Public Policy

Business Software Alliance...promoting future innovation for the commercial software industry and its hardware partners through education and policy initiatives on copyrights, patents, cyber security, trade, and e-commerce.

Patents
The protection afforded by patents ensures that inventors are able to recover their investment in research and product development and can be compensated for the use of their inventions by others. An over-burdened patent system can lead to questionable patents and encourage litigation. Meeting these challenges will require concrete steps to improve the patent system.

Copyright  
BSA members believe that strong intellectual property protections for software are essential to ensure continued software innovation and economic growth. Intellectual property is a source of economic value to individuals, companies and governments alike. The software industry in particular has long relied on strong intellectual property protections, including copyright laws, to enable authors to protect their original works of authorship against copying by others.

Security
As builders of the products that power and protect the world's information networks, BSA members are committed to developing a safe and legal online world through market-driven security systems and standards.
  
Software Innovation
The remarkable changes of the past 30 years occurred because the conditions were right for an innovation boom. Today's environment is similarly ripe for rapid innovation. The commercial software industry has created a healthy, diverse marketplace that generates millions of jobs and billions of dollars in tax revenues around the world.

Trade and E-commerce
With more than half of the U.S. software industry's revenues generated overseas, free trade is critical to ensuring that e-commerce continues to develop smoothly and that U.S. technology companies retain their global leadership.
   
Telecommunications
In order to spur broadband deployment, promote consumer choice and advance access to telecommunications services, BSA has developed a set of guiding principles for Congress as they debate telecommunications issues this session. Areas of major concern to the technology community include video franchising, municipal broadband services and network neutrality.