Software File Sharing Growing As Well

from the different-ways-to-fight-it dept

While the RIAA and the MPAA have gotten all the attention for being "concerned" about all this file sharing, the original "intellectual property" bullies - the BSA (Business Software Alliance) were clearly feeling left out. So, now, they're getting a bit of misguided publicity as they start whining that people are sharing software via file sharing networks as well. There are a few interesting points made in the article. First, among the BSA's tracking tools is a system that allows them to change ISPs every 60 seconds so no one can figure out where they're coming from. If the BSA can do that, why can't ordinary users? How long until regular P2P users have that same ability to "cloak" who they are? More importantly, the article shows just how single-minded and short sighted the BSA is being. The article even quotes one software developer who points out that the unauthorized copies of their software showing up on Kazaa is helping them get attention and builds their market share. That's the main issue. Instead of trying to crack down on file sharing, software publishers need to look at it as a marketing issue. There's a lot more to good software than just the bits that make up the code - and plenty of companies are willing to pay for good software if it comes with important extras like support and upgrades. Meanwhile, with the fears of getting spyware, viruses and trojans via file sharing networks, a good marketing campaign would convince any user who would normally pay for the software that the downsides of getting software off a file sharing network probably aren't worth it. Instead, the BSA is going to waste a lot of money to try to shut down file sharers who are unlikely to do anything that negatively impacts the bottom line of software publishers.