BSA hails piracy crackdown as success

The British Software Alliance has hailed its recent operation in Glasgow as a success, with the organisation revealing that a total of 41 companies are now under investigation for using pirated software.

The scheme, which it launched in November, saw the BSA offer Glasgow-based firms a 30-day legislation period, during which they had to ensure all of their software was fully license, as well as promising no legal action would be undertaken against firms who registered for the programme.

As part of the scheme, it also asked people to report incidences of piracy, as well as raising awareness of the damage it does to software and publishing businesses.

According to the BSA, the campaign was an overriding success with several hundred companies registering to participate, and taking steps to ensure they were complying with copyright laws.

Among the 41 companies currently being investigated for piracy, there are engineering, media, architecture and IT firms.

Speaking about the crackdown, Julie Strawson, BSA’s UK committee chair and director of marketing Europe, said: "We encourage businesses to address the situation themselves. The Glasgow crackdown was heavily focused on education, and providing both information and free software to help businesses check all their software was correctly licensed"

"However we know that enforcement is an effective device in reducing software piracy levels. Those businesses that have ignored warnings and are flouting software licensing laws will now face the consequences of failing to take this issue seriously," she added.

The BSA have announced that they will be conducting a similar crackdown in Manchester soon, with further campaigns planned for other major UK cities.