Software piracy resulted in <A HREF="http://news.zdnet.com/2100-3513_22-6075629.html?tag=zdnn.alert">a loss of $34 billion</A> worldwide in 2005, a $1.6 billion increase over 2004, according to a study commissioned by the Business Software Alliance. The study, conducted by information-technology research firm IDC, found that roughly one out of every three copies of personal computing software installed in 2005 was pirated. While the rate of piracy has fluctuated from country to country, globally it has remained steady since 2004.