Siliguri, May 13: North Bengal and Sikkim are ready to fight software piracy.
At least that seems to be the aim of the North Bengal IT Forum. The members of the organisation, which includes computer retailers and owners of computer training institutes, claim that the purpose of the forum is to build awareness among buyers and discourage the use of pirated versions of operating systems in desktops and laptops.
Comparing the software piracy with that prevalent in the entertainment industry, a local retailer said: “While illegally copied discs of films and music are sold in the market at cheaper rates, in the computer world, a single compact disc is used more than once, that is, in a number of PCs. Since these pirated versions usually come for free along with the hardware, customers are keen on it. Sellers too don’t have to shell out much. They can buy one disc and make copies of it.”
The formation of the forum, sources said, follows a raid conducted by the anti-piracy bureau of a software manufacturing company in March. It is learnt that at least six computer vendors were fined around Rs 1.5 lakh each for using pirated software.
Debajyoti Gupta, secretary of the forum, said the 60 members of the organisation have “vouched to sell machines, be it a desktop or laptop, with original software only”.
At present, the annual turnover of the IT market in the region is around Rs 100 crore (see chart). Of this, only 10 per cent buy original software. The others insist on getting it free.
“Most of them, knowingly or unknowingly, ask for free software and are not ready to spent money on originals,” claimed Gagan Joshi, an NBIF member. “It is time we intervened and dissuaded them from such practices.”
The piracy racket has hit hard the software companies and the government, which is losing out on revenue.
“For the government, it is loss of revenue in the form of VAT and sales tax as these are accrued at every point of sale,” said Sabyasachi Sarkar, a vendor of Siliguri.
Along with intervention in shops, the forum also plans to organise events like rallies, camps and distribute leaflets across the region, advocating the use of licensed software. “We can deter the sellers but simultaneously a minimum awareness has to be developed at the customers’ end too. We are positive that such community-based efforts would help in addressing the problem,” Sarkar added.
At least that seems to be the aim of the North Bengal IT Forum. The members of the organisation, which includes computer retailers and owners of computer training institutes, claim that the purpose of the forum is to build awareness among buyers and discourage the use of pirated versions of operating systems in desktops and laptops.
Comparing the software piracy with that prevalent in the entertainment industry, a local retailer said: “While illegally copied discs of films and music are sold in the market at cheaper rates, in the computer world, a single compact disc is used more than once, that is, in a number of PCs. Since these pirated versions usually come for free along with the hardware, customers are keen on it. Sellers too don’t have to shell out much. They can buy one disc and make copies of it.”
The formation of the forum, sources said, follows a raid conducted by the anti-piracy bureau of a software manufacturing company in March. It is learnt that at least six computer vendors were fined around Rs 1.5 lakh each for using pirated software.
Debajyoti Gupta, secretary of the forum, said the 60 members of the organisation have “vouched to sell machines, be it a desktop or laptop, with original software only”.
At present, the annual turnover of the IT market in the region is around Rs 100 crore (see chart). Of this, only 10 per cent buy original software. The others insist on getting it free.
“Most of them, knowingly or unknowingly, ask for free software and are not ready to spent money on originals,” claimed Gagan Joshi, an NBIF member. “It is time we intervened and dissuaded them from such practices.”
The piracy racket has hit hard the software companies and the government, which is losing out on revenue.
“For the government, it is loss of revenue in the form of VAT and sales tax as these are accrued at every point of sale,” said Sabyasachi Sarkar, a vendor of Siliguri.
Along with intervention in shops, the forum also plans to organise events like rallies, camps and distribute leaflets across the region, advocating the use of licensed software. “We can deter the sellers but simultaneously a minimum awareness has to be developed at the customers’ end too. We are positive that such community-based efforts would help in addressing the problem,” Sarkar added.
