Bridging the Frontier 
Bob Smith, Executive Director
Bob Smith is Executive Director of the ESD Alliance responsible for its management and operations. Previously, Bob was senior vice president of Marketing and Business Development at Uniquify, responsible for brand development, positioning, strategy and business development activities. Bob began his … More » Cylynt Summit Guest Blog: Combatting Software Piracy Through Industry Trade OrganizationsOctober 13th, 2020 by Bob Smith, Executive Director
Note: This blog post originally appeared on ESD Alliance member Cylynt’s website. Preview: Bob Smith, executive director of the ESD Alliance, a SEMI Technology Community, will present at the Cylynt Software Monetization and Anti-Piracy Summit October 28-29. In this blog he previews what he will discuss at the event. Industry trade organizations can be highly effective resources, filling many roles within a market ecosystem and representing all its members equally. The offerings can vary widely but typically include initiatives that focus on reducing risk, promoting growth and efficiency and delivering events, education and market information to the membership. ESD Alliance RoleTrade organizations act as the central voice of the market they serve. In the case of the Electronic System Design Alliance (a SEMI Technology Community), we speak out on behalf of the semiconductor chip design ecosystem. It’s our job to position design as the critical first step in the creation of any new electronic product. Without an innovative design ecosystem, the electronic devices we rely on wouldn’t exist.
We also serve another critically important role by providing a platform that allows companies large and small in the design ecosystem to collaborate on solving big problems that affect everyone in the industry. Our industry, like many, is impacted by software piracy. Our members report lost revenue from piracy that not only impacts R&D investment but can also lead to increased license and support costs to honest customers. More alarmingly, these honest customers can be harmed by dishonest competitors who compete with minimal investment in tools. New Industry Standard ProtocolWell, the ESD Alliance is taking action! Under our auspices, the three largest vendors in the EDA software market segment are working on a joint effort to develop a new industry standard protocol that will be used with software license management systems to prevent software piracy. Most software license management systems rely on license managers that run on a server typically identified by a host id. Software pirates can easily clone the host id due to virtualization technologies, gaining illegitimate access to many additional licenses without added cost. The SEMI Server Certification Protocol will outline a standard mechanism defining how every installation of a server can be uniquely identified, putting a substantial barrier in place against piracy. Our role is managing the development effort through one of our technical committees. Once established, the protocol will be managed by SEMI’s standards organization, currently responsible for managing more than 1,000 different standards in the semiconductor industry. The ongoing problem of software piracy makes the SEMI Server Certification Protocol a vital and much-needed program. It’s also a great example of how an industry trade organization can bring together companies in the market to solve problems that affect all of them across the board. Attend the Summit to Learn How the ESD is Combatting Software PiracyTo learn more, my talk on “Combatting Software Piracy Through Industry Trade Organizations” will be presented at this year’s Cylynt Software Monetization and Anti-Piracy Summit. It is scheduled for day two, Thursday, October 29, at 10am. Or, contact me at bsmith@semi.org for more information about the ESD Alliance and our initiative to combat software piracy. Engage with the ESD Alliance at: |
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