Bangkok--22 Dec--Vero PR
Award presented by Business Software Alliance recognize Thai business for software copyright compliance and use of genuine software
The Business Software Alliance today recognized companies for participation in a program that highlights the benefits of genuine software. In turn, executives at Thai companies endorsed the value that genuine software has delivered for their businesses.
The Business Software Alliance (BSA) presented awards today to businesses that participated in the BSA’s Golden Opportunity campaign.
The campaign was designed to recognize and honor companies that have done the right thing by using genuine software, said Roland Chan, the BSA’s Senior Director for Marketing, Asia Pacific.
“Companies that use genuine software in Thailand deserve recognition for their efforts to do the right thing,” said Chan. “Reducing software piracy and respecting intellectual property rights is good for the Thai economy, the Thai business environment and Thai entrepreneurs and innovators across all industries. Genuine software also happens to be good for Thai businesses—enhancing productivity and security.”
Members of the business community in attendance at the event concur.
“Genuine software has made our business stronger,” said Dr. Adul Warin, a director of McCormick Hospital Chiang Mai, winner of a gold plaque worth 99,999 baht for the company’s participation in the BSA campaign. “For our company, genuine software is definitely a good investment. We have fewer IT issues, fewer problems with viruses and malware and we have peace of mind in knowing that we have done the right thing. I think our employees also appreciate the fact that we are an ethical company.”
As an executive in a competitive business, Dr. Adul Warin said he recognizes the value that intellectual property rights plays in business success. He said that it is in the best interests of Thai businesses to recognize the innovations of others by adhering to Thailand’s national copyright law.
Business Software Alliance (BSA) Consultant Varunee Ratchatapattanakul says that companies using genuine software should be applauded and supported in their effort to conduct business within the guidelines of Thai Copyright laws. Meanwhile, she says companies that use pirated software drain resources from those who follow the law.
“Companies using pirated software are taking unfair advantage of competitors, customers, government tax policies and the downstream IT industry that would benefit from use of legal software,” says Ratchatapattanakul. “Pirated software also inappropriately puts their customer data at greater risk due to security flaws which may be inherent in unlicensed software.”
In October, Thai companies were offered a “golden opportunity” to ensure their software assets are aligned with Thai legal requirements. The campaign was designed to reward companies that have legalized their software assets.
As part of the campaign, the BSA organized an opportunity for businesses to win a gold certificate worth 99,999.00 baht for their participation in verifying that their software assets are properly licensed. The gold certificate was being awarded through a lucky draw for participating businesses.
All companies with fully licensed software in use were eligible to win. Moreover, all companies that submitted an application by the October 30 deadline received a signed certificate from the BSA recognizing their participation.
“The objective of the campaign is to reduce software piracy in Thailand through cooperation with the business community,” said Ratchattapanakul.
This is the first campaign of its kind organized by the software industry in Thailand. Companies with legally licensed software assets benefit from greater productivity and security. Companies using pirated software face more downtime due to technical issues, lack of technical support, lower productivity and possible legal repercussions from violating the Thai Copyright Act, which requires companies to comply with software licensing agreements.
Local companies that want to know whether their organization is using legal or illegal software may wish to download BSA's free software audit tools at www.bsa.org. Corporate IT managers and consultants can also help to determine whether or not software assets are properly licensed.
In the last three years, greater numbers of Thai companies have legalized their software assets. Since 2006, the PC software piracy rate has been reduced from 80% to 75% in Thailand. BSA attributes this reduction to strong police investigation and enforcement efforts, which occur on a weekly basis and have resulted in hundreds of raids against businesses using unlicensed software.
In addition, Ratchatapattanakul says that there is a greater awareness among members of the business community about the attributes of legal software from efforts to raise understanding of software intellectual property rights.
About The Business Software Alliance
The Business Software Alliance (www.bsa.org) is the world’s foremost advocate for the software industry, working in 80 countries to expand software markets and create conditions for innovation and growth. Governments and industry partners look to BSA for thoughtful approaches to key policy and legal issues, recognizing that software plays a critical role in driving economic and social progress in all nations. BSA’s member companies invest billions of dollars a year in local economies, good jobs, and next-generation solutions that will help people around the world be more productive, connected, and secure. BSA members include Adobe, Agilent Technologies, Altium, Apple, Aquafold, ARM, Arphic Technology, Autodesk, Autoform, AVEVA, AVG, Bentley Systems, CA Technologies, Cadence, Cisco Systems, CNC/Mastercam, Corel, Dassault Syst่mes SolidWorks Corporation, Dell, HP, IBM, Intel, Intuit, Kaspersky Lab, McAfee, Microsoft, Minitab, NedGraphics, Orbotech, PTC, Progress Software, Quark , Quest Software, Rosetta Stone, Scalable Software, Siemens PLM Software, Sybase, Symantec, Synopsys, Thai Software Enterprise, and The MathWorks.