STOP PIRACY

As per a Nasscom survey, during the previous year, piracy increased by 2% from 61%, and losses due to software piracy were close to Rs. 1,100 crore. Every year, piracy accounts for billions of dollars worth of revenue losses for software vendors like Microsoft and Adobe. No matter who the perpetrators of piracy are, it is causing the cash reserves of software vendors to dwindle by the day.
Despite possessing the purchasing power, consumers in India lack the maturity to buy software from legal sources. This is mainly because Indians have seen a sudden flood of software in the country but have no clue about its origin. In developed nations, companies make the extra effort of creating awareness about the development stages and resources of software products. In return, consumers are more than willing to pay for the value of the product.
Also, the channels for facilitating the purchase of software are not conductive to legal purchase. For example, if an end user is able to buy a software worth a mere couple of dollars like Win Zip as easily as a piece of hardware, the end user is more likely to develop such habit of buying. What actually happens is that because it is available almost for free ( as part of the package when buying the hardware), the software is taken for granted. Soon, using pirated versions of software becomes a habit.

People in India don't like to pay for the software because it is available with the hardware they purchase. All that we can do is mail legal notices and educate both the end users and retailers against using them.

For Nasscom, bringing down the level of piracy has been a daunting, almost unachievable task, in the last few years. According to their estimates, more than seven in ten businesses, software applications are pirated, a common scene in developing nations.

Thus the concept of buying software has never existed in Indian consumer. People still want the software free or at almost minimal cost.

Another factor detrimental to purchase of genuine software is the high initial cost of software and the fact that newer versions keep appearing every now and then. But price should not be an issue if one looks at the purchase as a long-term investment. Besides, up-gradation requires a much smaller amount to be shelled out. Price becomes an issue only when you consider the usage of the product. According to Adobe, people pay next to nothing for a pirated version of Adobe software and make huge returns especially in the print and advertising media. For Adobe, a large pool of revenues comes from people wanting to continually upgrade.

Piracy is the biggest competition of software companies in India. They support people, and give them valid reasons for buying legalized copies of products. As far as the prices are concerned, they also give people choices on their purchases like individual boxes or elements or a collection, based on their requirements.

At Adobe the rate of piracy is as high as 90%, which means for every ten users of Adobe products, nine use pirated versions.
Levels of piracy will remain where they are or decline if at all, only slightly, for the next few years. But in the initial stages, consumers in India should acquire the habit of purchasing software. Given that price is a major determinant, companies should be able to provide users with more choices, and buyers in turn should be willing to make the purchase.

STOP PIRACY!!!