forwardone
05-12-09, 11:42 PM
Report reveals damning evidence that a quarter of software on Brit computers is pirated.
Britain is a nation of pirate lovers with more than 25 per cent of the software being used in the UK being sourced illegally, according to the latest annual global IDC software piracy study.
The new report, released by the Business Software Alliance (BSA), paints a pretty damning picture of your average Brit's relaxed approach to software rights, with the revelation that 27 per cent of all software on UK computers is pirated.
The figures probably won't shock most people, after all the ease of 'borrowing' a copy of Photoshop or Windows from a mate combined with the money saving rewards is a big draw, and increasingly so, to a cash-strapped nation.
However it's hitting the industry hard in the pocket with losses in 2008 resulting from the piracy amounting to a record £1.49 billion. According to the BSA Britain stands little chance of forging ahead in IT while this level of software stealing piracy remains at an 'unacceptably' high rate.
'Much more needs to be done by the industry and the government to warn businesses and consumers of the risks associated with under-licensed software, from a legal, financial and operational point of view,' said Alyna Cope, spokesperson for the BSA UK country committee.
'Software piracy hurts our knowledge-based economy by weakening the very foundation on which it is built - respect for intellectual property and innovation.'
t3.com
Britain is a nation of pirate lovers with more than 25 per cent of the software being used in the UK being sourced illegally, according to the latest annual global IDC software piracy study.
The new report, released by the Business Software Alliance (BSA), paints a pretty damning picture of your average Brit's relaxed approach to software rights, with the revelation that 27 per cent of all software on UK computers is pirated.
The figures probably won't shock most people, after all the ease of 'borrowing' a copy of Photoshop or Windows from a mate combined with the money saving rewards is a big draw, and increasingly so, to a cash-strapped nation.
However it's hitting the industry hard in the pocket with losses in 2008 resulting from the piracy amounting to a record £1.49 billion. According to the BSA Britain stands little chance of forging ahead in IT while this level of software stealing piracy remains at an 'unacceptably' high rate.
'Much more needs to be done by the industry and the government to warn businesses and consumers of the risks associated with under-licensed software, from a legal, financial and operational point of view,' said Alyna Cope, spokesperson for the BSA UK country committee.
'Software piracy hurts our knowledge-based economy by weakening the very foundation on which it is built - respect for intellectual property and innovation.'
t3.com