Vietnam recorded a PC software piracy rate of 81 percent in 2011, a reduction of 2 points two years in a row, compared to 83 percent in 2010 and 85 percent in 2009, according to the 2011 Business Software Alliance (BSA) Global Software Piracy Study released in Vietnam on May 17.
The commercial value of this piracy was US$395 million, representing a 4 percent decrease in value from the previous year.
“The positive results shown by the decrease in the software piracy rate is testament of the great efforts of the government. Admittedly, there is still much work to be done, and Vietnam faces a stiff challenge in reducing the level of its piracy rate to even the levels found within the region, at 60 percent, or the world, at 42 percent. However, I am confident that Vietnam is on the right track,” said Tarun Sawney, BSA’s Senior Director for Anti-piracy in the Asia-Pacific region.
The global commercial value of pirated software climbed from US$58.8 billion in 2010 to US$63.4 billion in 2011. Some users say they pirate all or most of the time. Others say they do it occasionally or rarely.
BSA works closely with the government authorities in the Partnership in Protection of Software Copyright, which was established since 2008, to reduce software piracy rates. Numerous education campaigns and software asset management (SAM) seminars have been held for the business community, including IT retailers, and educational institutions. Government outreach and crackdown campaigns have also been the feature of initiatives conducted to drive down piracy rates.
“On the flip side, if 81 percent of consumers admitted they shoplift — even rarely —authorities would react by increasing police patrols and penalties. Software piracy demands a similar response: concerted public education and vigorous law enforcement. Coming from the local software industry scene where we invest millions into developing cutting-edge software solutions, we really need all the help we can get from the government to ensure a brighter future for ourselves,” said Ha Than, CEO of Lac Viet Computing Corp.
36 percent of admitted software pirates in Asia-Pacific surveyed in the study, say they acquire software illegally “all of the time,” “most of the time” or “occasionally,” while 27 percent say they “rarely” do so. The study also found that admitted software pirates in Asia-Pacific are predominantly male, with 32 percent between the ages of 18-24.
Government presses ahead enforcement on computer software ownership
“Software piracy persists as a drain on the global economy, IT innovation and job creation,” said BSA president and CEO Robert Holleyman. “Governments must take steps to modernize their IP laws and expand enforcement efforts to ensure that those who pirate software face real consequences.”
“Under-licensing of software within businesses continues to be a key contributor of software piracy. Beyond the damage done to the IT sector and supporting ecosystem, such activity harms local and regional market competition. It is crucial that governments across the region take strong measures — not just through education but also through enforcement — to protect the interest of honest businesses and ensure fair competition,” said Victor Lim, Vice President, Asia/Pacific Consulting Operations, IDC.
In a related development, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism ombudsmen, in collaboration with the Hi-tech Crime Control Police Bureau – C50 (Ministry of Public Security), recently launched spot checks for intellectual property rights compliance with a focus on computer software in four major wholly foreign-owned Taiwanese companies.
A mission representative said that of the 221 computers checked in the four companies, a large number of illegally used software programs have been found. The majority of the illicitly copied software comprises Microsoft’s popular office programs, including Microsoft Window Server, Window XP, Microsoft Office; Lac Viet’s software, including the Lac Viet Dictionary; and professional design applications like AutoCAD, SolidWorks and Adobe Photoshop. The total value of the infringed software in this raid is estimated at over 4 billion dong (US$ 197,000).
This is part of the renewed strong-arm effort of the government following series of far-and-wide awareness and education campaigns targeting agencies and companies delivered by the interagency task force, in cooperation with international organizations, including the BSA, and software publishers, both domestic and international, in the last few years.
BSA Global Software Piracy Study 2011 is the ninth annual study of global software piracy conducted by BSA in partnership with IDC and Ipsos Public Affairs, two of the world’s leading independent research firms. The study methodology involves collecting 182 discrete data inputs and assessing PC and software trends in 116 markets. This year’s study also included a survey of 15,000 computer users in 33 countries that together constitute 82 percent of the global PC market.
Nam Pham
Vietnamese
