Pirates rock the boat
UK piracy rate rises for the first time since 1994
Despite several crackdowns in the channel, the piracy rate in the UK has risen for the first time since 1994, according to figures released by the Business Software Alliance (BSA).
A study by the International Planning and Research Corporation for the BSA claimed the rate of software piracy in the UK for 2002 was 26 per cent, a one per cent increase on 2001's rate.
"One per cent doesn't seem a great deal, but the total cost of piracy in the UK for 2002 was $340m," said Richard Saunders, former chairman of BSA UK.
Saunders claimed that the internet was the main reason for the rise.
"We have seen 35,000 broadband connections each week since the start of the year, and we have found 55,000 illegal software programs offered over the net. We have also issued take-down notices to 1,600 ISPs," he said.
"This highlights the need for resellers to push software asset management and dissuade users from purchasing software from unreliable sources."
The figures follow the joint IDC and BSA study which claimed that up to 40,000 extra jobs could be created, many in the channel, if the UK piracy rate dropped by 10 per cent (CRN, 7 April 2003).
Julia Phillpot, anti-piracy manager at Microsoft, said: "These figures identify an opportunity for the channel to raise customer awareness. This in turn allows VARs to add services and increase revenue."
Deanna Slocum, senior anti-piracy manager EMEA at Macromedia, said: "Because of the prevalence of the net and peer-to-peer it is easy for disreputable people to sell illegal software."
But Mike Lawrence, managing director of VAR Bentpenny, warned that piracy can be confused with the grey market. "The BSA has to be very clear: the difference is that one is criminally illegal and the other is morally illegal," he said.