[Linux-aus] Uniquely Vietnamese solution to software piracy

[Arjen Lentz]

Hi Leon,

On Fri, 2003-10-31 at 06:49, Leon Brooks wrote:
> No software, so no piracy, so no problem, now we can join WTO and avoid 
> US trade sanctions.
> 
> http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/business/columnists/gmsv/7139304.htm
> 
>     Vietnam implemented a trade agreement with the United States in 2001
>     that requires the government to bring down the piracy rate. And the
>     government also needs to do that to meet its goal of joining the
>     World Trade Organization by 2005.
> 
>     Microsoft Windows and Office cost at least $140 in Vietnam -- way
>     out of reach for most people, where the per capita annual income is
>     roughly $420.
> 
> ...so a lot of it got stolen. How do we solve this problem? We take the 
> vulnerable software out of the loop, no worries?
> 
>     ``We are trying step by step to eliminate Microsoft,'' said Nguyen
>     Trung Quynh of Vietnam's Ministry of Science and Technology.
> 
> Laugh? I dang near fell off my chair! (-:

I gets even better. The article also notes:

> But Microsoft products are everywhere in Vietnam, and very few shell
> out the money for licensed copies. Almost 97 percent of the programs
> used in Vietnam have been illegally copied, costing Microsoft an
> estimated $40 million to $50 million a year.

Of course this is a perfect example showing this commonspread flawed
logic that 100000 illegal copies, $100 per copy, means $10,000,000 loss
for the seller. But, going with this logic, we *could* add the following
statement:

"In Vietnam, by replacing illegal copied software with OpenSource
alternatives, Microsoft losses will be significantly decreased."


Regards,
Arjen.
-- 
Arjen Lentz, Technical Writer, Trainer
Brisbane, QLD Australia
MySQL AB, www.mysql.com

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