Software piracy costing Africa billions

Cthippo · 16 Oct 2006

AFP said:

NAIROBI - A whopping 81 percent of computer software now in use in Africa has been pirated, costing governments and the high-tech industry billions of dollars in revenue and choking growth, experts warn.

As the continent looks to information technology to help jumpstart development and reduce poverty, Africa must enhance and enforce intellectual property laws if it is to truly benefit from new innovations, they say.

Meeting at a recent workshop in the Kenyan capital, representatives of software companies, including US giant Microsoft, government and media companies heard stunning piracy figures and the costs to local economies.

Abed Hlatshwayo, Microsoft's anti-piracy manager for eastern and southern Africa, said the region is awash in illegal copies and downloads worth more than 12.4 billion dollars (9.8 billion euros).

"We cannot sit back and watch our work being pirated," he said. "We need to change this so that we can all contribute to the growth of our economies through an effective intellectual property rights framework, provide more education, encourage better asset management for business and enforcement."

A 10-percent reduction by 2009 in piracy could spark growth in the information technology business, and resulting tax revenue, of some 22.5 billion dollars (17.8 billion euros) in the Middle East and Africa, according to studies, he said.

But convincing the growing number of African computer users to work with legitimate software will be difficult, experts acknowledge.

"People don't want to spend money on something tangible which is easily available," said James Kusewa, an operating environment and messaging business devevolpment manager for Dimensions Data, an east African IT firm.

"It's hard, but software companies need to convince people to budget for IT and buy software from correct channels so that they can get the value of genuine software like security updates, product upgrades, warranty, technical support... that can't run on pirated copies," he told AFP.

In many African countries, piracy is so endemic, it is virtually impossible to find legal copies, according to industry surveys.

In Zimbabwe, a staggering 90 percent of software in use is estimated to be pirated. Botswana and Nigeria share the dubious distinction of 82 percent piracy rates while Kenya fares little better at 80 percent, they said.

Much of that software, about 90 percent, has entered Africa from nations with traditionally weak copyright enforcement: the United Arab Emirates, Pakistan, India, Malaysia, China and Indonesia.

But African pirates are rapidly entering the market with Botswana, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Senegal and Zambia added this year to the top 20 list of high piracy states as determined by the Business Software Alliance, an umbrella group for the industry.

The surge has been "phenomally" exacerbated by the introduction of digital technology and internet file sharing, according to Edward Sigei, an attorney with the Kenya Copyright Board.

He told the conference that more had to be done to build awareness of piracy among consumers and allowed that governments had to boost import controls.

"Piracy has become a threat to copyright-based industry as it has wiped out the incentives for creators, which was offered by the copyright protection," he said. "This threatens the whole rationale of copyright system."

Sigei stressed that ultimate responsibility lies with the owner but also with governments giving them remedies including criminal sanctions, civil action and stepped up import inspections.

"The government needs to create public awareness on detrimental effects of piracy and counterfeits, empower investors in the industry, offer incentives for infrastructure development and enhance enforcement action by increasing the number of prosecutions, conviction and penalties," he said.
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Perhaps with enough piracy we can put "copyright based industry" out of business

steveo_mcg · 16 Oct 2006

Maybe since there is no monetary value in any software produced in the region, developers their could contribute to FOSS and then gain the benefits from using the same licence and not having to worry about paying for legit software or "unprotected" pirate software

specofdust · 16 Oct 2006

Cthippo said:

Perhaps with enough piracy we can put "copyright based industry" out of business
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Bloody well hope so.

Dear Mr Average African,

It's recently come to our attention that you have a PC, but you do not have a licensed copy of Windows XP. We would like you to buy a full retail copy of Microsoft Windows XP, for the retail price of $150 USD. We recognise that this is 10 years wages for you, however, software piracy is costing us rich westerners billions of dollars we really really need in order to buy nicer cars and wives with, so you'll understand why we ask you to starve.

Yours Sincerely,

The(really really poor) Microsoft Corporation

Tulatin · 16 Oct 2006

Yeah, pretty much what i was thinking there Spec.
We all know that there's trillions of unclaimed bills floating about africa for buying legit software. THen again, maybe those nigerian scammers turned to piracy!

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Software piracy costing Africa billions

Cthippo Can't mod my way out of a paper bag

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Software piracy costing Africa billions

Cthippo Can't mod my way out of a paper bag

steveo_mcg What's a Dremel?

specofdust Banned

Tulatin The Froggy Poster

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