Originally Posted by
paulwuk
I believe KVS finds BA availability by running a "hidden browser" that visits ba.com and does a large number of searches. In the industry this is called "Scraping". This is the reason KVS is a computer program - it runs code on your machine that talks to ba.com (and other airline sites, travel agents, etc). But you surely know all this as a KVS user.
If KVS did a large number of automated searches and saved that data, I would agree with you in calling it a scraper. But it doesn't. I use KVS for only one search at a time, similar to my activity when I use Internet Explorer to view the website. KVS simply presents the data to me differently than IE.
Originally Posted by
paulwuk
The BA.com terms of service
http://www.britishairways.com/en-gb/...rms-conditions state
use ‘screen scraping’, any automated algorithm, device, method, system, software or manual process to access, use, search, copy, monitor or extract Material (in whole or in part) from or through using this website unless We have given Our express written agreement
Now it's entirely possible that BA have given KVS their express written agreement, however as you are the person running it that doesn't help you. As such, running KVS and doing a search for BA appears to be in contravention of their terms of service.
Incredibly, the terms of service require the user to have BA's express written agreement to access their website using
any browser.
In particular, You agree that, You must not use... any... software... to access... Material (in whole or in part) from or through this website unless We have given our express written agreement
There is nothing in the ... that changes the meaning of this extract.
I don't see anything here that prevents me from accessing their website with KVS any more than accessing it with IE. (In fact both violate their ToS.)
Originally Posted by
paulwuk
KVSTool claims to be a browser, however it masquerades as internet explorer, rather than have it's own "Signature", that legitimate webbrowsers have.
Yes, KVS behaves badly here by not identifying itself as the user-agent. It breaks convention. But that does not make it illegitimate or illegal, it just makes it badly behaved.