With software piracy running at a rate of 41%, amounting to an approximate €9.5 billion loss for software publishers, the BSA yesterday repeated its determination to enforce its members' intellectual property rights through copyright enforcement actions.
Last year, according to the BSA, courts authorised 1,372 raids against companies suspected of using unlawful software. The BSA also instigated 1,203 legal actions against businesses that failed to comply with copyright legislation.
The worst offenders were small and medium-sized firms in the creative, hi-tech and professional services sectors, all of whom rely on professional software products for their businesses.
The offences varied from inadequate software asset management to a failure by firms who had conducted software audits to then take the necessary steps to obtain replacement legal software.
Damages were assessed according to the level of infringement and the company's willingness to address its compliance problems, said the BSA. Fines ranged from €10,000 to almost €300,000 last year.
"Enforcement activities are necessary to deter businesses from using software illegally," said Beth Scott, BSA Vice President, EMEA region. "These actions demonstrate that the software industry is serious about protecting its intellectual property and that businesses failing to meet their legal obligations for software use can, and do, get caught."
Settlement funds received by the BSA are reinvested back into BSA programmes to raise awareness of the risks associated with illegal software and the benefits of an effective software asset management policy.
In the UK such programmes include the BSA's Annual Software Audit Return campaign and the Just Ask SAM web site – an on-line source of help and support for companies concerned about software licensing.