Losses from people using illegal software increased 20% to $48 billion worldwide in 2007, according to the Business Software Alliance. About 7% of the loss is attributed to the decline in the value of the dollar vs. foreign currencies.

The Business Software Alliance, whose members include the biggest software and PC makers, is best known for offering rewards to people who report companies’ illegal use of software and getting sizeable settlements for such use. Rogers Gardens in Newport Beach paid $73,000 in November.

The good news in the Fifth Annual Piracy Study is that the rate of software piracy declined in 67 of the 108 countries studied by research firm IDC. The trouble is that PC use is growing fastest in countries with the highest rates of illegal software use. Most of the theft is done by individuals and small businesses, the report says.

Here’s a list of the nations with the highest and lowest piracy rates in 2007:

The United States lost more - $8 billion - than any other nation to pirated software. These losses are based on the retail value of the software, but the economic impact is actually much greater, the report claims.

“Dropping PC piracy by 10 percentage points between 2008 and 2012 could result in 500,000 additional new jobs and more than $100 billion in new revenues for local IT sectors,” the study says.

Such declines are possible. The use of pirated software in China as declined from 92% to a still high 82% in the five years this global report has been done. Russia had the largest one-year decline from 80% to 73%. However, piracy increased in some countries, such as Argentina and Bolivia.

“Dealing with software piracy in emerging markets is still a challenge,” the study says. It outlines the following reasons for high piracy rates in some countries:

• Rapid growth in first-time users
• Increase in Internet access increases the supply of pirated software
• Sprawling geographies and weak institutional infrastructure make education and enforcement difficult
• Cultural influences where societies see intellectual creation as a common good and not the property of its creator

The Alliance has a five-prong approach to its efforts to reduce software piracy:

1. Increase public education and awareness
2. Impliment a worldwide copyright treaty adopted by the World Intellectual Property Organization
3. Strengthen enforcement
4. Increase punishment for piracy
5. Because governments are the largest users of software, they must lead by example, stopping their own use of pirated software and being clear that they will not tolerate piracy.

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Today’s tip comes from Tim Hart, Hart Communications and The Savvy Marketers, which offers affordable, Web-based marketing courses for small businesses.

Tim lives in the Bay Area, and he comments on his blog about a specific ad campaign on BART, but as he points out: You can book transit ads to run in specific, local neighborhoods for a short or long duration. Transit can include busboards (inside or out), bus shelters, train stations, benches, you name it.

Here’s what that campaign did right, Tim says:

1) The organization bought transit ads on a specific train line — affordable and a great way to target very specific geographic zones. In this case I was on the train that ran from Fremont (eastern suburb of San Francisco) to downtown SF.

2) They created a Web address that included BART, which spoke directly to people on the train.

3) There was a specific call to action: Go to their Web site and discuss the topic. You know exactly what to do with the information. Their tagline with their logo supports this: “think. discuss. connect.”

4) They can track results. Based on how many people use the BART address they can compare how their message is penetrating, compared to a specific address they might use for similar ads on the buses or the ferries. By slightly customizing a URL they have a campaign-specific tracking method ready to go. And that information can lead to new, tailored outreach later.

Tim concludes: “For small businesses this is a wonderful idea to think about. Transit ads can be much more affordable than you think and as this campaign shows, you can call people to action in a way that speaks to them directly rather than just being generic.”

If you have a strategy, resource or tip to help small businesses, click here to send it to me. If I use it, I’ll give you credit and link to your Web site.

Twenty-three entrepreneurs, including 16 from Orange County, are the finalists for the regional Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year awards program. 

The regional winners will be announced at a dinner June 11 at the Hyatt Regency Irvine hotel.

“These finalists are the best of the best, embodying the unique spirit of entrepreneurism,” said Kurt Binder, Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Program Director for Orange County and Desert Cities.  “They positively impact our region in a major way, through jobs, community growth and development and innovation.  Ernst & Young is proud to salute them.”

The finalists and their companies are:

• George Klaus, Epicor Software Corporation, Irvine
• James Cumming, eyeonics, Aliso Viejo
• Ladeira Poonian, iBASEt, Foothill Ranch
• Abbas Mohaddes, Iteris, Inc., Santa Ana
• Carl McLarand, McLarand Vasquez Emsiek & Partners, Inc., Irvine
• Jeff Katke, Metagenics, Inc., San Clemente
• Parsa Rohani, Neudesic, Irvine
• William Tauber, Progressive Lighting & Energy Solutions, Inc., Tustin
• Michael Hajeck, SiliconSystems, Inc., Aliso Viejo
• Tracy Price, The Linc Group, Irvine
• Sana Khan, TrueMRI, Anaheim,
• Brian Cescolini and Stephen Jones, Universal Services of America, Santa Ana
• Phu Hoang, Virtium Technology, Inc., Rancho Santa Margarita
• William Wang, Vizio, Inc., Irvine
• Lawrence Armstrong, Ware Malcomb, Irvine
• Greg Larkin, SSC Construction, Inc., Corona
• Joe Lozowski, Tangram, Santa Fe Springs
• Andy Peykoff II, Niagara Bottling, LLC, Ontario
• Venu Raghavan, Encora Inc., Scottsdale, Ariz.
• J. Doug Pruitt, Sundt Construction, Inc., Tempe, Ariz.
• Steven Carothers, and John Thomas, SWCA Environmental Consultants, Inc., Phoenix, Ariz.

Regional award recipients will be in the running for national honors in various categories as well as the overall national Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year to be announced Nov. 15 in Palm Springs. 

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MindFrame Inc., a Lake Forest company that makes devices to treat ischemic strokes, has receive $6 million in its first round of outside funding from investors led by SV Life Sciences, a venture capital firm with offices in San Francisco and Boston, and Intersect Partners, a San Clemente technology accelerator.

CitizenHawk Inc. in Aliso Viejo has received a second round of funding from Maveron, its seed round backer based in Seattle. CitizenHawk provides technology that protects brands from cybersquatters, a form of online trademark infringement.

Up to 20% of all hand-typed URLs are misspelled. Cybersquatters set up Web sites with those misspelled domain names and monetize that accidental traffic, CitizenHawk says.

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Today’s tip is from Chase Business Credit Cards.

Half of small-business owners say that “economic uncertainty” is one of the biggest challenges faced in the growth and survival of their business. The Chase Business Resource Center, an online resource, offers advice, news and personalized solutions essential to business owners.

Here are 5 tips to help small businesses stay on the right financial track:

1.  Manage Your Cash Flow.  For small businesses cash flow is an important factor in managing good credit. Credit cards can support large and frequent business-sized expense needs, revolve when needed and float from day of purchase to payment due date at your convenience.

2.  Take Advantage of Business Specialists.  With all of the details that go into running your own business, everyone needs a little help at some point.  Take advantage of your access to business specialists who understand the needs of small businesses and can provide valued assistance.

3.  Get the Most Out of Rewards.  Use the money you spend on managing your business to earn rewards.  When you purchase the necessary business expenses to keep your business running, use credit cards that allow you to be flexible in the rewards you earn.  For example, the Chase Freedom for Business Card gives triple rewards where you spend the most, like gas, utilities and local commuter expenses.

4.  Keep Track of Your Finances and Expenses.  One of the most difficult aspects of owning your own business is simply keeping track of your money. It’s important to keep all of your spending in one place. 

5.  Stay in Control.  It’s your business and your money; therefore, you should always be the one in control.  Chase offers credit cards that have the ability to set distinct spending limits and provide you with alerts on all card activity to help keep you in control at all times.

If you have a tip, resource or strategy to help small businesses, click here to send it to me. If I use it, I’ll give you credit and link to your Web site.

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Knott’s Berry Farm is auctioning on eBay the right to be the first riders on its new Pony Express roller coaster that opens May 22.

Here’s Knott’s artist rendering of the ride:

There are 32 “ponies” in all on the first run at 9 a.m. May 22. The minimum bids range from $60 to $150, depending on which seat you bid on. The price includes admission to the park, breakfast and lunch at the park’s famous Chicken Dinner Restaurant and Pony Express Commemorative Souvenirs, says spokeswoman Michele Wischmeyer.

She e-mailed me about the auction after I posted here about how much stuff Orange County residents sell on eBay, the world’s biggest online auction site. The Knott’s sale illustrates how creative O.C. folks get with their auctioneering. Maybe it helps explain why we outsell areas that have more people.

Here’s how Knott’s describes the Pony Express ride on eBay:

“You’ll sit astride one of the team’s 16 horses and giddyup out of the station at a speed of 38 mph in under 3 seconds!  The terrain is rugged as you navigate an ascending banked turn to a height of over 44 feet then through a series of heart-pounding 60 degree banked turns, camel backs and tight maneuvers… The Pony Express team covers a 1,300-foot route that also banks above Boot Hill Cemetary and Bigfoot Rapids.

Here’s what the half-completed ride looks like:

Knott’s is more interested in publicity and fun than in the money. “All proceeds from our auction will go to Buena Park’s Speech and Language Development Center,” Wischmeyer says.

The first row of the first train are already taken, she says. Bidding ends Monday.

Click here to view Knott’s eBay page and place your bid.

Tell me. Will you bid?

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The Orange County Entrepreneurs Conference attracts hundreds of entrepreneurs every year. Host Harvard Business School Association of Orange County has asked them about keys to successfully starting a business. 

Here’s what attendees said was most helpful in starting their business and what advice they would give to someone who is just starting a business. Note the difference.

This year’s Entrepreneurs Conference will be 7 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. May 19 at the Marriott Hotel in Anaheim. Click here to register.

If you have a tip, resource or strategy to help small businesses, click here to send it to me. If I use it, I’ll give you credit and link to your Web site. 

The National Bureau of Economic Research may not have put the official recession label on the U.S. economy yet, but the Milken Institute, a Santa Monica economic think tank, says the recession is here.

And California will be hit harder than other states, the institute says, for three reasons:

• high concentration of mortgage originations, both traditional and subprime
• job losses in construction and financial services
• decreased import activity at the state’s ports.

In fact, Milken says California’s recession started in the fourth quarter. Here’s how Milken sees it:

A recession is defined as two successive quarters of decline in the gross domestic product. The Commerce Department recently said the first-quarter 2008 GDP rose 0.6%.

However the Milken Institute report - “The Economic Outlook for the United States and California: Slow Growth or Recession” (Acrobat Reader required) - predicts that Commerce will revise its first quarter numbers to a 0.6% drop and that the second quarter GDP will decline 0.9%.

Here’s why. The report notes that:

• Each 10% drop in home sales equals a 0.8% decline in GDP
• Each $10 increase in oil price reduces real GDP by 0.2%

In addition, California’s treasury is impacted by lower income tax revenues, that the report forecasts to be 4.2 percent in the 2008 fiscal year that ends June 30, and 3.5% in 2009. Add to that lower taxes from capital gains because of declines in the stock market and stock options. The report says the gap between the state’s spending and income could exceed $20 billion for 2008-2009.

The report doubts that Californians will accept state spending cuts. But how likely are cash-strapped Californians to tax tolerate tax increases?

“A severe correction in housing markets, oil prices that breached the $100-a-barrel barrier, the weakening labor market, overextended consumers, and a continuing credit crunch have overwhelmed the underlying strength of export markets,” the report says.

“Looking at the ripple effects throughout the economy illustrates the real impact that Americans will feel on the ground level,” said Ross DeVol, director of regional economics at the Milken Institute.

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Bal Seal Engineering, a Foothill Ranch provider of custom-engineered seals and connectors for biotech and aerospace original equipment manufacturers, today is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its founding by Peter Balsells Sr.

According to the company Web site, Balsells, an aerospace design engineer who had immigrated from Catalonia, Spain, in 1951 recognized the need for self energized seals for rocket booster cryogenics. He came up with a canted-coil spring energized PTFE seal, today commonly known as the “Bal Seal.”

In 1958 he and his wife started the company in Santa Ana. Balsells is still chairman of the company. He founded a program of engineering fellowships for Catalan students at UCI’s Henry Samueli School of Engineering, and sponsores students at Pacific Language Institute in San Luis Obispo.

Today, it has 430 employees and 120 U.S. and foreign patents.

Today’s tip comes from the Natural Resources Defense Council, which has created a free online tool, called the Greening Advisor, to help businesses be better stewards of resources. The advice is efficient and cost effective and doesn’t involve spending millions of dollars for carbon offsets.

Some of the advice is pretty basic. Plant drought-tolerant landscaping. Use e-mail instead of faxes when possible. And in some cases you have to click a few times to get to the tips. Still, a one-stop site of various actions and environmentally-friendly purchases is helpful for busy small-business owners.

Among the advice:

• Use low-impact development techniques to conrol storm water pollution.
• Replace old heating, ventilation and air conditioning system with an energy-efficient unit. Energy cost can be cut 20%
• Encourage employees to bike to work (might be tough for employees of an Irvine company who live in Corona).

The site also gives real-life examples such as: Citigroup has reduced overall copy paper use and converted its offices to 30% postconsumer recycled copy paper.

If you have a resource, strategy or tip to help small businesses, click here to send it to me. If I use it, I’ll give you credit and link to your Web site.

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Orange County is among the top 10 U.S. areas for sales generated on eBay, the online auction company says.

Orange County, which was 12th in population among metropolitan statistical areas in the last Census, ranks 5th in local residents’ sales on eBay. Here are the numbers for 2007:

• 75,486 Orange County residents sold at least one thing on eBay
• They sold more than 6.9 million items
• Their sales were just under $636.7 million
• Most popular products O.C. folks sold were iPod and iPod Touch (112,708 units sold), watches (54,326 sold) and iPhones (24,560 sold).

Here are the top 10 eBay selling markets and sales (measured as gross merchandise volume) in 2007:

“EBay is great for the economy because it gives sellers a platform for pursuing entrepreneurialism on aglobal scale with nearly 1.2 million individuals selling on eBay in the top 10 markets alone last year,” says Marsha Collier, author of the book eBay for Dummies.

Here’s a look at how well other areas of California did in eBay sales last year:

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Today’s tip comes from Tim Britt and Robert Whiton of Synoptek in Santa Ana and one of the fastest growing businesses in Orange County from 2005 through 2007.

Synoptek does information technology and systems integration and development. The combination has been the key to the company’s success and high growth.Small businesses are told to specialize, to find one niche rather than try to be all things to all people. Synoptek’s modification of that advice is to diversify enough to have steady income as well as high-growth potential and to avoid being the victim if the one industry in which you specialize goes in the tank.

Britt and Whiton realized the value of that strategy and merged their individual companies to create Synoptek. Britt owned Information Consulting Group, which specialized in big-project consulting. Whiton owned Net Solutions, which did outsourced IT work.

Because of the duel strategy, Synoptek can attract and keep skilled technology workers, an increasing challenge in high-priced Orange County, Whiton says.

The company has since added Texum Inc., another IT outsourcing firm, and has other acquisitions planned.

“By acquiring companies, we are able to leverage our operational excellence, leverage our IT infrastructure and diversify our depth of expertise to serve customers better,” Britt said.

Acquisition also enables Synoptek to grow more quickly, expand into nearby markets such as Los Angeles and San Diego counties and to provide advancement opportunities for its workers, Whiton said.

Britt agreed. “We have a number of people who have been with us for a few years who want to move up. If they go some place else, we lose our investment in them.”

Click here to read my It’s Your Business column about Synoptek’s strategy.

If you have a strategy, resource or tip to help small businesses, click here to send it to me. If I use it, I’ll give you credit and link to your Web site.

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A million dollars in annual revenues doesn’t sound that big a deal, but only 3% of the 10.6 million women-owned businesses in the United States exceed that milestone, according to American Express.

Shaparak Kamarei and Marjaneh Hedayat, owners of Solaris Laser Institute in Mission Viejo, can now count themselves in that elite group. (Hedayat, left, and Kamarei in 2007 photo by Register photographer Rose Palmisano) Their 2007 revenues were a shade over $1.13 million, doubling their 2006 revenues, thanks in large part to their selection to participate in the Make Mine a Million $ Business.

The program is a cooperative effort of the New York-based Count Me In for Women’s Economic Independence and OPEN from American Express.

 The concept is to provide the technical and financial tools to enable women entrepreneurs to take their businesses to the next level, the one that’s above the million-dollar bar.

Make Mine a Business winners receive business mentoring from the Count Me In consultants and local coaches, opportunities for micro-loans from Count Me In and lines of credit from American Express, and business management software from Intuit. Two winners in the latest round will be selected for a $20,000 Cisco telecommunications package.

These prizes are better than cash awards, Kamarei said. “If I received cash, I wouldn’t be as appreciative. We would eat through money in the business and still be in the same place mentally.”

Since the program started in 2005, 48,000 women have applied for the program, 122 women business owners have won regional competitions and 29 have reach the million-dollar goal. The program’s goal is to have 1 million women-owned businesses reach million-dollar revenues by 2010.
 
“California has been the biggest force in our entire national movement,” said spokesman Danny Urquia. “Twenty-eight of the awardees are from the Golden State, and seven shattered the million-dollar revenue barrier in 2007.”

Kelly Moore of Moore Benefits Inc. in Irvine joined the awardees in a January competition in Hollywood. August 21 is the deadline for the next competition for which California women are eligible (September in New Mexico). Click here for information.

Solaris Laser Institute is a management company of a chain of studios for laser hair removal and related treatment.

Kamarei and Hedayat, both medical doctors, ”are a good example of people who have a vision, keep taking steps toward it and enlisting other people to help make it reality,” said Count Me In founder Nell Merlano. “The program is designed for women who possess the potential to change their lives and impact the national economy.”

Kamarei told me last year she was confident she’s exceed $1 million annual revenues “though I’m not sure without (Make Mine a Million) help we would be there this year.”

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“Top CEOs share their mistakes to teach secrets of success.” Sounds like a supermarket tabloid headline, but it’s just one of the panels at the 24th Annual Harvard Business School Entrepreneurs Conference May 19 at the Anaheim Marriott Hotel.

Among the confessors: Lance Stuart, who has been chief executive at LandRoller, WorkWell Systems, CovenantCare and ThinkFit; Louise Wannier, founder of myShape and Gemstar Europe; Jordan Greenhall, cofounder  of DivX.

In addition, keynote speakers will be  Rob Ukropina, founder of OverNite Express in Irvine and California Business Person of 2007, and Peter Butterfield, former CEO of Kia Motors North America now with Lakefront Capital Holdings.

Perhaps the greatest value of this event is networking with hundreds of other entrepreneurs and advisors.

The event usually sells out. Click here to register.

If you have a resource, strategy or tip to help small-business owners, click here to send it to me. If I use it, I’ll give you credit and link to your Web site.