Software developers want stronger IP Law

MANILA, Philippines - An umbrella group of software developers said the next president should support measures that would strengthen the Intellectual Property Law, noting that piracy is causing revenue and job losses in the industry.

Bienvenido Marquez III, consultant of the Business Software Alliance (BSA), said the current law on intellectual property needs to be updated since it does not cover recent technological developments like the Internet.

“Right now, we have to update our copyright law because of the onset of the digital age. It is very easy to download. The current law (was enacted) in 1998. We do not have an updated law that would cover Internet downloading,” Marquez told The STAR in an interview.

“Hopefully, the next president will certify such bill as urgent in the next Congress if and when such bill is introduced,” he added.

Marquez said losses arising from software piracy alone reached $202 million in 2008, from $147 million in 2007.

“Many (workers in the industry) were laid off. It is a direct effect of the continued high piracy rate,” he said.

The BSA consultant said a bill that addresses copyright infringement in the Internet had been filed in previous Congresses but was bypassed.

“We should impose stiffer penalties against violators… For it to be real deterrent, the penalties should be increased,” Marquez added.

Under the law, copyright violators may be slapped with a jail term that lasts from one to three years and a fine ranging from P50,000 to P150,000 for the first offense; imprisonment of three years and one day to six years and a fine ranging from P150,000 to P500,000 for the second offense; and jail term of six years and one day to nine years and a fine ranging from P500,000 to P1.5 million for subsequent offenses.

Despite such penalties, the software piracy rate in the Philippines has remained high as it stood at 69 percent in 2008 based on a recent study by the International Data Corporation.