Piracy seen at 70% and rising

Software piracy in the country  rose to 70 per cent in 2001-02 compared to 63 per cent in 2000-01, according to the Business Software Alliance, an association of software companies fighting piracy.

As a result, software companies operating in India lost over Rs 1,800 crore (Rs 18 billion) in 2001-02. This estimate by the Business Software Alliance is higher than the Rs 1,100 crore (Rs 11 billion) losses attributed to software piracy during the year by the National Association of Software and Service Companies. According to Nasscom, about 61 per cent of the software sold in India is pirated.

India is one of the few markets that has seen a rise in piracy, says the Business Software Alliance. In markets like China, the rate of piracy fell to 92 per cent in 2001-02 from 94 per cent in 1999-2000.

The average level of piracy in Asia is also on the decline with the rate falling to 51 per cent in 2001-02 from 54 per cent a year earlier.

"It is surprising that piracy is rising in India despite the steps taken by the government. Policing has been strict in recent times," says Jeffrey Mardee, vice-president and regional director of the Business Software Alliance's Asia Pacific division.

The losses suffered by companies in India are much less than the rest of the markets. Companies in the US lost about $1.8 billion 2001-02 while companies in Japan and China lost $1.72 billion and $1.66 billion, respectively.

According to estimates, well over 50 per cent of the piracy is at the corporate level. "Corporate end-user piracy is a cause of worry. This is the biggest threat to our efforts," Mardee said.

Explaining the reason for the high rate of piracy at the corporate level, Mardee said it was partially due to ignorance about licensing.

"Some of this is casual piracy and partially deliberate. We are taking a slew of steps to counter this," he said.

The Business Software Alliance is taking a number of steps to clamp down on piracy. "We have organised workshops and training sessions for the police in Delhi and Bangalore. We will organise such sessions in other cities as well," Mardee said.