San Juan, Puerto Rico – April 12, 2005 – The Business Software Alliance (BSA), the international organization representing the leading software developers, today announced it is expanding its education efforts to teach consumers, business owners and students about how to best manage their software.
BSA’s program includes the launch of a new Web site, www.bsa.org/puertorico and toll-free hotline, 1-888-662-5747 (NO.AL.PIRATEO) that will enable businesses and consumers to access information, resources and free tools to assist them and ensure that the software they are using is fully licensed.
“Puerto Rico is an important, ‘tech savvy’ market, and significant progress has been made in protecting copyrighted works including computer software,” said Michael Yong, Puerto Rico Program Manager for BSA. “Despite these efforts, more needs to be done, and education is key to this process.”
Software piracy continues to be a significant problem in Puerto Rico, where 46 percent -- nearly one in two software programs -- is pirated. According to an IDC study*, these losses in Puerto Rico are estimated at $10.8 million, harming the local economy and affecting revenue and jobs of the local IT industry, including retailers, local software companies and vendors. IDC estimates** that if Puerto Rico’s software piracy rate declined by 10 percentage points, such a reduction could potentially create hundreds of new jobs, provide approximately $70 million into the Puerto Rican economy and about $10 million in additional tax revenues for the local government.
“BSA and its members are re-doubling their efforts to educate the general public about proper software management by providing businesses and organizations with the necessary tools and resources to establish effective software management policies,” said Yong.
BSA’s Web site (www.bsa.org/puertorico) features software asset management resources and free tools to download including the “Guide to Software Management,” “Software Piracy and the Law” fact sheet and software audit tools. All content is available in both English and Spanish. And, the toll-free hotline (1-888-662-5747; NO.AL.PIRATEO) is a resource for callers requesting information about software asset management or to report suspected incidences of piracy.
Software is protected by the federal copyright law and in Puerto Rico, the fine for unlicensed software can reach $150,000 in civil damages for each pirated product.
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Contact Information
Janet James, Fleishman Hillard
E-mail: jamesj@fleishman.com
(787) 620-1400
(787) 525-8322 PCS
