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A flaw in the way annual software usage statistics are compiled may
have led to legal distribution of open-source programs being lumped with illegal trafficking in desktop
applications, inflating losses to industry through "phantom" piracy. The annual software piracy statistics -
published by trade groups the US Business Software Association (BSA) and Business Software Association
of Australia (BSAA) - are compiled from several sources but none take into account the growing use of
open-source desktop applications.
The figures are potent weapons in a public relations war to chide users into registering software, lobby
governments for stricter enforcement of intellectual property laws and to justify harsher legal penalties.
Although use of open-source desktop applications may be comparatively small, its predicted increase may
undermine the accuracy of future piracy surveys.
Con Zymaris, chief executive of Melbourne consultancy CyberSource, says heavy-handed enforcement by the
BSAA and its members drives users into the arms of open-source [and warez] applications. Smaller users
especially are reluctant to spend $1000 - the cost of an entry-level PC - on software.
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http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2002/07/20/1026898931824.html
According to the U.S. Gov, investigators estimate that there are roughly 30 major release groups enlisting some 1,500 people around the world, with members in China, Britain, Germany, Australia, Finland, Norway and Sweden to name just a few places.
Different warez groups focus on different product lines. Groups like FairLight and Razor1911 are known for game releases. FTF and Immortal VCD release movies, a pursuit that relies less on overcoming protection
schemes than on getting illegitimate access to recent films to duplicate them. A group called POPZ, for Parents on 'Puterz, focuses on children's games.
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