New Research from SPA Charts Software Piracy by Location, Industry

LA, NY and SF are nation's hot spots; manufacturing, consulting and retail
businesses the biggest culprits

August 17,1993 (Washington, DC)--The "City Of Angels" has earned a new
title--"City of Software Pirates." According to a study by the Software
Publishers Association (SPA), Los Angeles is now the nation's top city for
software piracy. During the year ending June 30, 1993, the SPA brought 34
software piracy cases to a close there. SPA actions included lawsuits and
audits of businesses and other organizations for compliance with the
federal copyright law.

New York and San Francisco rank second and third, respectively, behind LA
as America's most notorious pirate dens. The SPA concluded 28 actions
against software pirates in the Big Apple, 18 in the City by the Bay.
Fourth and fifth-ranked cities in the SPA study are Houston and Dallas,
with 14 and 10 cases, respectively.

"Domestic software pirates steal property worth more than $1 billion each
year in the US alone," says Ken Wasch, SPA executive director. "That's why
we make it our business to work very closely with law enforcement and
other officials to protect intellectual property rights of our members.
Software piracy is not about fun and games, it's about robbing hardworking
individuals and firms of their livelihoods. "

The new SPA study ranks California, Texas, Florida, New York and Illinois,
respectively, as the top five states for anti-piracy actions over the past
three years. Together, they account for nearly two-thirds (62%) of the
SPA's actions.

The SPA study also shows that since 1990, five types of organizations were
most likely to be involved in anti-piracy actions. They include
manufacturers, consultants, retailers, financial service providers and
engineering firms. Manufacturers were involved in 24% of SPA anti-piracy
actions, while consulting firms were implicated in 22% of the cases,
retail businesses in 15%, financial service providers in 9% and
engineering firms in 7%.

Since 1990, the SPA has initiated more than 1,300 anti-piracy actions
nationwide. These include raids on businesses, computer dealers, bulletin
board services and other institutions that have violated members'
copyrights, as well as lawsuits and software audits. With commercial
software piracy now classified as a felony under federal copyright law,
the SPA plans to launch additional actions in the months ahead. The SPA
maintains an anti-piracy hotline, 1-800-388-7478, that accepts calls to
report software violations.

Education, Too 

In addition to working with law enforcement agencies, the SPA provides
assistance to businesses, educational institutions and government entities
to educate computer users on how to comply with the federal copyright law
as it pertains to computer software. Materials such as an SPA Self-Audit
Kit which includes a software inventory management program, are available
at no cost.

The SPA has also produced a rap music video, "Don't Copy That Floppy," that
teaches youngsters about the ethical and legal implications of software
piracy. Copies of the video and accompanying lesson plans are available to
schools for a small shipping and handling charge.

Established in 1984, the Software Publishers Association is the principal
trade association of the personal computer software industry. Its 1,000
members represent the leading publishers in the business, consumer, and
education software markets. The SPA has offices in Washington, DC, and
Paris, France.

Software Publishers Association
1730 M St, Northwest, Suite 700, Washington, D.C. 20036
202-452-1600,  Fax: 202-223-8756

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