The first thing I ask myself is what is really a license and licensing "something". Typically it is a permission to do something, something you are not allowed to otherwise. For example, one can get a license to reproduce and sell copies of a work protected under copyright, since that is forbidden otherwise under copyright law. Hence the copyright holder can give you a license to do it. It can be a license to use a trademark on your products since you could not otherwise do so and so on. It can also be permission to fish in waters you are not normally allowed and so on. But how does that apply to someone "purchasing" or otherwise acquiring (through what ever means you seem to talk about that is not purchasing) music, software or whatever?

Yes, I am aware that the ones producing software, music and such like to use "licensing" and "license" but that does not magically turns it into something true.

So, to me, license relates to an act of doing something, to a product or thing, you can't get a license to a ball, a toaster, a book or a song, that has no meaning, you get a license to DO something. Now, you might claim that you get a license to listen or run or otherwise use something, but again, that gets you into the trouble of why one would need such a license to start with since there is nothing to forbid you from doing those things to start with. Listening to music for example is not an exclusive right of a copyright holder. Anyone can listen to music with any special permission (or license) needed, so claiming you "only buy a license to (listen to) the music has again no relevant meaning. It is like claiming you suddenly need a license to go out and take a walk and claim that if you don't get a license, talking walks are suddenly forbidden. Or that you need a license to sit on a chair and if you don't get that license it is illegal to sit on a chair.

Of course, you still have the issue of how to get a copy of the music, software, chair, car, toaster, or whatever to start with. Otherwise it is of course hard to use it to start with. Just as I can't use your car, I can't use your chair or read any of your books without you allowing me to. That has nothing to do with licenses though and has nothing to do with whoever originally created or manufactured them. It is still not the actual act of using any of those that is not allowed, it is getting hold of them. The same applies to, say music, as long as I get a copy of the music in some way, there is nothing preventing me from listening to it.

So how do you acquire things? Typically you either create something your self, you purchase (typically from a shop) something or you rent something (for example, you can go to a video shop and rent a movie for a day or two). These actions are well regulated in law so there is really no problem. One you have purchased or rent something, there is no need for any additional license to actually use what you purchased or rented, there is no law saying you are not allowed to use it without license for example. Again, it is all well regulated in laws how a purchase works or a rent and so on, it doesn't matter if you try to call it something else, it is still regulated through sales laws and such. You can't call it a gift of something and then demand a gift back of money and then claim purchase laws doesn't apply to your shop since you only do gifts in return of gifts for money.

The same apply copies of music, film books or software. You can purchase, or rent them and so on. Again, there is then no law requiring you to get additional permissions or licensing to actually listen, read, view or run it. None of those actions are for example forbidden in copyright law (or rather given as exclusive to the copyright holder) hence you can do it as much as you want, no matter what. So were does the whole "licensing" issue comes in? If you purchased the copies, then there are yours (and of course, if they break for some reason that is your fault, be it hard disc crash or scratched CD and so on), you have to get new ones ,just as with anything else. If they break due to being faulty from manufacture, you can, through applicable laws, get them fixed/replaced and so on. No license is needed for anything here. If you don't buy them but instead for example rent them, then it is no different than with for example a car you rent, you don't own it but don't need any special license to drive it (well, the state require you to have a driving license but that is quite different and there is a law requiring it). After the rental time is up, you have of course to give it back. Rentals are typically regulated through laws as well and typically have time limits as well. Do note that when you rent something, and whatever break down, the one renting it to you of course have to fix it for you, free of charge unless you were the cause in witch case you might have to pay some fee, the car of movie or whatever is owned by the one renting it to you and of course, through the rental is guaranteed to actually get a working product. Of course, you typically sign some sort of rental contract, still there is no license involved and there is no need for any special license to use it once you have rent it. Also note that the rental contract is between you and however handle the rental, for example Hertz when you rent a car, there is no extra deal, license or contract needed between you and Ford if you rent a Ford car.

There is really no difference if you rent for example music, you make a deal to rent some copies from, say, Apple's store and make a contract with Apple on how long you are to rent it and for what price. One can add in stuff like insurances and such I am sure even in that case. There is no need for any additional deals, contracts or licenses with whoever made the music originally and the law doesn't make you need such things either nor does it forbid you to use what you rented either. Again, you can't sell stuff to people can claim it is a rental if it is done like a purchase, nor can you do it the other way around just as you can't call it exchanges of gifts as mentioned above. It is an issue of how it is done, not what someone likes to call it that is regulated through various laws (for example consumer sales laws).

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