Piracy Research

The Business Software Alliance conducts extensive research into the issues that impact the technology sector. Working alongside some of the world’s most respected research groups, BSA investigates the forces that shape today’s global technology landscape. From software piracy to the economic impact of information technology, BSA and its research partners identify and explore the key issues and trends that matter to the software industry.

With this insight and background, BSA is uniquely positioned to contribute to the growing global digital economy and to advocate for the technology sector before governments and industry around the world.

A focal point of BSA’s research portfolio is the BSA/IDC Global Software Piracy Study. This annual report, conducted since 2004, tracks the state of software piracy across more than 100 countries and is a key tool in communicating with governments about the importance of copyright and intellectual property rights.

Software Piracy Data


View the Piracy Rate by Region

A number of factors contribute to regional differences in piracy — the strength of intellectual property protection, the availability of pirated software, and cultural differences. In addition, piracy is not uniform within a country; it varies from city to city, industry to industry and demographic to demographic. While efforts to cut piracy in large businesses may be successful, piracy can increase as a result of new users from small businesses entering the market for the first time.

Find out more.