BSA - NASSCOM anti-piracy hotline announced

By New Delhi: | 29 Apr 2005

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New Delhi: The global alliance of major software developers, Business Software Alliance (BSA) and NASSCOM (National Association of Software & Services Companies) have announced the launch of the new anti-piracy hotline in India.

The pan-India anti-piracy hotline number 1600 11 0033 is toll free and any individual reporting under-licensing and / or use of illegal software at a workplace may qualify for a reward of up to Rs5 lakh, subject to terms and conditions.

According to the Annual BSA and IDC Global Software Piracy Study published in 2004, India had a piracy rate of 73 per cent in 2003 with losses amounting to $367mn.

Another IDC economic study found that decreasing India's piracy rate by 10 points from 2002 to 2006, could add $2.1bn to the GDP, create more than 48,000 new jobs and generate $92mn in tax revenues.

BSA and NASSCOM have been working on an ongoing basis to train the police and the judiciary in effectively enforcing IPR laws, conducting numerous anti-piracy raids and other campaigns all over the country.

To help businesses understand the damaging effects of piracy and under licensing, BSA and NASSCOM will be also launching anti-piracy marketing campaigns including organising seminars in conjunction with trade associations, newsletters, print advertisements in local dailies and radio 'infomercials'.

The campaign will focus on the youth segment, specifically students in India, to help them to appreciate and understand the damaging effects of piracy. With 54 per cent of the India's youth under the age of 25 years, this target audience will be key to driving responsible software usage in the future.

Emphasising the effect of piracy on the Indian economy, Kiran Karnik, president, NASSCOM, said, "The domestic IT software and services market was around Rs16 billion in FY 2003-04, with software products accounting for Rs2 billion (approximately 13 per cent). A major constraint inhibiting the growth of software products in India is software piracy in the country."

"Awareness plays a very important role here, as many corporate end-users are unaware of the difference between pirated and original software, and indulge in acts such as casual copying which also leads to piracy. The NASSCOM-BSA alliance has been working closely with software resellers to educate end customers and corporates about the perils of piracy, as usage of pirated software not only stifles innovation, but also impacts the growth of domestic market," added Karnik.

Explaining the rationale for the launch of the hotline, Jeffrey Hardee, VP and regional director, Asia-Pacific, BSA said, "This launch helps all businesses legalise, address under-licensing issues and maximise their software resources, but we have to take a firm stand against companies that continue to flout the law. It is not enough for businesses to say they do not know. They have the responsibility to understand what the law is. Ultimately, enforcement plays an important role in education".

He added, "There is much to be done in the fight against software piracy in India, and it requires concerted and combined efforts of everyone. The BSA Anti-Piracy Hotline is a means for the public to help combat piracy."

The Business Software Alliance is dedicated to promoting a safe and legal digital world. BSA is the voice of the world's commercial software industry and its hardware partners before governments and in the international marketplace. Its members include Adobe, Apple, Autodesk, Avid, Bentley Systems, Borland, Cadence Design Systems, Cisco Systems, CNC Software/Mastercam, Dell, Entrust, HP, IBM, Intel, Internet Security Systems, Macromedia, McAfee, Microsoft, Minitab, PTC, RSA Security, SAP, SolidWorks, Sybase, Symantec, Trend Micro, UGS and VERITAS Software.BSA programmes are aimed at fostering technology innovation through education and policy initiatives that promote copyright protection, cyber security, trade and e-commerce.

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