It’s not every day that someone freely admits to criminal behavior. Traffic tickets aside, few people are brazen enough to acknowledge serious crimes. Yet in BSA’s ninth annual Global Software Piracy Study, more than half of the world’s computer users readily concede they steal software. Some users say they acquire unlicensed applications all or most … Read More >>
Tag: piracy
Shadow Market: BSA’s 2011 Global Software Piracy Study
BSA today released the ninth edition of our Global Software Piracy Study — and in it, we have plowed new ground. This year’s study marks the first time anyone has directly asked a large sample of computer users around the world, “How often do you acquire pirated software?” The answers people have given to that … Read More >>
The Legal Gulf Between China and the West Remains Wide
What to do about China? It is the world’s second-largest economy and our second-largest trading partner, after neighboring Canada. Yet it remains the wild, wild East of the global economy, a place arguably more dangerous than anywhere else in the world for innovative U.S. companies to do business. If likely president-to-be Xi Jinping is interested … Read More >>
Software Prices and Piracy in the Developing World: Correlation vs. Causation
Software piracy rates are highest in the developing world, where per capita incomes are lowest. For some observers, this correlation is evidence of causation. Software costs too much for people in emerging economies to afford, the argument goes; that’s why they steal it. Charge less, and the problem will take care of itself.
The Real Impact of Bringing Down the Net’s Bad Actors
It was hard to miss the coverage and attention devoted to the recent takedown of the illegal filesharing site megaupload.com. The sheer magnitude of copyrighted material that was being illegally shared on the site was newsworthy. There were also the added elements of the lavish lifestyle and dramatic arrest of megaupload’s founder. But the attention … Read More >>