Installations of unlicensed software on personal computers (PC) in Canada fell from 32 to 29 per cent in 2009 representing a commercial value of US $943 million, according to the seventh annual Global Software Piracy Study released by the Business Software Alliance (BSA).
The annual study, conducted by global IT market research and forecasting firm IDC, estimates global PC software piracy rates and the commercial value of unlicensed software in 111 economies by collecting more than 182 discrete data inputs and evaluating local PC and software trends through a combination of proprietary research, end-user surveys and quarterly tracking reports.
"At 29 per cent, Canada's software piracy rate is at an all-time low, which demonstrates the progress that can be made through greater consumer education, legalization programs by software companies and better enforcement of licensing rules," Michael Murphy, Chairman of the BSA Canada Committee. "As we emerge from the most severe global economic recession in twenty years, BSA will continue to engage with government, businesses, and consumers about the risks of stealing software - and the true impact that software piracy has on Canada's economy."
Despite the global economic recession, the study found that piracy of software on PCs declined in many markets worldwide, dropping in 54 economies and increasing in only 19. However, the global piracy rate increased from 41 to 43 per cent, largely the result of fast growing, higher piracy markets such as China, India, and Brazil increasing their share of the overall software market. Globally, the commercial value of pirated software in 2009 was $51.4 billion.
Other findings include:
- PC shipment growth in Canada was down four per cent over 2008,
while consumer shipments grew two per cent. More than 75 per cent
of software deployed in 2009 went to consumers and as software
shipments continued to grow, piracy dropped considerably.
- PC software piracy dropped in 54 of the 111 countries studied;
however the worldwide piracy rate rose from 41 per cent in 2008 to
43 per cent in 2009, due to exponential growth in PC software
deployments in emerging economies.
- The United States, Japan, and Luxembourg continue to hold the
lowest piracy rates of countries surveyed (20, 21, and 21 per
cent, respectively); countries with the piracy rates of 90 per
cent or above include Georgia, Zimbabwe, and Moldova.
- For every $100 worth of legitimate software sold in 2009, an
additional $75 was pirated.
- Forces driving piracy down included vendor legalization programs,
government and industry education campaigns, enforcement actions,
and technology shifts, such as the increased deployment of digital
rights management (DRM) and greater use of software asset
management (SAM).
- Factors driving piracy rates up included rapid growth of the
consumer PC market, and greater activity in the installed base of
older computers where unlicensed software is more prevalent, and
the increasing sophistication of software pirates and cyber
criminals.
"The BSA/IDC Global Piracy Study shows there was some progress in the global fight against software piracy in 2009 - but incremental change is not enough," said Robert Holleyman, BSA president and CEO. "Piracy is limiting IT innovation, job creation, local economic growth and is robbing governments of vital tax revenues. The report makes it very clear that governments around the world must redouble their efforts to combat software theft."
The 2009 BSA/IDC Global PC Software Piracy Study covers piracy of all software that runs on PCs, including desktops, laptops, and ultra-portables, including netbooks. This includes operating systems, systems software, such as databases and security packages, and applications software. The study also looks at legitimate free software and open source software. It does not include software that runs on servers or mainframes.
Please visit www.bsa.org/globalstudy for a copy of the study and a video on the study's methodology delivered by IDC lead researcher John Gantz.