[polar21]

How do you feel about buying review materials from Ebay? I will be purchasing the Becker review.

[J.P.]

It's illegal. When a person buys a review course, they buy the license, which is nontransferrable.

BEC - 11/25/08-61, 8/31/09-76*, 2/24/12-76
AUD - 2/21/09-53, 8/31/10-60, 11/30/11-83
REG - 11/30/09-68, 5/31/12-79
FAR - 8/29/11-81

IL Ethics - 93

*Lost to 18-month Rule

[mena je twa]

jpyoung

Why do you say its illegal….? I am paying the seller the asking price for it. It's not like i am stealing it or getting it for free?

I have bought stuff from ebay and it has worked just fine…

Licensed CPA, Texas - 2012

[Gifuto724]

mena je twa – somewhere there is a thread that cites wording listed in the front of the Becker books (I could not find the thread though).

FAR ~ TBD AUD ~ TBD
REG ~ TBD BEC ~ TBD

[jeff]

Depends on the program.

Some review courses explicitly do not allow the reselling of their materials – which you agree to when you become their customer – and the license is for the buyer and the buyer alone.

Jeff Elliott, CPA (KS) | Another71 | NINJA CPA | NINJA CMA | NINJA CPE

[J.P.]

From the Becker website: https://becker.custhelp.com/

Can I sell my Becker Materials to someone else?

Question

May I sell my Becker materials to someone else when I am finished using them?

Answer

No. Because you licensed the use of these materials from Becker, and did not purchase them, you may not legally sell, give, or otherwise transfer them to someone else. Your License Agreement with Becker specifically prohibits you from selling or otherwise distributing those materials.

Can I purchase the Becker textbooks?

Question

I don't want to take a class. Can I just purchase your books (or Passmaster…or flashcards)?

Answer

No. Use of our books and materials are licensed only to persons registered in one of our CPA courses.

Purchasing Becker Materials on eBay

Question

How can I get an authorization number for materials that I received from an internet-auction site?

Answer

Becker does not support materials bought through unauthorized dealers. Unauthorized dealers of Becker materials are either (1) in violation of their license with Becker, or (2) selling counterfeit materials. We urge you not to purchase counterfeit items. Counterfeiting is illegal and purchasing counterfeit products supports this illegal activity.

BEC - 11/25/08-61, 8/31/09-76*, 2/24/12-76
AUD - 2/21/09-53, 8/31/10-60, 11/30/11-83
REG - 11/30/09-68, 5/31/12-79
FAR - 8/29/11-81

IL Ethics - 93

*Lost to 18-month Rule

[mena je twa]

Yeah all valid points, but in this day & age every seller including myself is selling their used cpa review stuff. i sold my 3 weeks ago on craigslist…..

Find me any seller, who will say i am not selling my old review stuff, since i had a contract of not selling it. What happens after your 9 months of becker course work expires? then the books are solely yours and you can do whatever you like with them.

Licensed CPA, Texas - 2012

[Anonymous]

What if the materials have not been opened yet and the seal is still sealed on the dvds? I registered my stuff I bought on ebay with Becker and in my name. A girl bought the materials and never used them and sold them at a cheaper price. It would be like a boss buying the material for an employee.

[jeff]

Just buy from the vendor – you'll sleep better at night

Jeff Elliott, CPA (KS) | Another71 | NINJA CPA | NINJA CMA | NINJA CPE

[polar21]

I see no problem buying the review materials online if they are still in the packaging. I guess my question was what is the risk in buying a set of review materials “that had 2 installations left” or something like that. There is a significant amount of money to be saved by buying the review materials online.

What does it earn you that the products are “liscensed by Becker”? I just dont think that is worth the $1k premium…

[latenight]

I would purchase directly from the vendor if it's a smaller vendor.

With Becker, it probably doesn't matter. They are so large and you're just another number. Don't get caught up in whether it's moral or immoral. It's more of a practical matter. The smaller vendors have to put food on their tables, the big ones don't have to worry about that. Support the little guy I guess.

AUD - 87
BEC - 76
FAR - 96
REG - 94

[Herbieherb]

It's not illegal or ebay would shut down every auction. Sexual services, kidneys, knockoff designer clothes etc for sale don't make it and get shut down. It's unethical to buy it sure, and CPA wannabes should follow

NEW YORK- DONE

[latenight]

It's funny to put CPA review material with sexual services lmao. Everybody has their vices!

AUD - 87
BEC - 76
FAR - 96
REG - 94

[Herbieherb]

Peter Orinto lol…

NEW YORK- DONE

[tbstew]

CPAs are held to a higher standard – not just professionally, but ethically, as well. I hear a lot of rationalization and justification going on here. I have to wonder – if a person is willing to skirt this issue and rationalize questionable actions in the case of buying used review materials (a question of a couple hundred dollars), it worries me what their future as a CPA holds, especially when the questions aren't in “hundreds,' but rather in “millions.” What kind of rationalizations will happen then?

Be mindful of the habits and attitudes that you develop early in your career.

AUD - 79
BEC - 88
REG - 87
FAR - 86 - Woot, all done!
Ethics - 100

[Anonymous]

Not to preach, but tbstew is right. Why take shortcuts? If you can't afford the Becker material, then go for a different course.

Also, think about it like you were Becker. Yes, you might want to donate some of your intellectual property to those less fortunate than you, but you would probably want to retain that choice, not have it rudely taken from you by someone breaking the law. That's called being violated. Just because you don't agree with the copyright laws doesn't mean they wouldn't protect _you_ if you came up with some brilliant idea to make a buck.

[Author]

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