New solutions against pirates
Hard on the heels of yet another US government putdown, the technology peddlers have slapped Thailand over its perceived piracy of intellectual copyright. The new report is by the Business Software Alliance (BSA). It covers the world, focusing country by country on what the BSA has concluded are the violators of copyright law. It turns out that in the jaundiced view of BSA, we are pretty well all criminals - our countries, our industries and ourselves. By using pirated software, the report claims, violators around the world are costing software companies $58.8 billion - with Thailand accounting for a goodly share of that.
The commercial claim of intellectual property (IP) losses followed closely on the heels of the annual report by the US Trade Representative on commercial piracy around the world. The US report covers all alleged IP violations worldwide, but puts the blame on national governments. Washington reckoned once again that Thailand was one of the world's "dirty dozen" of worst violators. Under the terms of so-called Section 301 laws in the US, such a horrendous rating could bring trade sanctions against Thailand and the other alleged IP pirates, although in fact no such action ever has been taken.
These reports make headlines because they are sensational. Unfortunately, they are unhelpful. They neither properly report the problems surrounding IP rights, nor offer realistic or helpful solutions. For example, the US government's report has constantly changed the criticism and shifted the goalposts. A few years ago, Thailand was strongly criticised for the amount of pirated software in government offices. The chief complaint against the country this year is that it has not passed a law forbidding the use of smartphones to record movies off the screens of Bangkok cineplexes.
It is clear what the US government is up to. Hollywood movie peddlers have found copies of such recordings on the internet and complained to Washington, which has dutifully made the industry's wishes a matter of national policy. In fact, though, a law against making tiny, almost unviewable copies of movies inside cinemas would have no perceptible result. It is impossible to imagine police scouring the movie theatres of Bangkok trying to find the villains involved in such a task.
Further demeaning of the US Trade Representative's report, if any were needed, lies in the BSA report released on its heels. According to the BSA, the single biggest software pirate in the world - more than 12 times bigger than Thailand's alleged $777 million - is the United States. Of course, the US Trade Representative does not count the US piracy problem as any problem at all, let alone the world's largest. In addition, the US rates Canada as one of the "dirty dozen" as well, proving that even having a clean record is no defence.
In the US view, the only way to address IP piracy, including copyright and trademark violations, is to enact more laws with more imprisonment. If a shop sells pirated software - so goes the argument - close down the mall. But filling more jail cells is hardly a solution.
Industry groups, instead of spending millions on biased reports, would do better to run campaigns to encourage consumers and companies to buy and use legitimate software, music, movie videos and more. The benefits of the software industry are apparent to all - even the BSA says so. Therefore, if might be more useful for the BSA to help struggling software authors and firms than fund police crackdowns on small-time software pirates.
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