90 lines
5.1 KiB
Plaintext
90 lines
5.1 KiB
Plaintext
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Software Piracy - NZListener 13-8-90
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Author: Chris Barton
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NZ Listener, August 13 1990.
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The copy command for IBM PCs and compatibles is seductively simple.
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You type: copy *.* a: You say: copy space star-dot-star space ay colon.
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People think the gibberish you're muttering indicates brain damage from too
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much exposure to low-level radiation from your computer screen. Wrong. Your
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computerspeak command to your PC simply translates to: copy a whole bunch of
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files onto the magnetic disk I've just placed in the disk drive named "a".
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This language is based on the principle of "your wish is my command", but get
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the command right. Its minimalist approach to communication demands precision
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and has no time for nuance, ambiguity or shades of meaning. Spell incorrectly
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or get a colon or a space out of place and the PC will come back with a curt
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error message like "Bad command or file name" and then sit steadfastly silent,
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oblivious to your curses, until you try again.
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The computer is also amoral. It's language has no words to warn you about the
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consequences of your actions. For example, it doesn't think of telling you that
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when you use the commands like copy *.* or diskcopy a: b: (diskcopy space ay
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colon space bee colon) that you could be committing theft. Or that, depending on
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whether they prosecute you under the Crimes Act or the Copyright Act, you could
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be facing imprisonment for up to 10 years, fines or a civil action for
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substantial damages. The PC is indifferent to the fact that in Australia fines
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up to $250,000 have been imposed.
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No one has been successfully prosecuted for illegally copying software in New
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Zealand yet. But if we believe what the software vendors tell us, the country
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is riddled with software thieves. They say up to 50 percent of all business
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software products such as wordprocessors and spreadsheets in use in New Zealand
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are illegal or "pirated" copies. And the recently formed New Zealand Business
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Software Association (NZBSA) - an alliance of software vendors - claims in the
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coming year "an estimated $80 million revenue will be forfeited by the New
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Zealand information industry alone as a result of widespread unauthorised
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copying and related illegal practices".
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So, if software piracy is rampant, why hasn't anyone been prosecuted? Well, it
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could be because software copyright has never been fully tested in New Zealand
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courts, although a judgment by Justice Smellie in favour of IBM in a copyright
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case against Computer Imports in March 1989 went some way towards setting a
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precedent. The problem is the New Zealand Copyright Act came into existence in
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1962 when the computer industry was still in its infancy and contains no
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explicit references to computer software. This means any case will have to argue
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whether or not software constitutes a "literary work" as defined in the act and
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whether, in its machine-coded form, it is a "translation" or "adaptation" of
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the literary work. New Zealand legal minds are no doubt itching to sort this
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out.
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There are also cases of copying to other magnetic media such as video or audio
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cassette tape where copyright has been infringed and where prosecutions have
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been successful. But perhaps the real reason for little action being taken is
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that the copying of software in endemic and so easy to do.
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Software is an expensive item in any computer purchase - around $1000 each for
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well-known brands of database, wordprocessor or spreadsheet - and the ease with
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which you can copy these on to blank disks costing around $5 is very tempting,
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even if you don't get the software manual and the benefit of software upgrades.
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Some argue software vendors should look to a technological solution like the
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special chip included in the new digital audio tape (DAT) recorders being sold
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in the US which prevent making tape copies from compact disc players.
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But it's really a case of trying to shut the stable door after the horse has
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bolted. Although copy protection techniques have been used in some software,
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they've never been very successful and tend to cause problems in everyday use.
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And the vast quantity of existing pirated software makes the task even more
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difficult. Which is why the NZBSA is adopting an educate rather than prosecute
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approach. The main targets are educational institutions and large businesses
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where software is "shared" among the students or employees. And from time to
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time these sorts of institutions undergo a major purge of pirated software as
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was seen recently at Auckland Technical Institute.
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The NZBSA is also about to publish its "Software Compliance Manual for Decision
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Makers" which gives guidelines on the whole issue of copying software and its
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prevention.
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While no one expects the NZBSA to start breaking down doors and seizing personal
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computers, it's clear a prosecution test case would show they mean business. In
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the meantime expect to see warning notices appear around your place of work. The
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NZBSA example reads:
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WARNING
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Making unauthorised copies of software is a criminal act and can
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expose you to instant dismissal, substantial fines, claims for
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civil damages and even a jail term. Don't jeopardise your career.
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Use only original software.
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