BSA, MPA, China Copyright Group Ink Piracy Agreement

Industry groups for producers of copyright material, including the Business Software Alliance (BSA) and the Motion Picture Association (MPA), signed an agreement on Friday with the National Copyright Administration of China (NCAC) for protection against Internet piracy in China.

The Association of American Publishers (AAP) and The Publishers Association (TPA) of the United Kingdom also signed the memorandum, under which the industry groups will provide information about legal, authorized products distributed by their member companies in China. This will allow the NCAC to distinguish between legal and pirated copies available online. Instances of Internet piracy will then be referred to the NCAC, which will inform the proper legal authorities, the MPA said.

The BSA estimates that total losses to pirated software in China in 2005 were US$3.9 billion, and that 86 percent of all software used in China that year was pirated. The MPA estimates that the piracy rate for its members’ products was 93 percent. The numbers are based on estimated sales if pirated or unauthorized products were not available.

BSA members include technology companies such as Apple Computer, Microsoft and Dell. The MPA is composed of Hollywood’s largest film studios, such as Paramount Pictures and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It is the international arm of the Motion Picture Association of America.

-Steven Schwankert, IDG News Service (Beijing Bureau)

Related Links:

• ‘Prince of Piracy’ Sentenced to 7 Years for Taping Films

• Taiwan Police Shutter Site for Movie Piracy

• BSA: More Police Action Needed in Singapore

• Operator of Software Piracy Site Pleads Guilty

• A Piracy Supply Chain (CSO magazine)

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