'Avast, Pirates!' As Feds & States Get Tough on Software Piracy, Tally Systems Helps Unwitting Violators Get Legal; Asset Management Software Helps Keep Software Piracy Enforcers At Bay.

Business/Technology Editors

LEBANON, N.H.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 10, 2000

Recent anti-software-piracy legislation enacted by the State of California and the U.S. Government is making companies vulnerable to prosecution not because of deliberate acts of software piracy, but because they don't have an accurate count of their installed software, according to asset management software developer Tally Systems Corp.

"Many companies don't realize that by not proactively managing their software licenses, they are often unwittingly violating anti-software-piracy laws," said Michael Gray, director of asset management products at Tally Systems. "Without effective desktop asset management practices in place, it's very easy for large enterprises to lose control of where software is installed, who is using it and whether the software is being used in compliance with existing software license agreements. Companies that aren't prepared to produce a complete, accurate and up-to-date software inventory on demand are vulnerable."

The Business Software Alliance (BSA), a leading software trade association and anti-piracy advocate, recently reached a settlement with an Ohio mortgage company that resulted in payment of $139,000 to settle claims related to unlicensed copies of software programs. The BSA has collected over $44 million from organizations around the U.S. over the last six years as part of its anti-piracy activities. Civil copyright infringement can result in fines of up to $100,000 per title, and criminal violations can result in fines of $250,000 per title and up to five years imprisonment for the violator.

"Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for good, reputable companies to find themselves with more software programs installed on their computers than they have licenses to support," said Bob Kruger, vice president of enforcement for the BSA, in announcing the settlement. "Companies should treat software just like any other asset. BSA recommends that all companies and organizations have strong software management policies in place that encourage compliance - including periodic internal audits, guidelines for supervisors and clear procedures for employees."

Mike D'Aversa, IT Manager for Alliance Funding, a $1 billion lending and finance group headquartered in Orangeburg, New York, saved his company from unwitting software piracy when he conducted an inventory of 1,500 PCs scattered across 25 locations nationwide using Tally Systems NetCensus. D'Aversa was asked by another manager to run a report of software installed on the network, using NetCensus. "When the manager reviewed the report, he noticed a discrepancy with licensing," said D'Aversa. "Apparently at some point, as the company grew, we continuously installed software and never considered purchasing the additional licenses. NetCensus helped us to pre-empt any problems from a licensing standpoint and prevented an auditor from discovering a potential problem, which could have possibly resulted in a substantial monetary loss or embarrassment to the company."

The Software Publishers Association (SPA), now part of the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA), takes a two-pronged approach to the issue. "The SPA has always advocated a proactive campaign of both education and enforcement in protecting the intellectual property rights of our over 1,400 member companies," said Peter Beruk, vice president of SPA Anti-Piracy Programs. "Products such as Tally Systems' NetCensus and CentaMeter, which track software installations and monitor usage are effective means of assuring license compliance."

The new legislation in California, and other similar laws already passed in several other states, goes beyond state agencies to the private sector, stipulating that companies and vendors that do business with the state also have to adopt anti-software-piracy policies. The new legislation can be found online at: http://www.ca.gov/t/governor/pr2501015.html The executive order signed by President Clinton can be found online at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/search/executive-orders.html

About Tally Systems

Tally Systems Corp. is the world's leading supplier of full-featured asset management and messaging management products, providing software and services to improve the management of end-user systems.

Tally Systems' desktop asset management products-including Cenergy, NetCensus, CentaMeter and WinINSTALL, are currently licensed on over 7,500,000 PCs at more than 10,500 client sites worldwide.

Creativity, entrepreneurship and proven expertise continue to keep Tally Systems at the forefront of developments in an industry where the only constant is change. Visit Tally Systems on the web at: http://www.tallysystems.com