Anti-Piracy

What Is Piracy?

Software piracy is the copying, distribution and/or use of software without the authorisation of the copyright holder. Software piracy is considered an act of copyright infringement, and the infringer can face serious legal action.

Educating yourself about piracy will prevent you from becoming a victim of not only piracy, but perhaps also of identity theft or other crimes.

Software Piracy Is Expensive Business

Every year billions of Pounds of revenue is lost as a result of software piracy. Software piracy equals lost wages, lost jobs and unfair competition. Struggling to fight against piracy, some companies must devote resources to anti-piracy technology, ultimately slowing down the development of better products and services. Others fail under the pressure of prices that legal distributors cannot match. Reporting piracy means keeping a level playing field and ensuring the most reliable products for customers.

You can help stop this illegal and harmful activity. Knowing how to spot and avoid illegal software, and reporting suspected intellectual property violations when you encounter them, can have a positive impact on the fight against piracy. Please learn more about this criminal activity and take action.

How to Recognise Pirated Software

There are a number of ways to spot illegal copies, many times the counterfeit product will not only be inferior in quality but potentially also contain elements which may be harmful to your computer. The main criteria to look for are:

Rosetta Stone’s product:

• Is never on CDR or DVD media
• Does not have anything called a “Pro” or “Professional Edition” for any language
• Will always have a EULA (End User License Agreement) specifying the purchase of a license” as opposed to a product
• Is not sold or published in Multi Language Editions in packs or otherwise
• Will not have spelling errors on the software packages
• Is not sold or published in any versions referred to as “cracked versions”
• Is sold through online access to its services via the website but is not sold as downloadable applications/programs

This is a representative list and is not all inclusive. If you are in doubt please do not hesitate to contact us

Consequence of Piracy

Software piracy is stealing. If you or your company is caught copying and/or distributing illegal copies of software, you could be held liable under both civil and criminal laws. If the software owner decides to sue you or your company, the owner can seek to stop you from using/distributing its software immediately and can also request monetary damages. The software owner may be awarded actual damages as well as statutory damages, which can amount to several hundred thousand pounds in cases of flagrant and wilful infringement. In addition local and government law enforcement can criminally prosecute copyright infringements. If convicted, infringers can face up to 10 years imprisonment and an unlimited fine.

In addition to legal consequences, consumers who purchase such unauthorised software, either through auction sites, online stores or brick-and-mortar retail establishments may be:

• Exposed to defective or corrupted software, which can ruin computers and cost consumers more in terms of repair services or replacement equipment.
• Exposed to software viruses or other malicious code that can damage computers or lead to identity theft.
• Unable to obtain warranties, proper manuals, support services and software upgrades offered to properly licensed users.

To help protect consumers and to safeguard its intellectual property rights, Rosetta Stone® investigates and takes aggressive measures to stop instances of piracy.

UK Headquarters:
Rosetta Stone (UK) Ltd
Procter House
1 Procter Street
London, WC1V 6DW
United Kingdom

Mailing Address:
Enforcement
Rosetta Stone (UK) Ltd
Procter House
1 Procter Street
London, WC1V 6DW
United Kingdom

Phone:
+44 (0)207 492 9000

Fax:
+44 (0)207 492 9001

Piracy Support E-mail:
piracy@rosettastone.co.uk