Campaign on Copyright Compliance Ends BSA Resumes Investigations of Pittsburgh Companies
The Business Software Alliance (BSA), a global organization representing the nation’s leading software manufacturers, announced the end of “Red Net,” a copyright compliance campaign that provided Pittsburgh businesses with a month-long hiatus from BSA software piracy investigations.* The BSA launched the campaign to address high reports of unlicensed software use in Pennsylvania. The state currently ranks within the top ten states in the country for highest settlements, totaling over $5.8 million in damages since BSA’s enforcement program began in 1993.
“The Red Net campaign has come to a close and the BSA will now resume all investigations of unlicensed software use,” said Jenny Blank, senior director of legal affairs for the BSA. “Proper software asset management is vital to the health of an organization and should be considered a top priority. Pittsburgh businesses caught with unlicensed software on office computers face serious security and financial risks including fines of up to $150,000 per copyright infringed,” continued Blank.
More than 2,600 individuals visited www.AvoidtheNet.com throughout the month of May to learn how to become copyright compliant. Businesses that have not acquired licenses necessary to become compliant are encouraged to take a proactive approach to get legal before they are caught. The BSA is currently receiving reports of unlicensed software use in Pittsburgh and will be contacting 500 local businesses over the next several weeks.
“We fully support BSA’s efforts to educate organizations on the risks associated with unlicensed software. We hope businesses will take advantage of this opportunity to establish compliance programs, take necessary precautions to protect their businesses from the harms that non-compliance can cause, and become more informed on establishing proper software management and licensing programs,” said Sandra Boulton, director of license compliance at Autodesk, a leader in 2D and 3D design software for the manufacturing, construction, and media and entertainment markets.
Software piracy is against the law and affects thousands of businesses nationwide, costing millions of dollars in tax revenues and lost jobs. An independent study recently released in May revealed that 35 percent of the software installed in 2006 on personal computers (PCs) worldwide was obtained illegally, amounting to nearly $7.3 billion in losses for the United States. **
Throughout the month of May, the BSA worked with the Pittsburgh City Council, Office of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, and the Pittsburgh Technology Council to educate businesses about the legal, financial, and technical problems resulting from unlicensed software use. Furthermore, awareness among the Pittsburgh business community for the Red Net campaign was raised through print, billboard, radio advertisements, direct mail letters and promotional giveaways.
The BSA recommends the following ten steps to help businesses manage their software assets effectively:
1. Educate yourself about the risks to your business. Once you are aware of a problem, you can develop an effective strategy to protect your business.
2. Assess your current software assets by conducting an audit.
3. If you discover that your business is using unlicensed copies, purchase copies of that software from authorized dealers.
4. Develop a software management policy for your business.
5. Assign responsibility to one individual or team in order to centralize your compliance process and ensure all purchases and necessary documents are tracked.
6. Educate your co-workers and employees about the importance of using only licensed software in a way that will allow them to ask questions and raise concerns.
7. Enforce your software policy and make sure all employees are aware of the consequences of violating the policy.
8. Conduct regular audits and spot checks to help ensure that your software policy is working and catch any problems early.
9. Ask questions about how to manage your software effectively. Contact BSA at 202-872-5500 or www.bsa.org.
10. Visit www.AvoidtheNet.com
* Note: BSA’s Net campaign was effective in the greater Pittsburgh area from May 1-31, 2007. Businesses under investigation by the BSA prior to May 1, 2007, are not exempt from legal and financial consequences. Businesses found using unlicensed software after May 31, 2007, will be subject to investigation.
** “Global Software Piracy Study,” conducted by IDC for the Business Software Alliance, May 2007. -http://www.bsa.org
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