Alternative methods of financing software - Replacing illegal copying with free copying

Abstract: The software industry’s largest and most severe problem is software piracy. Most attempts to stop illegal copying of software have failed. Alternative ways to remove software piracy must therefore be discovered and some are already being used. These ways include alternative methods of financing software products instead of trying to stop illegal copying. The alternative methods use the low cost of software duplication as an advantage to increase sales instead of seeing it as a problem. This requires a change in the business model to focus on other revenue sources than per-copy fees. Many different alternative financing methods exist. These are suitable under different conditions and there is no universal solution. The methods all have one thing in common. The user can legally copy and use the software product without purchasing a license. All have different positive and negative effects on the user and this can create the opportunity to use several business models to cater different market segments.