Software Groups Step Up Piracy Efforts

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June 18, 1998 (3:36 PM EDT)

By Andy Patrizio,

The software industry's attempts to stem the tide of piracy don't appear to be working, and that has prompted one trade group, the Software Publishers Association (SPA), to step up its efforts.

A report released earlier this week by the SPA and the Business Software Alliance showed the industry lost $11.4 billion to pirates who produce illegal copies of software.

Until now, the SPA has settled the bulk of piracy cases, which often involve use of one copy of a program on multiple machines, with a fine and a confidentiality agreement. But now, the trade group says, it will begin pressing criminal charges and publicize the names of pirates.

"I don't like doing that, but it serves as an education to companies in a similar situation," said Peter Beruk, director of anti-piracy efforts at the SPA. "If they want to keep ripping off our members, why should we treat them nicely?"

The small size of the fines and the confidentiality agreements haven't been much of a deterrent for pirates, software companies say.

"It's not to make a point of embarrassing people but we're not going to sweep it under the rug anymore," said Greg Wremm, senior corporate counsel for Adobe Systems. "If we saw a downward trend toward piracy rates then we might look at alternatives, but it's not slowing down."

Some areas have improved over the years. Europe, which had a 90 percent piracy rate five years ago, has brought that figure down to around 50 percent. Still, that's about twice the 27 percent rate of the United States. What bothers Beruk is the U.S. rate hasn't fallen, despite the SPA's efforts.

The SPA and its members said they will still use education as their main tool against piracy. "We hope to get more messages out to the marketplace that companies have to be legal," said Nancy Anderson, senior corporate attorney for Microsoft and manager of its North American anti-piracy enforcement. "We need to get through that this is a serious crime."

Part of the problem, software vendors say, is that law enforcement doesn't take the problem seriously enough. The Washington, D.C., office of the FBI is only interested in local pirates, but piracy is a worldwide problem, Beruk said.

Multiple use of one program is the most common form of piracy and also the easiest to catch, thanks to anti-piracy hotlines run by the two trade groups as well as software vendors. Other forms of piracy, such as Internet piracy and unbundled software packages, are more difficult to spot.

In Asia, the combination of the economic crisis and lax copyright enforcement makes anti-piracy efforts more challenging there. Hong Kong recently adopted a "guilty until proven innocent" policy for pirates, forcing them to prove the legitimacy of their products.