KUALA LUMPUR: Govern-ments across Asia must do more to fight software piracy and create a conducive legal environment if local software companies are to survive.This was the message expressed in a new video launched today by the Business Software Alliance (BSA) to commemorate World Intellectual Property (IP) Day.
Called ‘Asia’s Software Entrepreneurs: Hopes and Challenges,’ the video introduces six Asian companies that have joined BSA as members and highlights the difficulties they faced in trying to grow and compete in their own home markets in the face of software piracy.
“We are launching this video on World IP Day to highlight the tremendous benefits these companies bring to their respective economies and to draw attention to the fact that they need support of their local governments in creating the right IP regime for them to thrive,” said Jeffery Hardee, BSA vice-president and Regional director for Asia-Pacific.
He said local software entrepreneurs, distributors and resellers help create new jobs, contribute to economic growth, generate tax revenue for governments and are a source of pride for their own nations.
According to the Sixth Annual BSA-IDC Global Software Piracy Study, the average PC software piracy rate in Asia-Pacific in 2008 was 61 per cent, while the Seventh Annual BSA-IDC Global Software Piracy Study for software piracy rates in 2009 is scheduled for global release on May 11.
New BSA members joining the fight against software piracy in Asia-Pacific this year include AVEVA Technologies, ARM Ltd and Mentor Graphics.
“ARM is very pleased to join BSA and we view joining BSA as an important step to protecting and defending ARM IP. We look forward to working with BSA throughout the Asia-Pacific region to ensure local market requirements and best practices are met,” said John Cornish, executive vice-president and general manager of System Design Division, of new regional member, ARM.
“The BSA is pleased to welcome more companies into its membership base. This trend reflects the rising awareness among software companies of the need to protect their intellectual property while seeking to innovate and grow in the software industry, which in the long run is critical to the region’s IT competitiveness,” commented Hardee on the new membership.
The Business Software Alliance (www.bsa.org) is the foremost organisation dedicated to promoting a safe and legal digital world.– Bernama