Michael Walton broke an encryption code in the software which
allowed him to make copies of it. He sold the copies on eBay, where
he reportedly had 80 identities.
The software was AceCad, a 3D modelling program for use in the
construction of steel structures. The company has said that an
AceCad licence costs between £12,000 and £20,000.
"We can't stand for things like this," Wayne Rawson, general
manager of the company told the Derby Telegraph. "International pop
stars might be able to afford people copying their work but we
can't. We're lucky in that we managed to stop this before too many
copies had been sold but, if it had carried on, we could have
potentially lost a fortune. I'd go as far as to say that it would
have meant us laying off staff."
Trading standards officials raided Walton's home and found
computer equipment and more than 300 discs, according to the
newspaper.
"Auctions have developed into a market place where sellers feel
they are anonymous and out of the reach of law. This case proves
them wrong," said Najeeb Khan, vice chair of the Business Software
Alliance's UK committee.
“Software piracy doesn't just affect multinational and
well-known brands – this latest case underlines the negative impact
it can have smaller specialist UK companies," he said. "The BSA
urges Trading Standards to take a tough stance against online
sellers who deceive end users and fuel the demand for copied
software.Revenues lost to piracy – which are currently running at
$1.67 billion per year – are vital to the success and survival of
many local developers like AceCad."
The Government gave trading standards officers new powers last
year to deal with copyright infringement. A change to the Criminal
Justice and Public Order Act gave them powers to enter premises and
seize goods and documents they believe to be involved in copyright
infringement.
The move was one of the recommendations of the Gowers Report
into intellectual property carried out on behalf of the Treasury by
former Financial Times editor Andrew Gowers.
