BSA hands out over $136,000 in whistleblowing rewards
The anti-software piracy organization, the Business Software Alliance (BSA), has announced that it paid out more than $136,000 dollars in rewards to piracy whisteblowers in 2008. The organization actively incentivises individuals to inform it of possible instances of software piracy, with a scheme offering up to $1 million in rewards.
According to the BSA, however, many individuals opted out of receiving a reward - so the total paid out could have been higher.
The BSA is expecting an increase in tip-offs in 2009, as organizations are tempted to attempt to save costs by failing to properly license the software they use.
According to the research firm IDC, IT spending in 2009 will grow by less than 1 percent in the USA (down from a forecasted 4.2 percent). Forrester Research predicts growth of 1.6 percent in the US in 2009, down from their previous forecast of 6.1 percent.
