The BSA’s “annual software audit return” asked companies to provide information on the software they used. FAST is speculating that the BSA will use the information it gleans to demand punitive fines from companies who cannot prove they have valid software licences. Richard Wilmott, managing director of FAST described the practice as “unprofessional.”
The BSA is a private company founded by numerous software suppliers including Microsoft, Adobe and Macromedia. FAST is the lobbying arm of the British Computer Society with 2,500 members, including most FTSE 100 companies.
Although both organisations agree that software piracy ought to be stamped out, FAST disagrees with the punitive measures advocated by the BSA. “We don’t persecute companies who have lost control of their systems or have strayed. Our job is to help them get compliant and bring in controls to keep them operating within the law,” said Wilmott.