Laws & Regulations
Government launches campaign to free business from red tape
Posted: Fri, 02 Jul 2010The Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has started his campaign to cut business red tape courting the public to find out which rules they would like to see axed.Labour has...Read More »
Government sets sights on cutting red tape
Posted: Thu, 03 Jun 2010The Business Secretary Vince Cable is setting out to cut red tape and reduce expensive legislation that is planned to be implemented but has yet to take effect.As part of...Read More »
New employment law affecting businesses in the channel
Posted: Mon, 10 May 2010In recent years, the government has tried to make it easier for everyone to see the legislative changes that are coming by using a common commencement date system, writes Adam...Read More »
Costs of Digital Economy Bill stack up for ISPs
Posted: Thu, 08 Apr 2010By Ian GrantInternet service providers (ISPs) face a host of extra costs that could add up to £15m a year when provisions in the Digital Economy Bill become law.This emerged from a...Read More »
Microscope Media Centre
Posted: Tue, 02 Feb 2010MicroScope.co.uk Media Information MicroScope is the longest established weekly newspaper for computer manufacturers, distributors and resellers who need to maintain a competitive edge in the channel. Hard-hitting opinionated editorial covers...Read More »
Fines of up to £500,000 for lost data
Posted: Wed, 13 Jan 2010Potential fines of up to £500,000 for breaking the Data Protection Act by failing to adequately protect information could be a boon for the security industry. Despite the numerous high-profile cases...Read More »
In depth: Election fever – what the main parties promise for business
Posted: Wed, 06 Jan 2010By 3 June 2010 the UK will have had a general election and quite possibly a change of government. Each of the main political parties has much to say in...Read More »
In depth: VAT – are you ready for 1 January 2010?
Posted: Mon, 16 Nov 2009Resellers will hopefully all be aware that the temporary reduction of the VAT standard rate to 15% will end on 31 December 2009. Many businesses reported that the cost of...Read More »
In depth: How to exit a property lease
Posted: Mon, 09 Nov 2009Tenants must face the fact that the lease is a legal document into which they are most probably tied for a number of years. That said, there are options available...Read More »
In depth: Confess your tax sins
Posted: Thu, 05 Nov 2009HM Revenue & Customs will be running a tax amnesty this autumn to encourage individuals and companies with unpaid taxes to confess their offences in exchange for a small penalty.Many...Read More »
In depth: Getting the best deal from rent reviews
Posted: Thu, 05 Nov 2009Rent is usually one of the biggest costs for a business, and for a number of years landlords have had the upper hand as commercial rents have risen ever higher....Read More »
Government hints blocking pirates could protect jobs
Posted: Fri, 25 Sep 2009The government has indicated that it is still considering suspending users from the internet who are involved with digital piracy in an effort to protect jobs in the software,...Read More »
In depth: Tips for starting your own business
Posted: Mon, 07 Sep 2009There are three relatively easy ways to money: win it, marry it, or steal it. The passage of time should have taught you that there is almost no chance of...Read More »
Battle joined in file-sharing debate
Posted: Thu, 27 Aug 2009New battle-lines are being drawn in the complex debate surrounding file-sharing after the government released proposals earlier this week to cut off all Internet access for persistent file-sharers. ...Read More »
Analysis: Microsoft battles it out for last Word
Posted: Mon, 24 Aug 2009Sorry - billy's analysis at last for MondayA tiny company in Toronto is threatening to bring a lucrative part of the Microsoft ecosystem to a grinding halt after winning a...Read More »
BSA stings four for £50k
Posted: Tue, 18 Aug 2009The Business Software Alliance has taken four manufacturing companies for over £50,000 in its latest clampdown on alleged unlicensed software use. The four companies involved, Samuel Brice Ltd,...Read More »
Microsoft nabs 11 illegal software dealers
Posted: Tue, 11 Aug 2009Microsoft's ongoing campaign against traders dealing in illegal software has caught 11 more resellers across the country.This brings the total number of hard disk loaders that Microsoft has fingered since...Read More »
Unlicensed EMEA businesses hit to the tune of £6m by BSA
Posted: Thu, 30 Jul 2009Those that like to put the fight against piracy into accessible facts and figures might be impressed to see that businesses across EMEA have already paid out £6m this...Read More »
The pitfalls of selling online
Posted: Tue, 23 Jun 2009Advertising and selling products online maximises the sales potential of any business. You don’t need to market your products in any particular locality or country or to any pre-determined group...Read More »
Choose life, choose efficient IT, choose ecostructure
Posted: Wed, 17 Jun 2009When Bob Dylan screeched that the times were “a changing” back in the 1960s, he prophetically foresaw that the waters of socio-political change were rising fast and that if we...Read More »
BSA uses channel to promote SAM message to capital
Posted: Tue, 02 Jun 2009The Business Software Alliance (BSA) is looking to involve the channel in its two-month anti-piracy campaign in London as it looks to introduce a carrot as well as a...Read More »
BSA launches London campaign to stamp out piracy
Posted: Mon, 01 Jun 2009London has become the latest battleground for the Business Software Alliance (BSA) as the anti-piracy organisation kicks off a two-month campaign to encourage users to pay for their...Read More »
Whistle-blowers happy to drop bosses in it
Posted: Tue, 26 May 2009The Federation Against Software Theft (FAST) is proclaiming its whistle-blower campaign to be a success with employees in their droves tapping in leads for the intellectual property protection body...Read More »
Time to wield SAM carrot
Posted: Thu, 09 Apr 2009The mechanism of carrot and stick is long-established and one that involves balance between risks and rewards.Some might argue the approach in the software compliance world has focused slightly too...Read More »
UK plc must prepare for flexible workers
Posted: Wed, 08 Apr 2009The idea of working from home in a comfortable study or sitting on the patio is very appealing when trapped in the office on a sunny spring morning, and thanks...Read More »
Licence whistleblowers wanted to hit corporate cost cutters
Posted: Mon, 23 Mar 2009The Federation Against Software Theft has launched a whistleblower campaign to try and encourage those people uncomfortable with the idea of being pressured by their bosses to use unlicensed software.The...Read More »
Software industry puts SAM event on the calendar
Posted: Fri, 20 Mar 2009A one day conference has been put in the diary by the software industry to highlight the risks customers face of being unlicensed and they way that asset management can...Read More »
CBI argues against further rises in business rates
Posted: Wed, 11 Mar 2009The CBI is leading calls for a freeze on business rates to help prevent companies being pushed under by higher levels of taxes and is fighting against plans to...Read More »
Handset recyclers call for tougher standards
Posted: Wed, 11 Mar 2009With an estimated 15 million mobile handsets being discarded and replaced in the UK every year, one mobile phone recycling specialist, Regenersis, has launched a charge for a set...Read More »
BSA urges Carter not to forget piracy in digital vision
Posted: Tue, 10 Mar 2009The Business Software Alliance has urged the government to consider the implications of software piracy as it pulls together its thoughts on the future of digital Britain.Lord Carter is giving...Read More »
McAfee to fund Euro cybercrime training
Posted: Tue, 10 Mar 2009McAfee has announced details of a $110,000 investment in anti-cybercrime training in the form of two grants to be split between the US National District Attorneys Association and the...Read More »
Help during taxing times
Posted: Wed, 21 Jan 2009Is your business suffering a cashflow problem? Are you having problems borrowing in order to pay bills, including your taxes such as VAT and corporation tax? If so, HM Revenue...Read More »
BSA settles with Liverpool pirate
Posted: Wed, 07 Jan 2009The Business Software Alliance (BSA) has settled with a Liverpool-based man that had been suspected of selling illegal software online. The case first came to light last...Read More »
BSA continues Yuletide blitz
Posted: Tue, 16 Dec 2008The Business Software Alliance has settled with two more firms north of the border in its ongoing pursuit of businesses that continue to use unlicensed software despite the highly...Read More »
Trading Standards make first software inspection against Cardiff firm
Posted: Thu, 11 Dec 2008Taking advantage of changes in the law that have strengthened the power of Trading Standards in its fight to protect intellectual property rights the first company has been inspected....Read More »
Cyber criminals exploiting global downturn
Posted: Wed, 10 Dec 2008Most governments are not focusing on cyber crime, there is a shortage of police in this area and the size of the problem is continually expanding.Those were the conclusions of...Read More »
BSA settles for £35,000 from three hit by legal proceedings
Posted: Wed, 10 Dec 2008Indicating that despite the season of goodwill to all men being almost upon us that it will not relax its hunt for users of counterfeit products the Business Software Alliance...Read More »
Proposed RoHS changes could cause admin chaos
Posted: Mon, 08 Dec 2008Indications are emerging that changes to the European Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) directive that place responsibility for ensuring IT equipment meets compliance standards on resellers and distributors could...Read More »
Flexible working features in Queen's speech
Posted: Wed, 03 Dec 2008Increased legislation around flexible working is expected to feature in the Queen’s Speech at the state opening of parliament later today.Along with bills that will see a crackdown on strip...Read More »
Wolverhampton court case reveals pirate's life of luxury
Posted: Wed, 26 Nov 2008Details of the largest case ever instigated by Wolverhampton Trading Standards against software piracy have started to come to light with a prison sentence being handed out to a...Read More »
BSA cracks down on pirated software on auction sites
Posted: Mon, 10 Nov 2008One of the many warnings that those fighting anti-piracy have given is to widen the focus to include online auction sites. As traditional means of selling and buying...Read More »
Do you understand your new director's duties?
Posted: Fri, 07 Nov 2008As you read MicroScope, you could well be one of the UK’s estimated five million company directors. You may well be sure you understand what is involved, and are comfortable...Read More »
Guarding against fraud now crucial
Posted: Fri, 31 Oct 2008Preventing fraud is a headache at the best of times but having the right controls in place to manage such instances could be crucial for resellers and distributors to survive...Read More »
FAST IiS calls on government for more IP protection
Posted: Thu, 16 Oct 2008The decision by the US government to create the role of a IP tsar to keep an eye on intellectual property has been heralded as a move that the...Read More »
BSA announces settlements and files a court order
Posted: Thu, 02 Oct 2008The Business Software Alliance (BSA) has continued to keep the pressure on those failing to use legal software after announcing a handful of lsuccessful cases in its fight against...Read More »
Microsoft scores one over pirates
Posted: Mon, 29 Sep 2008One of the most common reactions to vendor attempts to stamp out piracy is that after the initial headlines have been written and the furore died down the guilty parties...Read More »
SecureTrading joins CNP fight
Posted: Mon, 29 Sep 2008There have long been high levels of frustration in the channel with the lack of apparent willingness by the banking and legal professions to tackle cardholder not present fraud.The figures...Read More »
Microsoft strings up ITAC for second time
Posted: Tue, 23 Sep 2008Nearly three years after Microsoft took down Manchester-based reseller ITAC for unlawful grey trading in its software (MicroScope 30 January 2006), Redmond has reported more details of the February...Read More »
Flushing out the counterfeit products
Posted: Fri, 19 Sep 2008Having waited for almost a year and a half, the changes in the law that were designed to crack down on software pirates and protect intellectual property are being used...Read More »
FAST working on forensic tool to curtial counterfieters
Posted: Fri, 19 Sep 2008The Federation Against Software Theft (FAST) is a not far away from rolling out a forensic tool that will enable Trading Standards to search systems to find unlicensed software....Read More »
FAST raid leans on copyright legal powers
Posted: Wed, 17 Sep 2008The Federation Against Software Theft (FAST) has used the powers set down in the Copyright and Patents Act for the first time to support an anti-piracy raid. Under...Read More »
BSA notches up another success against counterfieter with legal action
Posted: Wed, 17 Sep 2008The Business Software Alliance (BSA) continues to keep its legal team busy after issuing proceedings against the owner of Wolverhampton-based RJ-Software. Richard Clark, who ran RJ-Software from his...Read More »
Mobile broadband will force regulatory change
Posted: Thu, 28 Aug 2008Telecoms and media analyst consultancy Analysys Mason has called for Ofcom to begin considering regulatory change as the dramatic growth in mobile data usage is altering the nature of...Read More »
CIOs increasingly demanding ITIL
Posted: Fri, 08 Aug 2008Research conducted by IT service management (ITSM) company Axios has revealed that two thirds of IT professionals now believe ITIL (IT Infrastructure Library) best practice standards are the most...Read More »
Piracy crackdown
Posted: Tue, 05 Aug 2008The net is starting to close in around resellers that have an interest in selling pirated or counterfeited software.Over the past six months or so, there have been a raft...Read More »
Pegasus calls for reduction in SME red tape
Posted: Thu, 31 Jul 2008Accountancy specialist Pegasus has called on the government to reduce the burden of red tape that is imposed on small businesses. From its position of developing software...Read More »
BSA completes Manchester campaign
Posted: Sat, 26 Jul 2008The Business Software Alliance (BSA) has wrapped up its campaign to target companies in Manchester with initial signs of an impact on the unlicensed software problem. Although it will take the...Read More »
FAST spearheads piracy crackdown
Posted: Fri, 18 Jul 2008As the dust settles on a series of surveys and predictions about the future of software piracy the overall conclusion for the channel appears to be that things are going...Read More »
Can the largest robbery in the UK be stopped?
Posted: Fri, 04 Apr 2008When you see a figure the size of £290m has been stolen, it amounts to a sizeable chunk of revenue. As one source commented last week, it is one of the...Read More »
Police hunt for fraudulent reseller on the run
Posted: Fri, 04 Apr 2008The police are on the hunt for Raymond Nevitt, former head at Manchester-based reseller Ravelle Group who absconded after being found guilty of fraud totalling £3.25m, which he had used...Read More »
Protect your firm when staff leave
Posted: Thu, 03 Apr 2008One of the biggest problems with putting a lot of effort into developing staff is that they have a tendency to up sticks and leave. The worse case scenario is...Read More »
Me and my digital shadow
Posted: Wed, 02 Apr 2008EMC and IDC got a lot of publicity a couple of weeks ago when they released research suggesting that the digital universe was 10 per cent bigger last year than...Read More »
New VAT rules will not burden firms, says EC
Posted: Wed, 02 Apr 2008The European Commission has assured traders they will not see increases to the administrative burdens already placed on them, after it outlined proposed changes to VAT regulations designed to cut...Read More »
Resellers warned over cash flow
Posted: Wed, 02 Apr 2008Cash flow problems could drag resellers into the credit crisis exposing them to disagreeable banks and high interest charges if they have to rely on high-street lenders for support. The warning...Read More »
Carphone Warehouse attacks BT
Posted: Wed, 02 Apr 2008Carphone Warehouse has dragged the telecoms regulator Ofcom into a row over changes to BT tariffs by claiming the telco giant is tying people into anti-competitive contracts. The owners of the...Read More »
In-depth: Immigration overhaul
Posted: Thu, 01 Jan 1970The channel has suffered for years from skills shortages that reduce capacity for growth and undermine the shift towards emerging technologies.To complicate matters, the government’s Migration Advisory Committee has reported...Read More »
The mythology of employment law
Posted: Thu, 01 Jan 1970July 28 2008 When Alan Sugar quizzed a potential winner of The Apprentice about the arrangements she was making for her childcare there was uproar. Some people thought what he had...Read More »
SMEs still ignorant of ITIL
Posted: Thu, 01 Jan 197004 July 2008Service desk management specialist Numara has unveiled research showing that the business community is still largely unaware of the ITIL best practice framework.As explored in MicroScope last year,...Read More »
Making recycling pay
Posted: Thu, 01 Jan 1970For some time, businesses have been obligated to dispose of their end-of-life IT equipment responsibly. In June, however, the EU introduced its Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive, which...Read More »
Rebuilding UK econonomy on the IT sector
Posted: Thu, 01 Jan 1970The current recession has caused the greatest damage to the UK economy for over 100 years, writes Stephen Kelly, CEO of Micro Focus. The industries on which we had relied...Read More »