I was one of those who purchased Hooked on Phonics a couple years ago, only to find it not working after the latest update. I called HoPs customer support, and within a few minutes I had the new update working.
I can only comment on the first step, because until now, thats all hes been able to use. So far, so good.
smithworks about Hooked on Phonics Learning, v5.0.3