[A2K] Tech lobby urges Mpahlwa to update Copyright Act

[dkawooya]

Tech lobby urges Mpahlwa to update Copyright Act

[Source:
http://www.bizassist.co.za/news.asp?Head=3DNews%20Stories&Cat=3DTech&Ref=3D=
328]


SOFTWARE and computer technology businesses have called on Trade and Indust=
ry
Minister Mandisi Mpahlwa to make changes to the =E2=80=9Carchaic and outdat=
ed=E2=80=9D
Copyright Act, which they claim has allowed software piracy to flourish.

The Business Software Alliance (BSA), an organisation that represents the
interests of software publishers and computer technology companies, called =
on
Mpahlwa to speed up amendments to the act, which had been in the pipeline f=
or
about eight years.

The organisation said SA=E2=80=99s piracy rate stood at 36% of all products=
 sold,
representing more than R950m in lost revenue to the economy.

Law firm Bowman Gilfillan, which acts for the BSA, said that government iss=
ued
draft amendments in April 2000 that would have improved copyright protectio=
n
for software. The firm said these amendments were withdrawn towards the end=
 of
2000. No further amendments have been published since.

In a letter to Mpahlwa the law firm states that the act is =E2=80=9Cserious=
ly
outdated=E2=80=9D and does not conform with the Agreement on Trade-Related =
Aspects
of Intellectual Property Rights (Trips). SA is a signatory to the agreement=
 =E2=80
=94 an international treaty administered by the World Trade Organisation (W=
TO).

The agreement sets down minimum standards for most forms of intellectual
property regulation within WTO member countries.

Bowman Gilfillan said it had isolated specific areas of concern which would
not only place copyright holders in a better position to protect their righ=
ts,
but would also place SA in a position where it would be able to meet its
obligations in terms of the WTO agreement.

The BSA said areas of concern about the country=E2=80=99s copyright legisla=
tion
were, among others, criminal penalties for end users and penalties which wo=
uld
act as deterrents.

=E2=80=9CEnd-user piracy continues to be an escalating problem. Internation=
ally,
end-user piracy has been recognised as a criminal offence. By making South
African companies and their managers criminally responsible for end-user
copying, this would not only go a long way in assisting intellectual proper=
ty
right holders but would also conform with international standards and will
promote good corporate governance,=E2=80=9D the letter read.

The BSA said although civil damages were provided for in the act, they were
often inadequate to serve as a deterrent. The business organisation propose=
d
monetary penalties for piracy, such as civil damages of R10000 per illegal
copy found.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Dick Kawooya
Doctoral Student/ IPF Fellow 2006-07
School of Information Sciences, UTK
1345 Circle Park Drive,
Knoxville, TN 37996-0341
Altern.: kawooya@policy.hu
http://www.policy.hu/kawooya/
Skype ID: d_kawooya
Tel: 865-974-2148
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