The local chapter of the Business Software Alliance (BSA) has announced record piracy and legalisation figures for 1999, amounting to a staggering R10 million.

BSA Chairman Mark Reynolds says, "We aim to proactively eliminate software theft in South Africa, through co-operative education and enforcement. These figures should give the IT industry that is not directly linked to the BSA some idea of the extent of software piracy. The biggest single legalisation (amounting to almost R4,5 million) was that of the Pretoria City Council. We are happy to report that the BSA audit was done in response to a request for assistance from the council itself.

Pretoria City Council Director of Information Services Chris Burger says that the council was proactive in regard to cleaning up its IT department. The request for assistance from the BSA was based on a realisation that records of licensed software had been destroyed in the devastating fire a few years ago.

"We are in support of the BSA vision and aims. It is only through the involvement of every one in the IT industry that the crimes of software piracy can be stamped out. We went out on open tender for IT consultants to do a study of the council's IT situation. It was on the recommendation of the IT study team that I approached the BSA to do an audit," says Burger. "We found the BSA very helpful in assisting us with the legalisation of our software and have purchased Corel, Microsoft and even nonBSA member software amounting to R4 437 266,26."

Other companies that have legalised software during 1999 include Ince Cape, the Mobius Group, Crown Chrome Plating, Natal Training Centre and Moneywise Cash Loans. Companies that signed settlement agreements and paid damages include Ince Cape, Crown Chrome Plating, Hillbank Motor Consultants, Worcs and MacGlobal Technologies.

Generally a settlement agreement between the BSA and a company in default amounts to an admission of possessing and using unlicensed software, an agreement to pay damages, an undertaking to legalise software usage and the BSA's right to audit the company's software from time to time for a certain period. Reynolds says. "Since inception of the South African chapter of the BSA in 1993, there has been a decline in the piracy rate from an estimated 79 to 49%. This figure still reflects there being one copy of software pirated for each copy of software purchased. It is our aim to reduce this ratio in 2000."

Business Software Alliance

(011) 257 0436

markreyn@microsoft.com