CAAST Offers Software Truce to Businesses in Cities Across Ontario
Watchdog Group Gives Businesses a Break in March

TORONTO, Ont, February 26, 2002- On March 1, the Canadian Alliance Against Software Theft (CAAST) will launch its Software Truce Campaign in Barrie, Hamilton, Kingston, Kitchener, London, Ottawa and Toronto. The Truce Campaign is a one-month opportunity for local businesses to review their software programs and acquire the licenses they need to get legal without facing penalties for past infringement imposed by CAAST. A study conducted by International Planning & Research (IPR) indicated that in 2000 software piracy cost Ontario almost $245 million¹ in retail sales of business software applications and more than 13,000 jobs.

Throughout March, approximately 30,000 small and medium-sized businesses in Barrie, Hamilton, Kingston, Kitchener, London, Ottawa and Toronto will receive information from CAAST about participation in the Truce campaign. Organizations that participate in the campaign and take the necessary steps to become fully licensed will be excused from penalties for software violations occurring prior to March 31, 2002*. An extensive radio advertising and direct mail campaign will be launched concurrently in Toronto and Ottawa to raise awareness of CAAST and Truce. Radio advertisements will also air in Barrie, Hamilton, Kingston, Kitchener and London.

"CAAST encourages businesses in Truce cities across Ontario to review their software installations and acquire the licenses they need during the March Truce Campaign," said Allan Steel, President, Canadian Alliance Against Software Theft. "This is a great opportunity for businesses to resolve any compliance issues before they become subjects of a CAAST investigation."

CAAST conducted the first Canadian Truce Campaigns in April 2001 in Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton and Winnipeg. These campaigns generated hundreds of calls to the Truce hotline and approximately 745,000 hits to the Truce Web site. Both of these means of communication will be available to Barrie, Hamilton, Kingston, Kitchener, London, Ottawa and Toronto businesses during the March Truce period.

CAAST and its counterpart in the U.S., the Business Software Alliance (BSA), receive thousands of software piracy reports each year, often from current or former employees. Based on these reports, CAAST begins investigations of companies located throughout Canada. Companies settling with CAAST can pay settlements totaling thousands of dollars. Over the past nine years, approximately $92 million in penalties has been collected from companies caught with unlicensed software in the U.S. and Canada. Penalties collected from companies caught with unlicensed software are used to fund the organization's education and enforcement programs.

Businesses trying to determine whether their organization is using unlicensed software can download the free Software Audit Tool at www.caast.org/truce or call the special Truce hotline at 1-866-NO-PIRACY for additional information.

Established in 1990, CAAST is an industry alliance of software publishers who share the common goal of reducing software piracy. CAAST provides educational information to corporations, consumers and resellers about software piracy and its implications. This non-profit organization also protects the rights of its member companies against the unauthorized sale or reproduction of software through the legal prosecution of individuals or groups involved in this unlawful activity. CAAST members include Adobe Systems Incorporated, Apple Canada Inc., Autodesk Canada Inc., Bentley Systems, Borland, CNC Software/Mastercam, Eicon Technology Corp., FileMaker, Macromedia, Microsoft Canada Co., Softimage, Inc., Symantec Corp. and Unigraphics Solutions.

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