From this month anyone illegally using a computer program or database in Russia is liable to pay up to 50,000 times the statutory minimum monthly salary in damages to its owner. Until this month an exemption allowing the use of copied software for educational purposes had applied. The law gives computer programs and databases the full protection of Russian copyright legislation and now gives a court the power to imposed heavy compensation settlements and to confiscate illegal copies and duplication equipment. After over a year of delay, the law on the Legal Protection of Computer Programs and Databases finally received President Yeltsin’s signature as part of package of four laws on intellectual property last August. It has been praised by international anti-firacy organisations such as the FAST Federation Against Software Theft.
Awful
The problem is that so far it has not been tested in the courts, and blatant disregard for it is so widespread. Probably a greater proportion of popular personal computer packaged software products in use are pirate copies in Russia than anywhere else in the world. Jurgen Stranghoner, general manager, Eastern Europe at Microsoft Corp estimates 98% of Microsoft products in use there are pirated. A big problem is the cost of a legal copy relative to the productivity of the average user. Software is bought to increase efficiency. The majority of Russian users are in organisations that have very limited funds and lots of people. All but the most enlightened managers will make the decision that one member of staff is very unlikely to create an extra $100 in value if he or she is bought a legal version of a package that’s already being used illegally. A connected problem is that communications in Russia are so poor. A major reason one buys software rather than stealing it is the access to a telephone help-line. Setting up help-lines in Russia is extraordinarily difficult because the telephone system is so awful. Only in the last month has Microsoft announced that its Moscow help line is fully up and running. So far Western software companies have adjusted to the situation as best they can. Most have been keen not to alienate the majority of their individual users who usually cannot afford to buy the legal product. Instead of penalising them, they are trying to win them over, betting that once they have sufficient income they will buy a copy. For large corporate users, software companies are trying to make the legalisation of many copies easier and cheaper. At the end of last year both Borland International Inc and Microsoft introduced multiple licences that cut the cost of buying several installations of the same product. The other major factor in organised piracy is that up until now if you stole software there appeared to be no chance you would be caught and fined. It is in the area of mass copying for commercial benefit that someone may choose to be the first to test the law. Likely targets are computer assemblers. Several large Russian assembly operations openly supply personal computers with unlicensed copies of MS-DOS. The new law is a worthy statement of intent. Now it is at last on the statute book it is time see if it has any teeth.
