With all the focus on digital media piracy—movies and music—during the SOPA/PIPA debates and protests (and the Megaupload takedown) over the past couple of weeks, one major victim of digital piracy largely escaped notice: Software. According to the Business Software Alliance's most recent report, 42 percent of all software used in the world is pirated, and the commercial value of unlicensed software put into the market last year totaled $59 billion—nearly double the figure from 2003. By comparison, a study cited by the Recording Industry Association of America claims a total annual loss of $12.5 billion. The Motion Picture Association of America doesn't break out its own share but cites the total loss to digital piracy of all kinds as $58 billion.

In any case, the toll on software is significant, and possibly even more significant than the losses to the entertainment business. In fact, the loss dollar numbers for movies and music has been called into question: Though they may represent the value of the stolen content, they may not represent actual lost revenue, since in many cases the consumer simply wouldn't have bought the music or movie they download via file-sharing. Even the solid-sounding numbers put out by the BSA are criticized as being flawed, since many of the "pirates" in the third-world would never be able to afford paying for the software. But business software is less of a whim purchase than entertainment, so it's more likely that the downloader would have had to buy it if he hadn't pirated it.

PCMag.com asked the two software houses probably most affected by piracy—Adobe, Microsoft—for their takes on the issue. We contacted Apple, too, but didn't receive any response, though it, too, is a member of the BSA. If we hear back, we'll update this article.

We also contacted the Software Information & Industry Association, which fights piracy, providing a reporting system with rewards for whistleblowers. The organization even posts a Piracy Wall of Shame, with photos and statements of remorse by wrongdoers who were sued for their action.

The Association's General Counsel and senior vice president for Intellectual Property Policy & Enforcement, Keith Kupferschmid was anything but ambiguous when it came to discussing the Megaupload takedown: "Megaupload is one of the most flagrant violators of our members' software and content copyrights. We have been combatting piracy on Megaupload for many years, and we're very pleased to see the Federal government take action to stop this illegal activity." He went on to mention another violater that remains at large, "Megaupload is the worst of the worst, ranking up there with RapidShare." The Association didn't forward us a statement on SOPA/PIPA, but its strong anti-piracy bent is a clue, and last May, the organization endorsed PIPA [PDF].

Despite all the focus on downloading, however, download sites like those targeted by PIPA and SOPA turn out not to be the primary vectors for stolen software copies, according to BSA. More typically, someone buys one legal copy and then installs it on multiple PCs illegally. "Fifty-one percent of PC users surveyed in emerging markets (including the same percentage of business decision-makers) mistakenly believe this is legal to do," says the BSA report.