One Third of All Software in Use Still Pirated, Major Study Finds (News Release)

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WASHINGTON, May 18 /PRNewswire/ — Thirty-five percent of the software
installed on personal computers worldwide was pirated in 2004, a one
percentage point decrease from 36 percent in 2003. Yet, losses due to piracy
increased from $29 billion to $33 billion.
These are among key findings of a global software piracy study released
today by the Business Software Alliance (BSA), the international association
of the world’s leading software developers. The independent study, which
indicates that software piracy continues to be a major challenge worldwide,
was conducted by global technology research leader IDC.
“Worldwide, one out of every three copies of software in use today has
been obtained illegally,” said BSA President and CEO Robert Holleyman. “These
losses have a profound economic impact in countries around the world. Every
copy of software used without proper licensing costs tax revenue, jobs, and
growth opportunities for burgeoning software markets.”
In 2004, the world spent more than $59 billion on commercial packaged PC
software, up from $51 billion in 2003. But over $90 billion was actually
installed, up from $80 billion the year before. The increase in losses to $33
billion was, in part, the result of the fact that the PC software market grew
over six percent and the U.S. dollar fell against many of the world’s
currencies.

Among the key findings:
— Although piracy rates decreased in 37 countries, they increased in 34
countries. They remained consistent in 16 countries.

— In more than half the 87 countries studied, the piracy rate exceeded
60 percent. In 24 countries, the piracy rate exceeded 75 percent.

— The countries with the highest piracy rates were Vietnam (92 percent),
Ukraine (91 percent), China (90 percent), Zimbabwe (90 percent) and
Indonesia (87 percent).

— The countries with the lowest piracy rates were the United States (21
percent), New Zealand (23 percent), Austria (25 percent), Sweden (26
percent), and United Kingdom (27 percent).

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— The emerging markets in Asia Pacific, Latin America, Eastern Europe
and the Middle East and Africa account for over one-third of PC
shipments today, but only a tenth of spending on PC software.

A primary factor in determining losses due to piracy in a specific country
is the size of that country’s software market. For instance, at 21 percent,
while the United States had the lowest piracy rate of all countries studied,
it also had the greatest losses – $6.6 billion. That amount is almost double
the amount lost in the country with the second highest losses, China, at $3.5
billion. In very large software markets, comparatively low piracy rates still
amount to huge losses.
“Piracy is still most prevalent in countries and regions where the
software market is growing as personal computing becomes more integral to work
and daily life,” said John Gantz, chief research officer at IDC. “But we’ve
learned from nations such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE) that adopting
policies to protect intellectual property is key to curbing piracy. With a 34
percent piracy rate, UAE is the only emerging economy listed among the top 20
low-piracy nations, likely attributable to policy measures on intellectual
property enacted in the 1990s.”
“BSA’s education programs, policy initiatives and enforcement efforts
around the world continue to have an impact on the piracy problem,” said
Holleyman. “But the continued influx of new users in emerging markets, and
the increased availability of pirated software primarily through the Internet
and P2P networks, underscores that continued education is a must. BSA will
continue its efforts to stem the growth of piracy and thus stimulate local
economies, create jobs, generate tax revenue, and encourage investment in
technological innovation for the future.”
IDC used proprietary statistics for software and hardware shipments,
conducted more than 7,000 interviews in 23 countries, and enlisted IDC
analysts in over 50 countries to review local market conditions.

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One thought on “One Third of All Software in Use Still Pirated, Major Study Finds (News Release)

  1. I do not condone piracy, but if all the companies concerned in selling us music, dvd or software were to reduce their prices to a reasonable level (everything goes up in price but wages don’t, how is that supposed to work, capitalism is like a drug dealer – buy our goods – we don’t care where you get the money from, and by the way if we go out of business it was your fault for not buying) and stop profiteering for the sake of the rich i.e. stockholders and such.
    The system stinks cos it only works for the rich!!!!!!!!!!
    I get your email.

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