To assist local and foreign businesses in the management and development of software assets, VCCI in conjunction with Business Software Alliance have organised a seminar on software asset management (SAM).
According to a research by IGD Global, in 2004, the violation of software copyrights in Vietnam was 92 per cent causing a loss of some US$55 million to Vietnamese software sector. It does not damage only Vietnamese economy but also its prestige while Vietnam is acceding fully to international convention on copyrights.
Violation in Vietnam comes under various forms: by organisations as users, input on hardware, retail sales, faked software, and Internet copyrights. It affects business efficiency, productivity and finance of businesses. It also causes the danger of virus and network safety.
Mr Roland Chan, Marketing Manager for Asia of Business Software Alliance (BSA), said that software asset management will help businesses save costs in both software and productivity. It will also facilitate the purchase of software. The sector will contribute US$1 billion to Vietnam GDP and US$43 million in taxes in case the copyright violation is reduced by 10 points. In addition, local distributors will attain turnover of some US$726 million and 4,027 hi-tech jobs will be created.
So, how can we ensure efficient software asset management. Mr Roland Chan introduced four steps: Step 1: To make certain the company really needs software, any existing software should be replaced; Step 2: To make an inventory of software, hardware and related documents of the company; Step 3: To give up unnecessary software and plans for the purchase of new software; Step 4: To appoint a software manager for the purchase and operation of software.
The application of four steps will secure a viable strategy for software asset management. It will also ensure efficient management and prevent illegal usage in business computer network.
BSA (Business Software Alliance) is a non-profit organisation established in 1988 operating in over 80 countries. BSA promotes software industry in the implementation of laws and policies world-wide and training programmes. Members of BSA are: Microsoft, Adobe, Apple, Autodesk, Borland, Cisco Systems, Symantec, etc.
Nguyen Thoa
Vietnamese
