Business Software Alliance - Definition and Overview

The Business Software Alliance (BSA) is a trade group representing a number of the world's largest software makers. It is funded through membership dues based on member company's software revenues and through settlements from companies it successfully brings action against.

Its principal activity is fighting unauthorized copying of software produced by its members -- a crime it claims costs the software industry over $11 billion each year.

The BSA employs a team of over 100 lawyers and investigators which it uses to prosecute "thousands of cases a year" in conjunction with local law enforcement. The majority of these cases are reported either through one of its 65 piracy hotlines or in online report form. It then sends the companies a note with the implict threat of a forthcoming software audit. When the BSA finds cases of software piracy, it assesses heavy monetary penalties. Some companies have switched to free software after having to pay large fines.

BSA has not been reported to support FSF or other free software groups in their actions of copyright enforcement.

Other fields of activity was lobbying for ENISA (http://www.ffii.org/proj/enisa/). [1] (http://global.bsa.org/eupolicy/networksecurity/) [2] (http://wiki.ael.be/index.php/ENISA)

The BSA has been criticised for its aggressive tactics in forcing small businesses to allow BSA members onto their premises for audits and for its presumption of guilt until an audit proves one innocent. Among the more provocative approaches the BSA has taken is the Bust Your Boss! campaign which has appeared in print, email, online, and billboards:

Bust Your Boss!

Is your current or former employer using pirated software
in their office? Hit em where it really hurts   report their
illegal software use today.

Another recent campaign, known as Play it Cyber Safe (http://www.playitcybersafe.com/), features an Anti-Piracy Ferret. Starting September 1, Children will get to vote on one of five pre-approved names [3] (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/08/12/bsa_superhero_ferret/) for the Ferret.

Members

• Adobe Systems
• Apple Computer
• Autodesk
• Avid
• Bentley Systems
• Borland
• Cisco Systems
• CNC Software/Mastercam
• HP
• IBM
• Intel
• Internet Security Systems
• Intuit
• Macromedia
• Microsoft
• Network Associates
• PeopleSoft
• Phoenix Technologies
• RSA Security
• SolidWorks
• Sybase
• Symantec
• UGS PLM Solutions Inc.
• Veritas Software

See also

• Ferrets as Mascots
• BayTSP

External links

• http://www.bsa.org
• http://www.infoanarchy.org/wiki/wiki.pl?BSA
• http://www.disinfopedia.org/wiki.phtml?title=Business_Software_Alliance
• Mother Jones article (http://www.motherjones.com/mother_jones/JF98/burstein.html)
• Kids Smell Bullshit (http://www.kidssmellbullshit.com/)