By Andy McCue, 14 February 2006 13:15
NEWS
Software theft is not viewed as a crime by most people, with eight out of 10 saying they would not grass up a work colleague for online software theft, according to a survey by the Federation Against Software Theft (Fast).
The survey aims to highlight the fact people take physical theft seriously but generally don't regard illegal online downloading as a crime, with the results showing the same number of respondents (eight out of 10) would report someone they saw shoplifting on the high street.
Fast questioned 250 PC users in the UK and found that 69 per cent suspect they have bought illegal software online.
Just last month Fast won a court order forcing several ISPs, including BT, NTL, Telewest and Tiscali, to hand over the names and addresses of 150 individuals accused of illegally downloading and sharing desktop software on the web.
John Lovelock, director general at Fast, slammed the "huge morality gap" that is responsible for the lax attitude towards software theft and piracy.
He said in a statement: "In my opinion, digital software theft is exactly the same as walking out of PC World with a CD stuffed up your jumper - stealing is stealing, and I'm shocked at the blasé attitude of so many of our survey respondents."
He also warned that company directors who turn a blind eye towards their employees, who may be sharing or downloading illegal software at work, cannot use a defence of ignorance as they are legally liable for the actions of their staff.
Lovelock said Fast's forensic team is currently working on a project codenamed Operation Tracker to pursue a number of persistent offenders making illegal copies of software for others to download.
The survey was carried out for Fast by Pure Profile.
Comments
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1. anonymous
Some time after leaving I shopped a previous company for illegally rolling out pirated copies of everything. Two reasons for this. (1) Professional. I had spent my career there telling the MD that it was wrong that they were doing this and being told that he wasn't bothered and it was his responsibility. So I figured it was time he lived up to it. We're not talking a couple of downloaded copies, we're talking around half a dozen different applications on numerous machines. This was not a personal scale, it was a business one. (2) Personal. The British Software Alliance was promising 10% of any licence fees recovered. £700 to my bank account wasn't so shabby!
I'm no fan of Microsoft's licensing policies or costs. But if you don't like them, there are alternatives out there that are hugely cheaper. Maybe if more people were honest and followed their pockets to the other companies MS would have to review their prices and bring them down to a more sensible level.
2. Simon
Anonymous makes a good point, for all it's bleating, I think Microsoft (in particular, but there are others in a similar position) know that without software piracy they would be in a worse position !
Take Office for example, if all the people using pirated copies had to pay for them then they'd be looking at better value alternatives - so there would be a better market and we'd actually have better competition (or would have had it sooner). The alternative of course is that the dominant player would have simply fudged the market in order to kill competition by dropping prices.
Yes, the only way Office keeps it's ubiquity with the price tag it has is because so many people that wouldn't buy it anyway have a pirated copy.
3. honestjohn
Legally speaking, theft deprives someone of an item, whereas copying software doesn't.
Many people use copied software but wouldn't pay for it they were given a chance at amnesty - a choice of "buy" or "bin". I have a few such packages where I would make do with a much cheaper product if I had to - e.g. I couldn't justify spending 1000's on e.g. dvd authoring software when it is just a hobby and makes no money for me at all.
I wouldn't report personal copying, and if I came across a small business I would try and help them sort it out (e.g. with Microsoft Action Pack) as there are cheap ways of getting licenses.
I would consider reporting a large corporate where blatant copying was going on with the knowledge of senior staff, since they have no excuse!