BSAA calls on businesses: proactively manage IP rather than face court
Announcement posted by Business Software Association of Australia (BSAA) 16 May 2002
As another local company faces damages
The Business Software Association of Australia (BSAA) has called on businesses to be more proactive in managing valuable intellectual property including computer software to avoid facing legal action and possible costly damages.
The call came as the BSAA rolls out its No Business Too Small campaign targeting small to medium businesses and with the announcement of another settlement with an Australian company for infringement of software licences.
The leading importer of Ducati and Harley Davidson motorcycles, NF Importers Pty Ltd, has agreed to pay BSAA members $35,000 in costs and damages for infringement of software licenses. The case arose after a company employee had extensively loaded illegal software without senior management awareness or approval.
BSAA Chairman, Jim Macnamara, said software companies understood that employees sometimes broke the law without the participation or knowledge of senior management as occurred in the case of NF Importers Pty Ltd. However, he said that management had to take responsibility for all assets and practices of their businesses.
Theft of physical property is not an acceptable practice. Intellectual property such as software is equally and sometimes more important to businesses than physical property. Management needs to recognise that intellectual property has to be protected and secured, Mr Macnamara said.
Mr Macnamara reiterated the BSAAs policy of a three-pronged attack on software piracy involving education, assistance and litigation.
Litigation is our last resort. The software industry would much prefer that companies and organisations proactively managed their software. The BSAA publishes and distributed free guides to managing software and is offering its Software Compliance and Audit Manual free to small to medium businesses during its No Business Too Small campaign, Mr Macnamara pointed out.
There is also a range of software available for monitoring and managing software on networks, including freeware. So there is no excuse for management not protecting and securing software, he added.
According to Mr Warren Lee, General Manager of NF Importers Pty Ltd, his worst fears were realised when the company finally conducted a software audit and discovered the illegal software.
As with other companies found to be using illegal copies of software, our settlement with the BSAA has been a hard lesson on software management for our company, said Mr Lee.
Our company was very surprised when it received advice from the BSAA alleging the possible use of illegal copies of software by our company. Upon receipt of the BSAAs advice, an audit was immediately conducted of company PCs and our worst fears were then realised.
The activity of installing illegal software on company PCs and exposing our company to litigation was the action of a company employee and was without senior management awareness of approval. As this activity is widely and commonly known to be illegal with very serious consequences, the company has taken appropriate disciplinary actions and has cooperated openly and fully with the BSAA, Mr Lee said.
To ensure our company never finds itself in a similar situation in the future, we are implementing the policies and guidelines for software management recommended by the BSAA, as well as additional internal software management, monitoring and auditing systems. Our advice to companies with effective software management systems would be to do the same without delay, he said.
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Interviews: Jim Macnamara Chairman of the BSAA
Telephone: 0414 393 655
Media inquiries: Pru Quinlan
Einsteinz
Telephone: (02) 9965 7227 or 0405 100 585
pru@einsteinz.com.au
More information:
Toll-free hotline for public inquiries (anonymously if preferred): 1800 021 143
BSAA Web site: www.bsaa.com.au
The Business Software Association of Australia (BSAA) is affiliated with the Business Software Alliance (BSA), which operates globally in 65 countries. BSAA members include Adobe, Autodesk, Macromedia, Microsoft and Symantec.
The Business Software Alliance (www.bsaa.org) is the foremost organization dedicated to promoting a safe and legal online world. The BSA is the voice of the world's software and Internet industry before governments and with consumers in the international marketplace. Its members represent the fastest growing industry in the world. BSA educates computer users on software copyrights and cyber security; advocates public policy that fosters innovation and expands trade opportunities; and fights software piracy. BSA worldwide members include Adobe, Apple Computer, Autodesk, Bentley Systems, Borland, CNC Software/Mastercam, Macromedia, Microsoft, Symantec, and Unigraphics Solutions (EDS).
The call came as the BSAA rolls out its No Business Too Small campaign targeting small to medium businesses and with the announcement of another settlement with an Australian company for infringement of software licences.
The leading importer of Ducati and Harley Davidson motorcycles, NF Importers Pty Ltd, has agreed to pay BSAA members $35,000 in costs and damages for infringement of software licenses. The case arose after a company employee had extensively loaded illegal software without senior management awareness or approval.
BSAA Chairman, Jim Macnamara, said software companies understood that employees sometimes broke the law without the participation or knowledge of senior management as occurred in the case of NF Importers Pty Ltd. However, he said that management had to take responsibility for all assets and practices of their businesses.
Theft of physical property is not an acceptable practice. Intellectual property such as software is equally and sometimes more important to businesses than physical property. Management needs to recognise that intellectual property has to be protected and secured, Mr Macnamara said.
Mr Macnamara reiterated the BSAAs policy of a three-pronged attack on software piracy involving education, assistance and litigation.
Litigation is our last resort. The software industry would much prefer that companies and organisations proactively managed their software. The BSAA publishes and distributed free guides to managing software and is offering its Software Compliance and Audit Manual free to small to medium businesses during its No Business Too Small campaign, Mr Macnamara pointed out.
There is also a range of software available for monitoring and managing software on networks, including freeware. So there is no excuse for management not protecting and securing software, he added.
According to Mr Warren Lee, General Manager of NF Importers Pty Ltd, his worst fears were realised when the company finally conducted a software audit and discovered the illegal software.
As with other companies found to be using illegal copies of software, our settlement with the BSAA has been a hard lesson on software management for our company, said Mr Lee.
Our company was very surprised when it received advice from the BSAA alleging the possible use of illegal copies of software by our company. Upon receipt of the BSAAs advice, an audit was immediately conducted of company PCs and our worst fears were then realised.
The activity of installing illegal software on company PCs and exposing our company to litigation was the action of a company employee and was without senior management awareness of approval. As this activity is widely and commonly known to be illegal with very serious consequences, the company has taken appropriate disciplinary actions and has cooperated openly and fully with the BSAA, Mr Lee said.
To ensure our company never finds itself in a similar situation in the future, we are implementing the policies and guidelines for software management recommended by the BSAA, as well as additional internal software management, monitoring and auditing systems. Our advice to companies with effective software management systems would be to do the same without delay, he said.
#####
Interviews: Jim Macnamara Chairman of the BSAA
Telephone: 0414 393 655
Media inquiries: Pru Quinlan
Einsteinz
Telephone: (02) 9965 7227 or 0405 100 585
pru@einsteinz.com.au
More information:
Toll-free hotline for public inquiries (anonymously if preferred): 1800 021 143
BSAA Web site: www.bsaa.com.au
The Business Software Association of Australia (BSAA) is affiliated with the Business Software Alliance (BSA), which operates globally in 65 countries. BSAA members include Adobe, Autodesk, Macromedia, Microsoft and Symantec.
The Business Software Alliance (www.bsaa.org) is the foremost organization dedicated to promoting a safe and legal online world. The BSA is the voice of the world's software and Internet industry before governments and with consumers in the international marketplace. Its members represent the fastest growing industry in the world. BSA educates computer users on software copyrights and cyber security; advocates public policy that fosters innovation and expands trade opportunities; and fights software piracy. BSA worldwide members include Adobe, Apple Computer, Autodesk, Bentley Systems, Borland, CNC Software/Mastercam, Macromedia, Microsoft, Symantec, and Unigraphics Solutions (EDS).