"BSA conducts more than 30 legal actions every working day in EMEA," said Sarah Coombes, Senior Director, Legal Affairs, for the Business Software Alliance. "In the current economic conditions, I am concerned that so many businesses continue to flout copyright laws by using unlicensed software, opening themselves up to the risks of legal and financial consequences, which could harm companies’ cash flow."

BSA secured its second-ever biggest settlement in EMEA in June 2009 against a German company, with damages and licensing costs amounting to more than $1.5 million. This case demonstrates the serious financial consequences of using software illegally.

In Hungary, during the first 6 months of 2009BSA continued its activities in generating leads and providing input to police as well as the customs and finance authority. The highlight of the last 6 months has clearly been the raid of the largest scale ever. The National Investigation Office seized approximately 250 terrabytes of illegal contents, that is sotftware, movies and music stored on 43 computer servers.

BSA receives around 100 leads a week about companies using unlicensed software from people and organisations concerned about this illegal activity. If you are aware of a company using unlicensed software, this can be reported to the BSA at: www.bsa.org. Companies should learn about the value of license compliance, as well as the reputational, technical, financial, and legal risks associated with not managing this crucial business asset thoroughly. For more information, free tools and advice on how to handle your software effectively, visit: www.bsa.org.

About BSA The Business Software Alliance (www.bsa.org) is the foremost organisation dedicated to promoting a safe and legal digital world. BSA is the voice of the world's commercial software industry and its hardware partners before governments and in the international marketplace. Its members represent one of the fastest growing industries in the world. BSA programmes foster technology innovation through education and policy initiatives that promote copyright protection, cyber security, trade and e-commerce. BSA members include: Adobe, Altium, Apple, Autodesk, Bentley Systems, Corel, Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks Corporation, Embarcadero, Famatech, Graphisoft, Microsoft, Mindjet, Siemens, Symantec, Tekla and The MathWorks.