Re: COMMENT: India's software piracy causes loss of Rs 900 crore annually

[Sathe <nsathe@xxxxxxxxxx>]

I think that this suggests :
1. Were piracy laws to be strictly enforced, prices of proprietory
software would come down.
2. More and more people would switch to free software if the software they

now use freely would not be so available.

I think in the home and  "small office home office (SOHO)" segment the
piracy rates rates would be very high as it is quite impossible fotr them
to purchase softwares like MS Office, Photoshop, Oracle, VB etc.  But
under linux we have very viable alternatives like startoffice, postgresql,

gimp, LaTeX, apache server etc.

At the same time we cannot do away with proprietory software altogether
because the dollars we are earning today ( India's software exports for
2000-01 will be around Rs 27000/- crores) come almost totally from the use

of proprietory software. Also though it comes at a high price the
propritory  software is *really good* in terms of perfornance and support.

The money factor is always important when i am developing something good,
i need to be adequately compensated for my efforts.

I think there is some misunderstnding that linux talks only geek's
language and is not really useful for the common man. I had this idea too
being a non techie but now i hardly switch over to the "other side" of my
computer disk.


Amit Sathe

Frederick Noronha wrote:

> Below is a very interesting news-item. The arguments (and the stand
> taken) have implications for all of us who would like to see
> free-shareable Linux grow. How would the others on the list respond to
> arguments explicitly stated or implied, such as:
> 1. Piracy "losses" in India exceed Rs 900 crore.
> 2. Continuing piracy means higher prices for the consumer
> 3. Piracy means less publisher revenue to invest in new products
> 4. "Thousands" of jobs are lost since proprietary s/w is not purchased
>
> INDIA'S SOFTWARE PIRACY CAUSES LOSS OF RS 900 CRORE ANNUALLY
>
> UNITED NEWS OF INDIA, New Delhi, Dec 3 (Indian Express, Dec 4)
>
> TWO IN THREE software programs in India are stolen and the software
> piracy is causing an annual loss of more than Rs 900 crore in the
> country.
>
> These software programs are stolen either through hard-disk loading or
> counterfeiting, according to Dewang Mehta, president, National
> Association of Software and Service Companies (Nasscom).
>
> The results of the fifth annual benchmark survey on global software
> piracy showed that piracy losses in India exceeded Rs 900 crore at a
> piracy rate of 59 per cent.
>
> The survey, conducted by Independent Research for International
> Planning and Research Corporation, was commissioned by the Business
> Software Alliance (BSA) and the Software and Information Industry
> Association (SIIA).
>
> The continuing piracy problem meant higher prices for consumers, less
> publisher revenue to invest in new products and a potential barrier to
> success for software start-ups in India.
>
> "If software piracy continues unabated, the local Indian industry will
> be robbed of thousands of jobs, billions in wages, tax revenues and
> critical investments in new technologies," Mehta added.
>
> Mehta said many chief executive officers, information technology
> managers and general managers are aware of the civil and criminal
> penalties for use of unlicensed software. Yet they continue to fail to
> act.
>
> "Unfortunately, there are also businesses who deliberately install and
> use software without appropriate licences. They risk becoming target of
> legal action," he said.
>
> Software piracy refers to the illegal installation, distribution, sale
> and use of infringing software. If found liable under the Copyright
> Act, offenders risk criminal penalties of upto three years in prison
> and fines upto Rs 200,000 for the offence of copyright infringement.
>
> Nasscom and BSA would intensify efforts to stop this menace. "We will
> continue to assist enforcement authorities to initiate action against
> individuals and businesses manufacturing, distributing, selling or
> using illegal products as we have done since 1994," Mehta said.
>
> They would also continue to educate the public and the business sector
> of the effects and dangers of piracy through seminars and press
> releases. Among other things, Nasscom and BSA have launched a reward
> programme which would give Rs 50,000 to anyone for providing
> information leading to successful legal action against companies using
> unlicensed software, Mehta said.
>
> Anyone could give this information on a hotline, 1600-334455
>
> Their campaign would educate the business sector, the community, the
> distribution channel and dealers about the importance of portecting
> intellectual property rights, both for the local economy and for the
> long-term prosperity of India's dynamic software industry.(ENDS)
>
> ----------------------------------------------
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