6 ms·

Nobody rents a house and then go around using the word "own" and "buy" when describing their access to the house. There is a difference btw "buying" and "renti

Nobody rents a house and then go around using the word "own" and "buy" when describing their access to the house. There is a difference btw "buying" and "renting" and most people know the difference.Renting is usually accompanied with reoccurring payments while buying usually entails a one time payment and i think the fundamental disconnect is here. These kinds of confusion will go away when people start using proper terms to describe possession of entities they exchange money for,that PS4 you got by exchanging money for,you dont "own" it,you "rented" it from sony and as a renter,you are to use it only as they allow you to. The fact that you rented it with a one time upfront payment does not mean you bought/purchased it.These tech journalists will do people a favor if they start explaining this distinction to people. ps: not hating on sony or PS4,just used them as an example,it could be anything especially if its in digital form.

mjn 13y ago
It should be on the seller/landlord to describe the transaction properly, though, not only the buyer/renter. If someone offers to "sell" me a house but actually they are only renting it to me, that would be... misleading at best.
prawn 13y ago
Why not hate on Sony? If you aren't physically buying the console for whatever duration you wish to keep it, screw them.
rahimnathwani 13y ago
Not really relevant to the main discussion, but directly counter to your comment "Nobody rents a house and then go around using the word "own" and "buy" when describing their access to the house.": In the UK, we have a situation which appears strange to most people when they first come across it: the vast majority of flats (apartments) are 'sold' on a leasehold basis. An individual or company may own the freehold (the building and the ground below), whilst the 'owners' of the individual flats have 99-year or 150-year leases. The freeholder collects annual ground rent (maybe 200-300 GBP per year per flat) and is reimbursed for costs of managing the building (e.g. for building insurance, repainting common areas etc.). I may 'own a flat' but in reality my right to occupy it has an expiry date. (I realise you referred to 'house' rather than 'flat'.)

mjn 13y ago

It should be on the seller/landlord to describe the transaction properly, though, not only the buyer/renter. If someone offers to "sell" me a house but actually they are only renting it to me, that would be... misleading at best.

prawn 13y ago

Why not hate on Sony? If you aren't physically buying the console for whatever duration you wish to keep it, screw them.

rahimnathwani 13y ago

Not really relevant to the main discussion, but directly counter to your comment "Nobody rents a house and then go around using the word "own" and "buy" when describing their access to the house.": In the UK, we have a situation which appears strange to most people when they first come across it: the vast majority of flats (apartments) are 'sold' on a leasehold basis. An individual or company may own the freehold (the building and the ground below), whilst the 'owners' of the individual flats have 99-year or 150-year leases. The freeholder collects annual ground rent (maybe 200-300 GBP per year per flat) and is reimbursed for costs of managing the building (e.g. for building insurance, repainting common areas etc.). I may 'own a flat' but in reality my right to occupy it has an expiry date. (I realise you referred to 'house' rather than 'flat'.)