In 2012, Oracle walked into the European Court of Justice trying to shut down the second-hand software market and walked out having done the opposite. The court ruled that once a perpetual software licence is sold, the original seller loses the right to control what happens to it next. The buyer can resell it. That judgment, known as UsedSoft, was Oracle's defeat. Fourteen years later, it has become Microsoft's problem.
Microsoft is now fighting a £270 million lawsuit in London brought by UK software reseller ValueLicensing, and it has lost twice. It is now asking the UK Supreme Court for permission to try again.
