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By Leah B. del Castillo
, Business Desk
With additional research/reporting by
Meryl S. Marcon
(Software pirates have almost wreaked havoc on
the software and entertainment industry. Illegally copied CDs, VCDs
and DVDs have flourished so long authorities are facing an uphill
battle rooting them out. This final installment notes the government
strategy to strike back at the pirates.)
Since former Cavite Gov. Ramon “Bong”
Revilla Jr. took over the Videogram Regulatory Board (VRB) as
chairman in July, the agency’s focus has been to stop illegal
copiers of video materials and the confiscation of copying machines.
The raids conducted by VRB teams have exposed
one glaring fact: most of the pirated software are being turned out
by illegal aliens.
What is more disturbing, according to Eduardo D.
Sazon, vice chairman of the IP Coalition, a loose group of patent,
trademark and copyright stakeholders, most of these foreign
nationals “have the capital to establish connections, within and
without the government.”
From January to the second week of August this
year, VRB made 828 inspections, resulting in 293,835 discs
confiscated. The total worth of the confiscated goods could range
anywhere from P14 million to P35 million.
In addition, for the same period, VRB conducted
16 search warrant operations, resulting in the seizure of 93,503
VCDs and DVDs, and several optical disc copying and recording
equipment.
Rafael Ragos, head of the National Bureau of
Investigation’s Intellectual Property Rights department, said most
of the counterfeit business software comes from abroad, particularly
China.
Sazon believes that the only way to save the
entertainment industry from piracy is through strict law
enforcement.
The Intellectual Property Code of the
Philippines (Republic Act No. 8293) protects original works’
copyright — the exclusive right to publish works — and
levies penalties for copyright violations.
However, Sazon notes that aside from the need to
educate consumers against patronizing pirated material, there is the
additional problem of finding “prosecutors who are strict” in
enforcing the IPR (intellectual property rights) law.
Ragos agrees. In a telephone interview with THE
TIMES, he said that even as the NBI is able to confiscate pirate
goods, there is a difficulty in “convincing the courts that these
are fakes.”
While the NBI itself has no backlog in its
investigating tasks, Ragos said some software companies, including
the multinationals, opt to settle with the offenders, not wanting to
get involved in the long judicial process.
One reason intellectual piracy cases drag on in
court may be that the 27 designated IPR courts do not only handle
cases on IPR but also other cases considered heinous in nature.
In a paper, the Inter-Agency Committee on
Intellectual Property Rights notes that “IPR violations do not
arouse strong feelings, on the part of the public and judges, or
revulsion or hatred or antipathy towards the accused. More so, if
the complainant is a multinational company and the accused is a
small shop owner or retailer.”
Jennifer Abaca-Lai, Microsoft Philippines’
director for business development, in an e-mail interview confirms
that “maintaining these cases entails a lot of resources.”
Abaca-Lai said the BSA has cases against
violators that are still pending in court. “Some of these cases
are effects of raids conducted from as far back as1995,” she
added.
Microsoft, in addition to a public apology,
requires the violator to make a “hardware donation to a community
or charitable institution” Microsoft has chosen, she said.
Abaca-Lai stressed that individuals and
companies should understand that using licensed software is in fact
more cost-effective than settling the matter in court.
“Companies who use illegal software on the
other hand put themselves at risk. For one, they are ineligible for
upgrades, warranties or technical support. They are also unprotected
against malicious viruses. More importantly, they put their
company’s reputation at risk,” she said.
“More often than not, negotiating a settlement
for copyright infringement is more expensive than the cost of fully
licensing software in the first place.”
The country’s lawmakers seem eager enough to
give authorities more teeth in fighting piracy.
The House of Representatives, through House
Bill No. 3825 introduced by Rep. Imee Marcos and Harry Angping,
proposes to expand and strengthen the powers of the Intellectual
Property Office (IPO) as the lead agency in the fight against
optical disc piracy.
The bill proposes that the IPO be given the
“authority to regulate and license the manufacture, mastering and
reproduction of optical media and the importation, sale and
acquisition of optical media replicating equipment and other raw
materials.”
In another House measure, Bill No. 3182, Angping
proposes that certain amendments be made to the RA 8293, including
the “integration of comprehensive, swift, efficient and adequate
strategies” to combat Internet piracy. At the same time, the bill
seeks to address the rights of “performers, phonogram producers
and broadcasters in the same breadth as those accorded authors of
artistic and literary works.”
However, NBI’s Ragos believes that “no
amount of law enforcement would stop piracy” as offenders would
merely settle with aggrieved parties and then resume business.
Instead, he calls for re-education.
“Filipinos should become more aware that
piracy is practically stealing,” he said. “It is immoral.”
First part
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