Chinese offer to curb piracy in Botswana

TSHIRELETSO MOTLOGELWA
Staff Writer | Wednesday May 2, 2007 00:00

 

Botswana was recently rated 15th in the list of countries where software piracy is rampant. 
'The Chinese government as you would have heard is concerned about these issues and we do not want our citizens engaged in any unlawful activity. We would lend our assistance if it is required, be it logistically or otherwise,' explained Vhigang.
The Chinese government has been engaged in an anti-piracy campaign that includes destroying counterfeit DVDs and putting legislative initiatives in place.
Much of the initial pressure on China has been exerted by the US government. The Americans are themselves under pressure from the Hollywood and Silicon Valley lobbyists.
The US had threatened to go to court over rampant Chinese piracy. China has the biggest market for US movie companies and IT corporations such as Microsoft. Reports in Botswana indicate that among the biggest traders of counterfeit movies and software are people of Asian origin especially Chinese.
'The proliferation of piracy has many causes one of which is that DVDs are too expensive. It's not that people want to do wrong. It's just that they want to watch movies but they cannot afford the high prices. Imagine someone who earns P600 monthly. How are they supposed to pay DVD for a P250,' explained Vhigang.
He said in China, the government has worked with distribution companies to make DVDs affordable by packaging in simple non-expensive material. 'A big chunk of the DVD cost goes to the packaging not the movie itself. If you can package the DVD in simple packaging, you can drop the price low enough for the average person to afford it. That is what we have proved in China,' he revealed.
Pirated DVDs and software sales continue to be a challenge to the authorities in Botswana. While a genuine movie DVD could cost about P200, one can buy a counterfeit for less than P20. The counterfeit market is dominated by the latest Hollywood blockbusters and computer programmes which are sold in copied CD-ROMs. The American Embassy was not available for comment.