 | |
| |
TechnologyDaily Mobile
Singapore Court Punishes Software Pirates
by Danielle Belopotosky
Singapore last week prosecuted its first criminal case under its revised copyright act, which was enacted Jan. 1, 2005. The court imposed a fine for software piracy.
PDM International, an interior design company, was fined $19,012 for using 51 copies of the software. Under Singapore's law, first-time offenders face a maximum fine of $12,280, in addition to statutory damages of up to $633 for each infringed work.
The Singapore police raided the company and seized 11 computers in September. According to news reports, the police charge sheet alleged that the company had 20 unlicensed copies of Adobe Systems software, 20 unlicensed copies of Microsoft software and 11 unlicensed copies of Autodesk software.
Software piracy rates in Singapore in 2004 were estimated to be 42 percent, amounting to $96 million in losses, according to a Business Software Alliance and IDC global study. BSA, of which the three software companies in the Singapore case are members, provided investigators with technical assistance, according to the group's Singapore office.
Also on the intellectual property front, the European Commission last week amended a proposal that would increase criminal sanctions for counterfeiting and piracy.
The commission revised its directive after a court disputed the directive's legal instrument. According to the commission, the proposed directive was amended because the court ruled that the "criminal law provisions necessary for the effective implementation" of law were a matter for "community law."
Under the directive, all IP infringements on a commercial basis would be treated equally -- as a criminal offense. The measure would impose a minimum sentence of four years imprisonment if the infringement is linked to a criminal organization or would pose serious health or safety risks for individuals. Such infringements also would carry fines between $126,000 and $378,000.
Commission Vice President Franco Frattini said the new proposal is designed to bring European Union national laws "more closely into alignment" and to improve the region's cooperation to combat piracy and counterfeiting. Frattini is responsible for justice, freedom and security matters.
Taiwan Removes Trade Barriers With China
The Taiwan Mainland Affairs Council last week announced that the island nation will remove restrictions on low-end semiconductor testing technology and packaging to China, according to news reports.
Joseph Wu, who heads the office that is responsible for relations with mainland China, said the changes are effective immediately. The goal is to enhance competitiveness of the Taiwanese semiconductor industry. But Taiwan still restricts the export of certain semiconductor silicon wafers and the technology used for making some semiconductor circuits.
In other news, a Chinese working group last week unveiled its 2006 action plan to protect intellectual property. The plan covers four key areas, including the copyright, patent, trademark, and import and export of protected goods. Eleven governmental bodies, including the ministries of Culture, Information Industry and Public Security, fall under the plan's reach.
The outline of the plan covers nine areas, including international communications, law enforcement and legislation. Under the plan, China will draft or revise its copyright, patent and trademark laws, and aims to solve common IP enforcement problems.
The government will issue and translate into English a guide to its patent review system and will solicit public comment on its third revision of patent law.
The plan also calls for "special crackdown operations" for IP protections, including region-specific enforcement of criminal activities "to deliver a deadline blow on infringers and pirates."
Under what is called "Operation Blue Sky," the government aims to bolster public awareness of IP rights at trade shows. The Ministry of Commerce, along with China's copyright, customs and state IP offices, will publish and distribute 100,000 pamphlets or compact discs on the importance of intellectual property protection. The authorities also will offer training on keeping infringing companies and products from participating in the shows.
The State Council will publish books, cartoons, brochures and videos to promote IP rights among government officials, state-owned enterprises and young people. The council also will promote IP protections through Web sites. Last week, the working group launched a site that aims to educate global readers about China's efforts to improve IP protections.
The comprehensive plan follows Chinese Vice Premier Wu Yi's April announcement that China would adopt more effective measures to protect intellectual property. Wu made the announcement at the conclusion of the 17th annual meeting of the Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade in Washington, D.C.
Intel Opposes WIPO Broadcasting Treaty
Intel last month called on the World Intellectual Property Organization to abandon its efforts to enact a broadcast treaty.
The proposed treaty would create intellectual property rights for broadcasting organizations, and it includes language that would grant broadcasters and cable firms the exclusive rights to simultaneous retransmission of content over computer networks.
Intel's position is based on the inability of treaty proponents to demonstrate that the "benefits of creating new, exclusive rights outweigh the burdens that these new rights impose," according to an April 10 statement. The burdens cited by Intel include the extension of broadcasters' rights to control the use of "content within the home," which are "non-infringing under copyright law."
Under the current draft, the treaty would let broadcasters license content to makers of digital video recorders such as TiVo. Intel argues that the treaty would "time shifting" of broadcast content, which lets consumers watch shows at times of their choosing.
Intel also opposes the treaty's technical protection measure, arguing that it would "limit design freedom." Intel further said the treaty would create a liability risk to device makers, Internet service providers and software developers, and would reduce incentives for content creators.
The treaty, which aims to extent IP rights to broadcasters in an effort to prevent the theft of signals protected under U.S. law, also includes a U.S. proposal to cover webcasts in order to enforce the principle of "technology neutrality."
Other opponents of the treaty, including some in the Internet and telecommunications industries, have argued that it would impose more Web rules on top of copyright law.
Intel suggested that WIPO consider a "dramatically narrowed" treaty focused specifically on signal theft.
Research Network Connects Europe, China
The European Commission on Friday announced that researchers and students across Europe and China will connect via a new high-speed, Sino-European education and research network called ORIENT, or Oriental Research Infrastructure to European NeTworks.
The research project will include grid computing, radio astronomy and sustainable development. Users will share digital libraries, e-learning and telemedicine applications, which will benefit the general public and foster greater collaboration within research communities, according to Information Society Commissioner Viviane Reding.
"ORIENT enables truly international research cooperation by making geographic location almost irrelevant," Reding said.
The network will connect Europe to China via an overland route through Siberia at speeds up to 2.5 billion bits per second when it goes live later this year, according to the commission. The project, which began in March, is slated to run through 2009.
NEW FEATURE
-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-
