Technology Platforms and IP Portfolio

SoftLock™

Problem:

How to distribute a software product while preventing unauthorized installations and copies

Solution:

SoftLock is an intelligent installation medium that is able to interact with a target computer. It is used to deliver software applications to customers and prevents your software product from being copied or installed on more than a predetermined number of computers.

For example, a SoftLock Flash drive connects to the USB port of a computer and mounts like any other mass storage device. An installation utility performs all the tasks of deployment. SoftLock tracks the number of installations and where they occurred.

If a customer has purchased a license for N sites, SoftLock media allows installation on N separate computers. Further installations are restricted. To install on the Nth+1 computer, the product must be removed from an existing one.

SoftLock restricts the number of installations while allowing a product to move between computers or mobile devices as long as the number of product instances does not exceed a limit set by the manufacturer.