Scottish firm pays £120,000 over unlicensed software

A company in Renfrewshire, Scotland has paid almost £120,000 to settle claims that it had too few licences for the software installed on approximately 100 computers. The company would have been sued for copyright infringement if it had not settled. The deal with Total Repair Solutions was announced by the Business Software …

[James Anderson]

Suing your customers

What a great marketing ploy!

Only makes sense if you are about to be bough by CA or on the way to the bankruptcy court.

[Danny]

BSA

We had FAST knocking on the door (the sales guy) but it prompted me to double check the licences. Some were down but some were over. At least it balanced me out at renewal time. Plus it prompted me to install a dansguardian box instead of fortinet saving me some more money.

Paris, both unlicenced and expensive.

[Anonymous Coward]

"We now understand the importance of ensuring our licenses are up-to-date"

/Father Dougal voice:

"Oh, right!"

[Robert Moore]

Legal authority.

I still want to know where they derive their legal authority.

[Dave]

Translation

A spokesperson for John R. Weir said: "Shit, I had no idea lawyers were so expensive. I really wish there had been one less computer in the office the day these b@t*ds came round."

[Anonymous Coward]

viruses?

"encountering operational difficulties due to viruses"

I had no idea that buying a software licence rendered a computer virus-proof. Thanks for the heads up.

[M7S]

@ Robert Moore

They dont need one as such. They are acting as agents of the rights owner, a bit like bailiffs collecting a legitimate debt. Having said that, they rang an organisation I worked for, and as part of the pitch said they were a "policing authority". I checked and it said the same on their website.

One quick call to the Home Office, who rapidly became unhappy bunnies when I pointed this out to them, and this was removed fairly quickly*, so you dont need to fall for their bluster. Of course it helps if you're not violating the contract (regardless of its rights, wrongs and onerous terms), but if someone snitches (I think they give a 10% kickback on any penalties levied) then they have cause to at least serve a writ.

*Under a previous administration. It probably wouldnt be the same now given the keeness with which HMG now likes to ensure everyone possible has a conviction, just to show how tough on crime they are...

[Nic Brough]

@Robert Moore 15:51

> I still want to know where they derive their legal authority.

IANAL of course, but my nutshell understanding is that it is the same place you and I do if we are the copyright holder, or acting on the behalf of the copyright holder. The article states "sued for copyright infringement", which is a civil action and can be initiated by anyone with a greivance.

I suspect you're thinking of Plod kicking the door in, in which case the organisation has to convince the Peelers (or magistrate, or both, I'm not sure) that there is reasonable cause to do so before it happens (in theory... and you're not a member of her majesties opposition)

[Anonymous Coward]

@Legal authority

If you break MS's copyright, and they have evidence of that, then they can sue you for damages and an injunction. To save the hassle and expense of going to court, it's better for both sides if they come to an agreement where you pay MS some money as damages (but less than they'd have got in court) and you agree to be a good boy in future and give a suitably contrite quote for a press release.

If MS want to, they can sub-contract out all this suing business to someone else, such as FAST. This has the added benefit that the headlines say "FAST sues" rather than "MS sues", so MS don't get negative publicity. (This is also why the music industry cases in the USA are usually called "RIAA versus crippled-dying-orphan-girl" rather than "Hip-trendy-record-label versus crippled-dying-orphan-girl").

[Anonymous Coward]

Virii?

"no-one wants to face an unexpected bill after falling foul of the rules or encountering operational difficulties due to viruses."

WHAT??!?!?

Viruses? Are they some sort of heavy-handed enforcement tactic. Oh, no, I've got a virus, if only I'd made sure that I was up to date on my licenses for MS/Adobe/etc software...

[Anonymous Coward]

I'll take the high road

And you'll be in the High Court, before me...

[Anonymous Coward]

@Suing your customers

How are you "suing your customers" by "suing" people who haven't paid to use your software?

[Anonymous Coward]

@Legal authority

Nowhere in the piece is it stated or implied that anyone involved has legal authority over anything. Try to concentrate while you're reading Rob. Maybe mouth the words or something.

[Moz]

How do they know?

Surely the BSA isn't allowed to come and audit a company's PCs without permission from the company itself? So why can't they just tell them to go annoy someone else?

[fishman]

Reasons

The BSA - One more reason to use open source software.

[Anonymous Coward]

No surprise

TRS used to be one of my customers. This comes as no surprise.

[Anonymous Coward]

Total Repair Solutions

BT Retail use Total Repair Solutions to repair mobile handsets.

You'd think with a client such as BT Mobile you'd be able to afford licensed software.

[Robert E A Harvey]

well derr

"We now understand the importance of ensuring our licenses are up-to-date and the potential threats we were exposed to"...

...and we are still competent people to run the company... ?

Perhaps they should use software you don't have to pay for instead?

[billium]

@Suing your customers

.. or if you are a monopoly.

@@Suing your customers .. they have paid for your software just not all of it.

[Geeks and Lies]

@Moz/AC

i think your one in the same ;-) * waits for the Russians to arrive!

[Anonymous Coward]

@fishman

Sadly, yer actual open source just makes those BSA feckers narrow their eyes suspiciously, and suck air through their teeth. You still have to use good old-fashioned anglo-saxon to make them go away. Open source can't solve all ills- they will bug you anyway, most of the time. BSA no more expect all free software than the TV licensing people expect a lack of telly. Makes their little brains explode, innit?

[Ian Ferguson]

Press release?

Was this a press release from the BSA by any chance? Those are such canned quotes, they're painful.

Ah yes, here we go: http://www.bsa.org/country/News%20and%20Events/News%20Archives/enGB/2008/enGB-12162008-scottish-enforcement.aspx

I've got nothing against reporters using press releases - but at least argue both sides, don't just quote verbatim!

[Gerry]

@everyone

Lest we forget, let's read the Ernie Ball case study again...

http://www.jckelly.com/navigation/articles/news/ErnieBallMicrosoftFree.html

[ntlbasher]

Software licences?

I thought it was ok to use copies from the barras

[Pierre]

blacklist of software

You can get the list of software the BSA keeps an eye on by "reporting software piracy" on the BSA site. One should never buy any of these softs, *ever*, because redeploying hardware within your organization will lead to infringement and a potentially huge fine, _even_ if the software is not used, and _even_ if the software *cannot* be used (absence of dongle for example).

Given that there are other, less expensive -and sometimes better- alternatives for almost all of them, including some open source stuff that you can tailor to your needs, why bother? Don't buy over-expensive lock-in crap that will probably get you sued some time in the future. And now is the right time to cut these useless costs down.

[Gerald Wilson]

Stiffing it to M$

Of course, I heartily endorse the many plugs for open source et al. But where I now work, for historical reasons, there's a legacy use of M$ Office for 100 users. So I was naturally a bit concerned when - earlier this year - I couldn't find the licences - and I was getting "friendly" sighting-shots from FAST and the like... Visions of shelling out forty grand in emergency Software Assurance purchases just to get "legit".

But a few hours' trawling through the archive boxes and I discover a) perfectly good purchase records for M$ licences going back more than a decade - result - and b) a full set of valid upgrades to Office 2003 bought six years ago, lost and then forgotten - RESULT. I download my vintage keys from Micro$oft and they work - ASTONISHING. And I don't have to pay M$ a single extra $ - ASTOUNDING.

Moral: keep your IT receipts. For ever.

Thanks Micro$oft for a stonking Christmas present. You've made an old IT manager very happy. Ho Ho Ho.

[Scott Wichall]

Simple

Just file their self important software audit form in the correct folder.....the bin.

[Anonymous Coward]

BSA are just a protection racket

By all means tell them to fuck off, but you'd better be sure you are fully compliant if you do because they will just assume that if you won't let them in (and pay the "membership fee") then you must be a filthy pirate. They will then harass you accordingly.

to be fair though, £120,000 of unlicensed software is not just a small accounting error or a mix up in deployment tracking.

[Gordon Pryra]

Allways check your licenses

I did, then looked at what we had actually brought, then had a polite word with the salesman about the over licensing we had due to his "version" of what the licenses meant. £175k reclaimed thank you very much.

And thats my overtime and expense claims signed off with no checking for the rest of the year!!!

[Anonymous Coward]

Go tell em to.........

F. Off as they have no right to enter premises, demand to have access to your rather sensitive IT systems or demand money. Unless of course you fire your network administrator and he goes and bubbles you to the BSA then your screwed which is probably how they work anyway.

@AC quote:

How are you "suing your customers" by "suing" people who haven't paid to use your software?

M$ know they get pirated and don't make it particularly hard to stop it. If they did sales would fall off a cliff. So let them pirate and then collect later.

Quoting Bill Gates from his Fortune Magazine interview:

“It’s easier for our software to compete with Linux when there’s piracy than when there’s not"

[Anonymous Coward]

Viruses?

>> Julie Strawson, Chair of the BSA’s UK Country Committee, said: "The continuing

>> disregard for licensing law is a real cause for concern. With the economy

>> entering a period of slowdown, companies should make sure they are

>> compliant: no-one wants to face an unexpected bill after

>> falling foul of the rules or encountering operational difficulties due to viruses."

I don't understand, are the BSA threatening to crack your PCs and install viruses if you don't comply?

Or are they suggesting that rather run MS software, with licencing schemes so complex that you could never be 100% sure if you are compliant; you should run Free Software which has the advantages of both free of licencing worries and much less exposed to risk from viruses and other malware?

>>Mr Tansini revealed the settlement figure was £20,000, not the £120,000

>> figure mentioned in the BSA statement.

So what exactly is the message that the BSA are trying to get across? "Comply with us and settle out of court and we will not only tell the world that you're are a pirate, we will tell them that your violation was six times greater than it actually was".

[Anonymous Scotsman]

Fortune favors the lazy

I actually applied for a job at this company over the summer, and am now doubly glad I didn't get it. No doubt a couple of expendable heads will be rolling presently, and none of them are mine...

[cor]

Oh the joys of being Open Source for the last 7 years

Mmmm sweet warm feeling.

Bring it, BSA - I'm a-waitin'.

Even my old crap hdds and dead laptops are M$ bloatware free.

The best bit is : I earn my living helping multinationals achieve M$-freedom too.

Last month I just deprived M$ of 800 Office licenses and just as many Windows ones.

Love it.

Ho-ho-ho everyone!

[James]

Agree with "cor"...

.. we're on the Open Source route as well.

Hopefully, the "recession" will focus a lot more companies on the Open Source solution as well.

But "cor" seems to be an Open Source Activist (OSA). Suggest that you contact the above companies "cor" - but maybe leave it a few months when the pain of paying out has diminished !

[James]

El Reg !!! Could you contact the BSA ..

.. and ask them why they DO NOT recommend the use of Open Source software?

Or indeed, as one comment had it, that they are actually recommending Open Source software in their commments:

>> Julie Strawson, Chair of the BSA’s UK Country Committee, said: "The continuing disregard for licensing law is a real cause for concern. With the economy entering a period of slowdown, companies should make sure they are compliant: no-one wants to face an unexpected bill after falling foul of the rules or encountering operational difficulties due to viruses." <<

The best way to "compliance" being to install open source software as far as possible. ESPECIALLY as the economy is "entering a period of slowdown".

If BSA aren't recommending Open Source then ask them why not? Ask them why they would force cash strapped companies into buying expensive, complex licenses when they could get pretty damn good software without massive cost and asset tracking requirements?

Come on El Reg - get your teeth into them!