authorization (which costs them nothing, as it is not a physical product but merely a one-time electronic process) would cost me 50% of the list price of the product I'd purchased ($2000). In other words, $1000. My only recourse, I was told, would be to have already purchased
Waves' own insurance policy against key loss or damage, which of course I hadn't known about. What a fucking racket.
This is unacceptable.
In the process of obtaining the replacement authorizations from the various companies, I was warned by many people that Waves would be hardasses and impossible to reason with in my situation, and this proved quite true. As it happens, they are infamous in the industry for this, and now I see why. This approach has made them universally reviled as a company, despite the fact that they make very good products. A lot of people hate them and have subsequently refused to deal with them further. In fact, I was told by my local music shop about a customer of theirs who'd bought $7000 worth of Waves software and had lost his key like I had. The company refused to do anything for him, so he'd given up in disgust and switched to a "cracked" version of the software. While I don't advocate this sort of thing in general, it's not hard to understand in this scenario- A legitimate customer, having paid full price for a completely non-physical product, being treated with absolutely no respect or courtesy whatsoever by the manufacturer.
I believe this attitude will ultimately be Waves' undoing in the long run. You can't survive long-term if your customers hate you, and they've done a lot to create ill will among their user base. The moral of this particular story, however, is insure your damn iLok and try not to lose the fucking thing.
And don't buy Waves products.
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