Andre Yoskowitz
15 May 2007 15:17
An IDC study commissioned by the Business Software Alliance (BSA) reported on Tuesday that the rate of piracy globally has remained fairly stable, but as the software market grows so does the cost of the piracy to developers.
The study found that worldwide, 35 percent of all software is pirated and that for every $2 spent on legitimate software, $1 is lost to piracy.
"The good news is we are making progress, however, we still have a lot of work to do to reduce unacceptable levels of piracy," said BSA President and CEO Robert Holleyman.
The report also found that losses amounted to $40 billion USD in 2006, an increase of 15 percent from 2005. However, in a silver lining, piracy rates dropped in 62 countries and only increased in 13.
China's piracy rates dropped 10 percent from 2004-2006, but still stood at an unbelievable 82 percent. The report claims that the 10 point drop led to an extra $864 million in revenue.
"This continued decline in China's software piracy rate is quite promising," Holleyman said. "BSA is encouraged by the commitment from the Chinese government to ensure legal software use.
Russia also saw a 7 percent drop, but still stood at an astonishing 87 percent. The study also concluded that the US had the lowest rate of piracy, although it had the highest total losses, $7.3 billion USD.
Source:
BetaNews