Manuel Cerqueira
ASSOFT
Name: Manuel F. R. Cerqueira
Position: President of the Board
Company: ASSOFT (ASSOCIAÇÃO PORTUGUESA DE SOFTWARE), Portugal
Company information:
ASSOFT is a non-profit organisation promoting and protecting the quality and integrity of software produced by its associates. A special focus of ASSOFT’s work is copyright protection on which it provides consulting and training services.
Interest in the Online Marketplace:
The internet is the single marketplace with the highest growth potential – for the sale of software in particular. However, the creators need to be sure that they can make their software or programme available online without fear of non-attribution or piracy. For a healthy online environment, in which firms and individuals can enjoy the commercial fruits of their efforts, copyright needs to be respected and enforceable.
Current thoughts:
People often do not understand the damage inflicted on the creative industries, including the software industry, by piracy. The IDC’s Global Piracy Report estimated this damage to have amounted to $48 billion – or the GDP of a small country – in 2007 alone. But not only does piracy negatively impact legitimate software publishers through loss of revenue, it also hurts the consumer who is exposed to a host of IT risks including security breaches and data loss from the distribution of sub-standard copied products.
Top Tips:
Software piracy comes in many forms – it can be copying, downloading, sharing, selling, or even just installing multiple copies onto work or personal computers. Consumers never purchase the software itself but only a licence which defines exactly how one can use the product, e.g. how many times it can be installed. Make sure you read the license that comes with your software to protect yourself from unwitting copyright breaches that may lead to legal charges.