BSA Audits FAQ
Q. What is BSA - The Software Alliance?
A. BSA - The Software Alliance is an industry trade group whose members include software giants such as Microsoft, Adobe, Symantec, Macromedia, and Computer Associates.
Q. What authority does BSA - The Software Alliance have to conduct audits and levy fines?
A. BSA has no independent law enforcement authority of any kind. Its rights are derived from a power of attorney provided by its member software companies. Those companies have rights created by their software license agreements and under the laws protecting copyrights.
Q. What will happen if I ignore correspondence from BSA - The Software Alliance or its lawyers?
A. BSA is well funded and very aggressive. Attempting to ignore the problem by not responding will likely make your problems worse, leaving the BSA with no other option but to institute litigation against you and your company.
News
22Nov
Scott & Scott, LLP Has Years Of Successful Experience Defending Software Audits
Scott & Scott is a business and technology law firm that helps businesses aggressively protect their intellectual property, understand and comply with applicable laws and regulations, litigate and resolve disputes, and consummate complicated business transactions....
5Oct
Software audits: How high tech plays hardball
Dan Tynan, InfoWorld, 4/25/16 ‘Truing up’ licenses amounts to billions of dollars in revenue for the major software makers. Here’s where the money goes — and how it’s extracted.
30Sep
Software Licensing Tips To Reduce The Risk Of Legal Action
Michael O’Dwyer, ipswitch, 9/29/16 If you require software licensing tips, don’t expect your software vendors to be of any real help, given the prevalence of outsourced call centers by many of the world’s global players.
Blogs
2Apr
Five Secrets to Understanding the Business Software Alliance’s Audit Procedures
BSA| The Software Alliance (“BSA”) is an organization that investigates copyright infringement claims on behalf of software publishers such as Adobe, Autodesk, Microsoft, CNC, and Parametric Technology Corporation. The process for software audits can be...
19Mar
Is it Possible to Short-Circuit a BSA Software Audit?
Companies react in different ways after receiving a letter from the Business Software Alliance (BSA) or the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA) demanding a software audit. Some ignore the letter, assuming it to be...
15Mar
Cooperation or Litigation: BSA Audit Strategy
If your company has received a letter from the BSA requesting a software audit, you are probably wondering whether you should cooperate or tell the BSA to pound sand. I advise my clients to cooperate...
Articles
14Aug
11 Software Audit Best Practices
Robert J. Scott, Ground Report It is important to prepare in case a software vendor sends you an email or letter asking for an audit. Not being prepared ends up in loss of money and takes...
4Aug
Lessons Learned in Over 500 Software License Disputes
Finance Monthly – Spotlight Feature – Software Disputes, Robert Scott, July 2016 Regardless of whether the publisher is Microsoft, Adobe, Autodesk, Oracle, IBM or any of their trade groups including the BSA | The Software Alliance,...
11May
Software piracy claims can ruin your business and reward those responsible
Robert J. Scott, TechCrunch, 5/11/16 There is a highly divisive and costly practice that software companies have inflicted on their customers for nearly a decade. This practice brings with it significant emotional duress, time investment...