Farmeral:

If you purchase a new full version of the software (not upgrade), then no previous "qualifying" version of the software has to be installed on your computer. That is the more expensive option (about $25 more), compared to upgrading, but you "own", subject to the EULA, the new version of the software outright, and if you want, and you have a previous new version, you can install that older version on another computer after uninstalling from the other computer.

Normally, you can only take advantage of "upgrading" if your current version is only two or three versions old. Beyond that, you have to purchase a new, full version of the software.

Since you indicate that you don't want to be bothered with installing a previous "qualifying" version of the software, paying the full purchase price would be the way to go. There is a "Black Friday" deal on now for PowerDVD19; see this link. The full version is only $59.99, which is a 40% discount.

I just purchased a new computer and my old version of PowerDVD was too old to qualify for an "upgrade", so I just purchased the full version, not upgrade version, of PowerDVD19.

I hope that this helps. Have a great day.

Regards,
-Phil Windows 10 Pro x64
Dell XPS 8930
Intel CoreT i7 (4.6 GHz)
32 GB DDR4-2666 RAM
1 TB PCIe -x4 SSD
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060
PD14 Ultimate x64, 4207
CD4 Ultra and AD6 Ultra
Bleeping Computer Malware Response Instructor

Quote Farmeral:

If you purchase a new full version of the software (not upgrade), then no previous "qualifying" version of the software has to be installed on your computer. That is the more expensive option (about $25 more), compared to upgrading, but you "own", subject to the EULA, the new version of the software outright, and if you want, and you have a previous new version, you can install that older version on another computer after uninstalling from the other computer.

Normally, you can only take advantage of "upgrading" if your current version is only two or three versions old. Beyond that, you have to purchase a new, full version of the software.

Since you indicate that you don't want to be bothered with installing a previous "qualifying" version of the software, paying the full purchase price would be the way to go. There is a "Black Friday" deal on now for PowerDVD19; see this link. The full version is only $59.99, which is a 40% discount.

I just purchased a new computer and my old version of PowerDVD was too old to qualify for an "upgrade", so I just purchased the full version, not upgrade version, of PowerDVD19.

I hope that this helps. Have a great day.

Regards,
-Phil

Hello Phil,

Thank you very much for the response. This fully answers my concerns, I really appreciate you taking the time to answer and so quickly.

Sincerely,
Alan Farmer

Farmeral:

You are most welcome. Enjoy PowerDVD 19.

Have a great day.

Regards,
-Phil Windows 10 Pro x64
Dell XPS 8930
Intel CoreT i7 (4.6 GHz)
32 GB DDR4-2666 RAM
1 TB PCIe -x4 SSD
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060
PD14 Ultimate x64, 4207
CD4 Ultra and AD6 Ultra
Bleeping Computer Malware Response Instructor

This thread resonates with me currently. I use both PowerDVD and Power Director and since the original purchases have upgraded each program several times, I have now replaced my PC with a new machine and find that I am unable to install the versions that I have upgrade licences for because I don't currently have a licensed version on the new machine. Presumeably this means I have to load the original versions that I purchased, licence them and then upgrade them through many upgrade cycles, provided the original versions are not too old. I do not want to load old software on my new clean machine. I currently have a call logged with Cyberlink Support on this topic but I am not hopeful of a sensible resolve. Which leaves the question "Can you convert an Upgrade Licence into a full licence ?" and if so at what cost.

Thank you for contributing to my question post. I also believe that it is very inconvenient when reinstalling the software, to have to install a previous licensed 'full' version BEFORE installing the upgraded version. I am guessing that Cyberlink's intention to enact this policy is to discourage unlicensed usage of their products. In this day and age, it is difficult for me to believe that they cannot engineer a way to not make their licensed users install the product 'twice' in order to upgrade a new software version on a new machine or when performing a clean reinstall of Windows. I don't know if this forum is monitored by Cyberlink executives, but it would be very helpful to fully consider changing the upgrade process for their software.

Just to follow up on my earlier post, Cyberlink Support responded positively with a set of download links and a process to follow and I have now have a fully functioning copy of PowerDVD and Power Director on my new machine. Now to reinstall all the other software and transfer the data.....

prevaljo:

I am really glad to learn that Cyberlink has dealt with your situation in such a positive manner. Good for Cyberlink!

I had to replace my computer in October, but I elected to simply purchase a full version of PDVD19, even though I did have the installer files for PD17 and my licence key.

Interestingly, Corel Corporation, owner of WordPerfect Office (WPO), does not require a qualifying earlier version of their office suite to be installed before doing an upgrade to their current version (X9). If the WPO upgrade does not detect an earlier version of their software installed on the new computer, it requests only the entry of a licence key from a qualifying previous version. This saves the hassle of dealing with their Tech Support personnel for those of us who do not pirate software.

DISCLAIMER: I am not affiliated with Corel Corporation in any way. I just mention their upgrade licencing practice because I found it so simple and reasonable for the honest end user.

Glad that Cyberlink was able to resolve your issue. Have a great day.

Regards,
-Phil Windows 10 Pro x64
Dell XPS 8930
Intel CoreT i7 (4.6 GHz)
32 GB DDR4-2666 RAM
1 TB PCIe -x4 SSD
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060
PD14 Ultimate x64, 4207
CD4 Ultra and AD6 Ultra
Bleeping Computer Malware Response Instructor

Let me share my actual experience:

In fact, powerdvd 19 upgrade version doesn't need you to install the previous version first.
You can install it by entering previous powerdvd license keys to start without any previous versions installed.

if you pc has installed the previous version already, the upgrade version installation would not ask you for the previous version key additionally and the installation will start right away.

cyberlink is not that bad. I think this upgrade flow is great.

QC2.0:

Thank you for enlightening me on the Cyberlink upgrade licencing system. That is good news. I was not aware that they too, like Corel, will permit an upgrade install in the absence of a previously-installed version, with only a qualifying previous version licence key. That is so much simpler for the honest Cyberlink customer.

Have a great weekend.

Regards,
-Phil Windows 10 Pro x64
Dell XPS 8930
Intel CoreT i7 (4.6 GHz)
32 GB DDR4-2666 RAM
1 TB PCIe -x4 SSD
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060
PD14 Ultimate x64, 4207
CD4 Ultra and AD6 Ultra
Bleeping Computer Malware Response Instructor

Thank you very much for your contribution. I recently performed a clean reinstall of Windows 10, which was the first time I've done this in a little over 2 years. When doing this in the past, I've been instructed by Cyberlink support to install a previous licensed full version of PowerDVD before I install the current version. Otherwise, I would receive a message stating that no previous licensed software could be found. It was not my intention to 'bash' Cyberlink on any level. I've been a customer for many years and have mostly enjoyed using several of their products. With all of that said, I installed PowerDVD 18 'upgrade' on a clean Windows installation, with no previously installed PowerDVD, as kind of an experiment. I used the 'upgrade' key to activate PowerDVD 18 and it was activated and registered properly. In closing, thank you for your comments, without which I may not have thought to try the install by itself. You've been very helpful.