[Fsf-india] Fw: Solaris digest, Vol 1 #4 - 5 msgs

Sun, 17 Mar 2002 11:52:19 +0530

> Message: 1
> From: "Michael Gurstein" <mgurst@vcn.bc.ca>
> To: "Solaris@Sarai. Net" <solaris@sarai.net>
> Cc: <a_yuni@iname.com>
> Date: Fri, 15 Mar 2002 09:06:40 -0500
> Subject: [solaris]FW: [Datacom] The Microsoft case
>
>
> Apart from the obvious anti-Microsoft position, one wonders what an
> appropriate response might be  here?
>
> Is it through the development of Linux as an alternative, but this would
> probably require the development of some sort of State supported
> infrastructure for training, development and delivery/  Is it through
some
> form of compliance, but that would result as is noted below, in massive
> disruption to the operation of commercial and public organizations.  Is
it
> through State to Microsoft negotiations and to what desired
end--reduction
> in the cost price of software, a moratorium on enforcement (delaying the
> problems).  Is it through benign neglect which appears to be the current
> (and most likely to continue) default, but that may not be tenable for
very
> long especially if the USG begins to get directly involved in pushing for
> enforcement (and so long as leakage from "piracy" in countries such as
> Indonesia into Developed Country markets stays within the boundaries of
> "friends and families").
>
> Are there other options?
>
> Mike Gurstein
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Newsmaster [mailto:a_yuni@iname.com]
> Sent: September 27, 2001 8:44 PM
> To: Datacom
> Subject: [Datacom] The Microsoft case
>
>
> The Microsoft case
>
> Although somewhat obscured by the specter of an anti-terrorist war that
> is hanging over the world in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attack
> in the United States, it is nevertheless no exaggeration to say that the
> verdict that was passed by the West Jakarta District Court last Monday
> constitutes a milestone for jurisprudence that could have serious
> implications for Indonesia.
>
> Much has been said and written in recent years about the need to respect
> and protect what is known in the legal vernacular as intellectual
> property rights, or copyright. Raids have been held repeatedly by the
> authorities in Jakarta and other big cities to confiscate pirated copies
> of music and video CDs, books and computer software. The Indonesian
> government has even put its signature on the international convention
> protecting intellectual rights. All to little avail, it seems.
>
> Never before, however, has an Indonesian court of justice awarded an
> international company with victory in a case of copyright piracy. Thus
> the West Jakarta District Court's decision on Monday to order an
> Indonesian company to pay the American software giant Microsoft Corp. a
> sum total of US$4.4 million for installing Microsoft software in
> computers it sold to consumers without license -- apart from placing a
> full-page apology in the daily newspapers Kompas and Bisnis Indonesia
> and in the Info Komputer magazine for seven consecutive days --
> constitutes a watershed ruling, not only because of the severity of the
> penalty, but also because of its potentially serious implications on
> practically all sectors of life in this country.
>
> It is no secret that practically all computer users in this country use
> pirated software, ranging from operating systems to anti-virus software
> and a host of other applications, all or almost all of them produced and
> released by well-known software companies in the United States. It only
> needs a casual stroll through one of the always-busy computer centers in
> any of the big cities of Indonesia to convince oneself of this fact.
>
> The reason for the popularity of pirated software among computer owners
> in this country is obvious. While licensed software can cost hundreds of
> dollars per copy and only used on one computer or computer network,
> pirated copies sell for as low as Rp 20,000 per copy, or the equivalent
> of only a little more than $2 per copy -- a steal, even considering that
> one may have to contend with a bug or two when running the program.
>
> Another reason why officially licensed software is not popular is the
> difficulty, for most Indonesians at least, of finding the outlets that
> sell them. Quite a lot of customers would in fact have little objection
> to paying a few hundred dollars for some of the more affordable programs
> -- such as the professional versions of some Internet download programs
> -- if only they knew how or where to obtain them.
>
> In any case, Microsoft's victory in this first stage of the court battle
> -- an appeal by the loser, PT Kusumo Megah Jaya Sakti, to a higher court
> is expected -- is a good reminder for Indonesians of the importance of
> respect for intellectual property rights. Surely the time has come for
> Indonesians to pay heed to this particular issue. Besides computer
> software, music CDs, films and books are among the industries that
> suffer heavily from piracy.
>
> On the other hand, however, we hope big and powerful industries such as
> Microsoft will also keep in mind that the current price they slap on
> their software is out of the reach of by far the majority of
> Indonesians. In the meantime, companies have to stay in business, the
> bureaucracy has to continue to run and humanitarian establishments such
> as hospitals must continue to serve the public.
>
> It certainly would help if Microsoft and other giant enterprises like it
> could introduce special prices to make their products more affordable to
> people in the developing world. After all, in the longer run, those
> companies too, as well as the industrialized countries in general, would
> benefit from any progress attained in the developing world. It would be
> their contribution to the shaping of a better world.
>
> Message: 2
> Date: Fri, 15 Mar 2002 04:55:48 -0600
> From: tom abeles <tabeles@attglobal.net>
> Reply-To: tabeles@attglobal.net
> Organization: sagacity, inc
> To: Michael Gurstein <mgurst@vcn.bc.ca>
> CC: "Solaris@Sarai. Net" <solaris@sarai.net>, a_yuni@iname.com
> Subject: Re: [solaris]FW: [Datacom] The Microsoft case
>
> It is obvious that copyright laws for software need to be modified given
the
> half-life of the products. If Microsoft creates a new product, e.g. XP,
and it
> wants to sell it, then it needs to make a marketing case for the upgrade.
Then one
> has to ask what the value of older editions might be and will Microsoft
support
> these older systems. When the systems drop off Microsoft's radar, then
the value of
> the property to Microsoft will be close to zero and then they should be
available
> at some reasonable price above "free".
>
> Linux is a a potential time bomb. Open source software is good today
because there
> is Microsoft and the rest of the world. Should Linux have a broad base,
its open
> source nature leaves it vulnerable to a less kind and friendly public
whose aims
> may be met by bringing down a number of critical systems that are
vulnerable
> because of the open source nature of the software.
>
> thoughts?
>
> tom abeles
>
>
> --__--__--
>
> Message: 3
> Date: Fri, 15 Mar 2002 04:55:48 -0600
> From: tom abeles <tabeles@attglobal.net>
> Reply-To: tabeles@attglobal.net
> Organization: sagacity, inc
> To: Michael Gurstein <mgurst@vcn.bc.ca>
> CC: "Solaris@Sarai. Net" <solaris@sarai.net>, a_yuni@iname.com
> Subject: Re: [solaris]FW: [Datacom] The Microsoft case
>
> It is obvious that copyright laws for software need to be modified given
the
> half-life of the products. If Microsoft creates a new product, e.g. XP,
and it
> wants to sell it, then it needs to make a marketing case for the upgrade.
Then one
> has to ask what the value of older editions might be and will Microsoft
support
> these older systems. When the systems drop off Microsoft's radar, then
the value of
> the property to Microsoft will be close to zero and then they should be
available
> at some reasonable price above "free".
>
> Linux is a a potential time bomb. Open source software is good today
because there
> is Microsoft and the rest of the world. Should Linux have a broad base,
its open
> source nature leaves it vulnerable to a less kind and friendly public
whose aims
> may be met by bringing down a number of critical systems that are
vulnerable
> because of the open source nature of the software.
>
> thoughts?
>
> tom abeles
>
>

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