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What is software piracy?
Plain and simple: Software piracy is theft. The most common form of piracy of Wheatworks' products occurs when someone gives a license key to someone who has not purchased it.
A license key is a series of numbers and letters which is mathematically related to a customer's user name so that each license key is unique.
What does software piracy do to a software company?
Software piracy is drain on every software company. It reduces revenue, interferes with development, takes resources away from customers and clients and impacts the bottom line. Large software companies typically hire their own legal departments and some create so many obstacles to software piracy that their customers feel harassed with online registrations and CD-ROM protections.
How does Wheatworks protect its software products from piracy?
Wheatworks products are protected by a user-friendly license key system so that software protection is not a burden for our customers. When you purchase a product you receive a unique user name and license key combination for the number of copies you purchase. And we don't require online activations. Enter your name and license key and the software is registered to you.
How does Wheatworks address software piracy?
By taking firm action to recover the financial losses caused by those who pirate our software products.
Pursuing those who steal Wheatworks software takes time (adding to the financial losses caused by software piracy). The efforts to recuperate the money lost to software piracy begins when a perpetrator is identified. We start with an offer of grace, demanding the software thief cease the behavior and pay for the license keys and/or software he distributed.
Do people usually make amends?
Some people avail themselves of the opportunity to make amends, usually claiming ignorance of the entire issue of software piracy and apologizing. And in some cases, their ignorance may be genuine.
How does Wheatworks protect itself against software pirates?
Wheatworks Software, LLC is the Copyright Claimant on Certificates of Registration issued under the seal of the United States Copyright Office in accordance with Title 17, United States Code, attesting that registration has been made for our software products. In other words, Wheatworks Software works to protect its products from theft by obtaining de facto proof of ownership and taking advantage of all the legal protections afforded by the United States government.
When a person or company refuses to comply with the initial demand and continues pirating Wheatworks' products or refuses to pay for the software they have stolen, Wheatworks is committed to using the legal protections and remedies afforded by law.
Do software pirates really get caught?
Yes, they really do. Software is a product which can be sold like an automobile. Using an evaluation version of a software product is analogous to visiting a car dealer and taking a test drive. However, if you take the car without paying for it, you commit a crime. And if you make an unlicensed copy of software or give a license key away to others, you commit a crime. Sooner or later, you will be caught.
What kinds of penalties do software pirates face when caught?
Software piracy is an expensive crime. The Copyright Act allows the owner of a copyright to recover monetary damages as: (1) the actual financial damages and any profits of the software pirate or (2) statutory damages, of up to $150,000.
In addition, in cases of willful infringement of a copyright, criminal penalties may also be assessed. For example, certain violations of Section 506(a) (relating to Criminal offenses) of Title 17, United States Code, may lead to imprisonment of not more than 10 years, or fines in the amount set forth in title 17, or both, if the offense is a second or subsequent offense.
In other words, software pirates face significant civil and criminal penalties.
Where can I learn more about software piracy?
These web sites provide additional information about software piracy that you may find helpful.
CyberCrime.gov
Business Software Alliance
Software & Information Industry Association, Piracy Division
No Electronic Theft (NET) Act
U.S. Copyright Office - Penalties for Infringing Copyright
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