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Over $50 Billion lost to software piracy in 2009
By siliconindia
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Tuesday, 11 May 2010, 21:15 IST
Singapore: Software piracy cost technology firms more than $50 billion around the world last year, with Asia accounting for the largest share of losses. According to the report by Business Software Alliance (BSA), global losses due to software piracy reached $51.4 billion in 2009, with $16.5 billion of this in the Asia-Pacific region.
According to the report, the deluge of counterfeits was largely due to the growth of the personal computer market in Brazil, India and China. Despite some successes in the fight to protect intellectual property rights, 43 percent of software used in computers worldwide in 2009 was pirated, compared to 41 percent the year before, the BSA found in the report, conducted in collaboration with market research firm IDC.
Bangladesh was the Asian country with the highest software piracy rate, followed by Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Vietnam, with China and India also among the most prominent culprits. "This study makes clear that while efforts to bring down piracy levels in the Asia-Pacific are enjoying some success, dollar losses at over $16.5 billion remain the highest in the world," said Jeffrey Hardee, Vice President and Regional Director of BSA. "This is unacceptable and there is still much to be done to engage governments, businesses and consumers on the risks and impact of software piracy."
