> Support: Yes Sir, that will work.
Seems to me if they tell you you can do something with their product, you aren't pirating. You're following their instructions, though I'm no lawyer.
Thus, downloading software should never be an offence.
He paid for the serial, not the software..
But to the point of your comment I would be wary of just considering it downloading. If, again using the bittorrent file transfer idea, you download a copy you could very well be considered to be making available the intellectual property for illegal obtainment. I personally wouldn't want to be stating "support said it was OK" if my ISP or an IP protection firm's lawyers take action. Since Adobe has worked with ISPs to monitor and issue complaints I wouldn't put this out of the realm of possibility.
In this case - does he have an email or chat session proving that support said it was ok?
It works for Windows as well. It is perfectly legal to use an "illegal" DVD to install the OS, given you have an appropriate license.
In the US, courts have gone both ways.