In an effort to protect Canadian consumers and businesses from software piracy, today the Canadian Council of Better Business Bureaus (CCBBB) announced Microsoft Canada as its newest nationally accredited business. As an “Accredited Business” with the CCBBB, Microsoft Canada has met and/or exceeded BBB’s “Standards of Trust”, which are a comprehensive set of policies, procedures and best practices on how businesses should treat the public in a fair and honest manner.
Together, the CCBBB and Microsoft Canada will participate in awareness activities focused on informing and educating businesses and consumers on the impact pirated software not only has on themselves, but the marketplace as a whole.“Product piracy is a growing problem that steals from business, defrauds consumers and costs our economy millions of dollars a year. It erodes trust and undermines the marketplace and in the end hurts us all,” said Douglas Simpson, President&CEO of the Canadian Council of Better Business Bureaus. “We are excited to work with Microsoft Canada to educate consumers on how they can help protect themselves from unknowingly purchasing counterfeit software.”
Telling the difference between real and pirated software is not always easy. According to a recent Harris/Decima survey,* over half of Canadians said they wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between pirated and genuine software, while 49% are concerned about unknowingly purchasing pirated software. In fact, as part of its Genuine Software Initiative Microsoft worked with IDC to research and quantify the risks users take when they acquire and install counterfeit software. IDC found that 59per cent of the key generators and crack tools downloaded from peer-to-peer networks contained either malicious or potentially unwanted software.
“Piracy is a growing threat to industry and consumers as counterfeit products, including software, can even be found in upscale shopping malls and retail chains,” said Michael Eisen, Chief Legal Officer, Microsoft Canada Co. “The adverse affect of software piracy on the Canadian economy is significant – resulting in $943 million in lost retail sales. By working with the CCBBB, Microsoft is taking steps to ensure consumers get what they pay for and to level the playing field for legitimate Canadian businesses selling genuine software.”
*September 2006Harris/Decima survey commissioned by Microsoft Canada on views on software piracy
About The Canadian Council of Better Business Bureaus
The Canadian Council of Better Business Bureaus (CCBBB), established in June of 1966, is the coordinating and licensing body of the Better Business Bureau (BBB) system in Canada. The BBB is a not-for-profit, public service organization with 14 local Bureaus across Canada. For over 75 years the BBB has championed trust and ethical business practices in Canada through rigorous evaluation of businesses against objective standards, unbiased reliability reports, impartial dispute resolution services and educational programs for businesses and consumers alike. Last year Canadian BBBs provided consumers with over 2.3 million company Reliability Reports and helped resolve over 14,000 complaints. The Better Business Bureau is unique because of its position of neutrality and its outstanding history of service. Visit the Better Business Bureau at www.bbb.org.
About Microsoft Canada
Established in 1985, Microsoft Canada Co. is the Canadian subsidiary of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ "MSFT") the world wide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. Microsoft Canada provides nationwide sales, marketing,consulting and local support services in both French and English. Headquartered in Mississauga, Microsoft Canada has 10 regional offices across the country dedicated to empowering people through great software - any time, any place and on any device. Visit Microsoft Canada's web site at www.microsoft.ca.
CONTACT: Douglas Simpson 416-644-4936