New campaign to step up fight against software piracy

According to the 2009 IDC piracy report , the value of software lost through piracy has a substantially high impact - typically every €1 spent on software generates local revenues of around €3 to €4 in the retail, advertisement, packaging and support sectors.

The commercial value of illegal software installed in the EU last year amounted to nearly €8.7 billion. In Malta, the piracy rate currently stands at about 45% - 10% higher than the EU average of 35%.

The Business Software Alliance (BSA)is presently stepping up its efforts in Malta to create more awareness around intellectual property law amongst consumers and various sectors of the Maltese industry, monitoring the rights of its members and ensuring those are respected.

The latest of these efforts is a campaign entitled “Using Unlicensed Software? Speak Up Or Risk A Fine” with a special emphasis on the fact that even companies who do not take the necessary precautionary steps risk getting a fine.

“Intentional or not, keeping quiet about the use of unlicensed software in one’s company is illegal and has serious implications for the business that can result in large financial fines,” explains
Georg Herrnleben, Senior Director, Compliance Marketing, Business Software Alliance.

“In the case of uncertainty on whether a company is using unlicensed software or not, we are recommending that the necessary steps are taken to check things out. If unlicensed software is indeed benig used, it is a problem which cannot be ignored or go unsolved.

“Besides the risk of prosecution, one would also be jeopardising the security of his business because unlicensed software often carries viruses and is not supported by manufactures as in the case of legal and original software.

“Through this campaign, we are effectively sending out an appeal to everyone to speak up to help us eradicate the use of unlicensed software from businesses,” Herrnlebensaid.

The software industry plays a key role in many countries and acts as a catalyst for productivity and growth. Malta is working hard to position itself as an important IT hub in the Mediterranean, and therefore, it cannot allow the high piracy rate to subsist any further.

Reduction of piracy rates in Malta support the creation of new jobs in the IT industry which in turn would generate large sums in new tax revenues. Moreover, the reduction of software piracy would create a ripple effect throughout the economy, generating new spending on related information technology services and distribution.