Software Piracy

Software is easy to steal. You don’t have to walk out of a store with a $495 DVD Workshop software box under your shirt. You can simply borrow your friend’s DVD Workshop distribution CDs and install a copy of the program on your computer’s hard disk. It seems so simple that it couldn’t be illegal. But it is.

Piracy takes many forms. End-user piracy includes friends loaning distribution disks to each other and installing software on more computers than the license allows. Although it is perfectly legal to lend a physical object, such as a sweater, to a friend, it is not legal to lend digital copies of software and music because, unlike a sweater that can be worn by only one person at a time, copies of digital things can be simultaneously used by many people.

Counterfeiting is the large-scale illegal duplication of software distribution media, and sometimes even its packaging. According to Microsoft, many software counterfeiting groups are linked to organized crime and money-laundering schemes that fund a diverse collection of illegal activities, such as smuggling, gambling, extortion. Counterfeiting software is sold in retail stores and through online auctions– often the packaging looks so authentic that buyers have no idea they have purchased illegal goods.

Internet piracy uses the Web as a way to illegally distribute unauthorized software. The Business Software Alliance (BSA) estimates that more than 800.000 Web sites illegally sell or distribute software.

In many countries software pirates are subject to civil lawsuits for monetary damages and criminal prosecution, which can result in jail time and stiff fines. Is software piracy really damaging? Who cares if you use a program without paying for it? Software piracy is damaging because it has a negative effect on the economy. Software production fuels economic development of many countries. A BSA economic impact study concluded that lowering global piracy from an average of 36 % to only 26 % would add more than 1 million jobs and $400 billion in worldwide economic growth.

Decreases in software revenues can have a direct effect on consumers, too. When software publishers are forced to cut corners, they tend to reduce customer service and technical support. As a result, you, the consumer, get put on hold when you call for technical support, find fewer free support sites, and encounter customer support personnel who are only moderately knowledgeable about their products. The bottom line – software piracy negatively affects customer service. As an alternative to cutting support costs, some software publishers might build the cost of software piracy into the price of the software.

Some analysts suggest that people need more education about software copyrights and the economic implications of piracy. Other analysts believe that copyright enforcement must be increased by implementing more vigorous efforts to identify and prosecute pirates.