The Business Software Alliance yesterday announced the results of its 'software detox' initiative to help organisations check their software licenses. The campaign encouraged 2,251 companies to take part in the on-line audit.

The BSA launched the detox campaign in February, urging companies to review the software in use in their offices and to compare it with the licences purchased. The association stressed that companies taking part would not be incriminating themselves if found to be using unlicensed software.

"The emphasis is on raising awareness," Graham Arthur, legal counsel at the BSA told OUT-LAW.COM at the time. "It is not about enforcement".

This year 2,251 companies took part in the campaign, which ran until 26th March.

"The response we've had has been really encouraging," said Siobhan Carroll, Regional Manager Northern Europe, BSA. "We hope that companies will continue to seek help and ensure compliance, in order to avoid being reported and (potentially) undergoing legal proceedings."

Recent research carried out on behalf of the BSA revealed that 32% of companies either aren't software compliant or don't know whether the software installed has been copied or downloaded illegally.

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