Before I go in more details, I would like to thank all of those who have contacted me with additional information. This has been a tremendous help in confirming the source of the problem. Since the first comment was made in the forum almost two days ago, the team at Corel including myself have worked very hard to check every possible option and to figure out the root cause that resulted in some of the CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X4 users to get the “Error 24” message when launching CorelDRAW.
As you know, CorelDRAW Graphics Suite is licensed on a non-exclusive and perpetual basis when you purchase the product from Corel or one of our channel partners. At the same time, we have the ability to configure a date at which a serial number is no longer valid (e.g. an expiry date, just like for food). We use this in some cases to provide access to our software in very specific circumstances (limited time testing for example, especially for beta versions), but these expiring serial numbers have NEVER been used for the product you can buy. This means that if you purchased a box, license or electronic download version from Corel or one of our authorized channel partners, the serial number that comes with CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X4 (and the current X5 version for that matter) will never expire and you will NOT be affected by the “error 24” message that prevents the application from starting.
Based on all the tests we have done and all the information gathered, the "Product Installation Unsuccessful Please Reinstall Error 24" message will only be displayed when you are using a serial number that was not generated / sold by Corel Corporation or our partners, and that these have an expiry date of June 1, 2010 embedded.Software piracy is a persistent issue that affects all of us. At the same time, we understand that some of you might have been the victim of software pirates and have inadvertently purchased an unauthorized copy of CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X4. We have therefore decided to provide you with an opportunity to purchase an authorized version of CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X4 if you are affected by the “Error 24” message. Starting tomorrow morning, and ending June 30, 2010, you will be able to contact the Corel Customer Support per phone at the numbers listed on this web page and take advantage of following amnesty program in North America, Brazil, Western Europe as well as Australia and New Zealand (we are reviewing options for other countries):
Everyone at Corel who works on CorelDRAW Graphics Suite is very proud of having so many passionate customers and we all take your feedback very seriously. I can only guarantee that contrary to some comments I saw in the forums, this was never a ploy to get you to buy X5 now that it has been released (reason why we provide you an option to get access to the version you currently use). The version of X4 that you will be able to get through the Amnesty program will be eligible for the upgrade price of X5 in case you want to get the latest and greatest, but there is no requirement to do so.
I also want to point out that trying to circumvent the “Error 24” message with any mechanism does not make your version legal and that we cannot take any responsibility on what these "hacks" will have on our software and system. In addition, Corel will reserve the right to protect its software going forward and take any steps we see fit against piracy.
On behalf of the entire CorelDRAW team, I am very sorry for the inconvenience some users have experienced as a result of this error message and have been victims of software pirates. As posted in the forum earlier and as a general reminder, Corel and our authorized partners do not sell products at 50 to 90% discount, and amazing deals on auction or marketplace sites are rarely legitimate. If you find a price that seems too good to be true compared to the one listed on Corel.com or an authorized Corel reseller, please feel free to contact me directly so that we can take appropriate action.
Combating piracy is an ongoing process. We will continue to work with all of you and with our internal teams & systems to ensure we do everything possible to promote fairness and the legitimate use of Corel software. Thanks again to everyone in the community for your help in this matter.
Jan, I will send you a separate email to follow-up so that I can investigate from my side.
Unfortunately the error 24 is shown also for valid X4 licenses from X4 Small Business Edition. This package contains three keys but two of them show error 24. I'm afraid that Corel made a big mistake in his anti piracy action.
Well I'm really pleased Corel have the amnesty option available to those of us who have been deceived.
I'll be contacting Corel with the necessary proof of purchase asap.
I should clarify that the reseller I'm asking about in my previous post is NOT the academic reseller from whom I purchased CorelDraw X4.
I own and use in an academic environment an educational copy of CorelDraw x4 that I bought from a major (probably THE major) academic reseller. I paid a significant amount but less than the commercial price and submitted proper verification of my academic status. My own copy of X4 has given me no problems, and I assume it's legitimate. However, I have purchased other (non-Corel) software from the reseller at the following link
[link delete by Gérard]
which points to an offer by them of 'OEM' CorelDraw X4 at a price substantially less than Corel's amnesty offer, but still higher than what I would consider a 'pirate' price. We are told in this blog that Corel does not put OEM software into the retail channel. Although it may be an academic (no pun intended) issue in this case, what is one to make of this reseller's offer? Is it legitimate? Will it expire? Does Corel in fact allow 'OEM' software into the resale channel after all? Is this reseller offering pirated software? If so I will stop buying other titles from them.