In a recent hearing, the US House of Foreign Affairs Committee was briefed on the seriousness of the lack of China’s protection of intellectual property rights. According to the report, it was found that 80% of PC software used in China was illegally copied. In reality, the figure could have touched ninety percent as a large number of software used in rural areas which was outside the surveyed area were suspected of being cheap rip offs. An indication of the extend of piracy is the increasing number of court cases.
What exactly is being pirated in China? Computer software is one of the most popular items that get copied around. It’s easily done, without people noticing, and with very little enforcement by the authorities, people just treat illegal copying as legal. Now, if you want to check on software, you have to check it at the company offices, and that cannot be done that easily. There are walls all over the place, security barriers to go through before you can get to the computers. When authorities did manage to penetrate these barriers, users are tipped off immediately; the result is that no copies of pirated software are found. Neither is home users easily napped for using illegal copies.
Of greater concern is the ease of obtaining illegal copies of movie DVDs. It is one of the hottest entertainment items. You can virtually get a copy anywhere and at dirt cheap prices. The network of illegal DVD pushers is so extensive that the moment one of them is being caught, three others are being recruited. It is the poor man's tobacco, so you don’t have the heart to arrest them for going illegal! From the point of view of the government, arresting procurers of pirated DVDs will make people angry with the government. It is therefore logical to close one eye and make the people happy, least they form a revolution and change the whole government.
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