The Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts, Senator Richard Alston, today welcomed the latest
industry figures that show Australia's internationally low software piracy rate is dropping fast.
The Business Software Association (BSA), an international software industry group, today announced figures that show
that Australia's estimated software piracy rate dropped from 33 per cent to 27 per cent; a drop of 6 per cent since the
last study.
Australia had an estimated rate that was amongst the lowest of the 85 countries surveyed - lower than Canada, France and
Japan, among many others. This was a very good result, especially when Australia was compared with markets-such as the
UK and US-that are considerably larger and have greater access, competition and choice.
This significant reduction in software piracy is evidence that Australia's enforcement regime, including recent digital
reforms giving copyright owners stronger enforcement tools against digital piracy, is working well.
Today's BSA figures also confirm the strong evidence that parallel importation is unrelated to piracy. New Zealand has
experienced decreasing piracy levels since parallel importation was introduced there in 1998-34 per cent in 1997, 32 per
cent in 1998, 31 per cent in 1999, 28 per cent in 2000 and 26 per cent in the latest figures.
The Government is firmly committed to extending parallel importation to software and books so that consumers can benefit
from lower prices and increased choice, just as they have benefited from lower prices as a result of the removal of
restrictions on CDs.
Australia's drop in software piracy rates, while some other countries rates continue to rise, indicates the measures put
in place by the Government are having an effect and demonstrates the Government's ongoing commitment to a strong and
effective copyright regime.
11 June 2002