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BSA and Department of Justice Continue Efforts Against Software Pirates
The Business Software Alliance (BSA), the voice of the world’s commercial software industry and its hardware partners, today applauded the decision of US District Judge Barbara B. Crabb to sentence 39-year-old Kelly A. Garcia of Dubuque, Iowa to six months in federal prison for copyright infringement. “Software piracy is a serious crime with serious consequences,” said Robert Holleyman, president and CEO of BSA. “Some may think selling pirated software is a harmless way to earn easy money, but in fact it can result in stiff penalties and even jail time. What is even more unfortunate is that software piracy robs local communities of industry jobs and much needed tax revenue especially during these difficult economic times."
In March 2003, Garcia advertised the sale of software products by email offers, including over 25 products of BSA member companies. After an undercover investigation that included purchasing software such as Macromedia and Apple products confirmed that Garcia was indeed selling illegal copies of copyright protected software, BSA referred the case to the US Department of Justice. In November 2003, federal agents searched Garcia’s home in Boscobel, Wisc., and discovered that she had received approximately $85,000 in proceeds from illegally selling copyright protected software.
“BSA will continue to work with law enforcement agents to enforce copyright protection and combat those who continue to dupe consumers through the sale of fraudulent software. Together we can reduce the amount of software piracy, which cost the United States economy approximately $9 billion in lost revenue in 2008 alone,” continued Holleyman. “This is the latest in several cases over the past few years in which the cooperation of BSA and the DOJ resulted in successful prosecution and hard time for software pirates.”
According to the Sixth Annual BSA-IDC Global Piracy Report conducted by IDC, the IT industry’s leading global market research and forecasting firm, 20 percent of the software installed in the United States in 2008 was installed without legal licenses. Reducing software piracy in the United States by just 10 percentage points over the next four years could generate more than 32,000 new jobs, $41 billion in economic growth, and $7 billion in tax revenues above current projections, based on the findings of a January 2008 report by IDC, “The Economic Benefits of Reducing Piracy".
The Business Software Alliance (www.bsa.org) is the foremost organization dedicated to promoting a safe and legal digital world. BSA is the voice of the world's commercial software industry and its hardware partners before governments and in the international marketplace. Its members represent one of the fastest growing industries in the world. BSA programs foster technology innovation through education and policy initiatives that promote copyright protection, cyber security, trade and e-commerce. BSA members include Adobe, Apple, Autodesk, Bentley Systems, Corel, CyberLink, Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks Corporation, Embarcadero, McAfee, Microsoft, Minitab, Quark, Quest Software, Rosetta Stone, Siemens, Sybase, Symantec, and The MathWorks.
Janice Laurente202-346-8840janice.laurente@fd.com
United States
