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Intellectual Property / Software
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2000-02-29 21:21:00-05
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Pantip Piracy: Business as usual
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No visible efforts to prevent open sale of pirated software in Pantip Plaza, Bangkok
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 | A price hard to compete with!
Mr. Erkko Vainio from Finnish advanced network security software co. F-Secure inspects a 3 US$ copy of MS-Windows 2000 |
Getting Windows 2000 for 3.30 US$ might seem like a bargain already. But as the operating system is not taking up all the space on a CD-ROM, the pirate-copyists has added other software programs as a bonus! You do not have to stand in a dark alley and say "Psst!" to buy pirated software or know somebody who knows somebody. Just walk straight into Pantip Plaza, the largest computer-shopping mall in Thailand, and you will find shop after shop openly displaying CD-cassettes ("jewel-cases") with everything you might need. The CD itself is not inside, but at request it is brought to you in 5 minutes. Microsoft's software seems to be the most popular target, but virtually any producer of software is amply represented. "It's good business, but it used to be even better" says Samran (not real name) to BizAsia. "The competition is getting harder all the time. Some years ago a pirate-copy CD could sell for 600 Baht (~ 17 US$) Now you can get 120 Baht (3.25 US$). Some shops even tried to lower the price to only 80 Baht (2.15 US$) but they got unpopular!"
 | Pantip Plaza, Bangkok
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But as a blank CD costs below 1 US$ the profit on pirated software is still the best in Pantip Plaza. "Normal hardware profits can be as low as 3% and is only in special cases higher than 10%. In addition comes installation time and guarantee." Earlier a couple of policemen on inspection got beaten up by angry pirates. "I have a family to support" says Samran. "I know that copying like this is wrong, but I think Bill Gates is not hungry!" Samran also believes that the state of matters actually is in the producer's own interest. "Sometimes we see software with an advanced protection sceme. When you install it a new code is generated every time. To open this software more than 25 times you have to submit this code and your serial number to an authorized reseller. Then you get a code back that you must enter to continue using the software. Otherwise it won't work. But the result is simply that people use something else. If they then later get into a corporate context, well, they buy the software they know already. The day Microsoft would stop the illegal usage of software they would be playing into the hands of their competitors!" Business Software Alliance ("BSA") who acts against copyright violations has earlier with the police raided a couple of companies in Bangkok and in advertisment encouraged people who would know about illegal software installations to call. The usual outcome of the raids has been a settlement where the company accept to legalize their software, pay a fine and allow for future inspections. Copyright violations can in Thailand be punished with jail up to 6 months.
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