William

Here is another way to combat Windows piracy....

Give it away for free.


"xfile" <cou-cou@remove.nospam.com> wrote in message
news:OayyIAqEHHA.4464@TK2MSFTNGP06.phx.gbl...
> FYI
>
> And for subscribers (login required):
> http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1164...ml?mod=djemEMU
>
>
> -------------------
>
> BEIJING -- China is beginning to make some progress on containing the
> epidemic of piracy and counterfeiting that foreign businesses have long
> complained robs them of sales in a crucial market. But some of its trading
> partners, seeking faster action, are calling for a harsher approach.
>
> Foreign-company executives, surveys and government officials all note
> improvements. The biggest change has been at the top: Senior leaders
> including Premier Wen Jiabao now declare that improving the protection of
> intellectual property is a "strategic policy" for the nation. That is
> because they want Chinese companies to climb out of low-end manufacturing
> and develop their own technologies and brands -- which will need
> protecting. Software producers like Microsoft Corp. have seen some of the
> clearest early benefits.
>
> Enforcing such a shift on the ground isn't happening as quickly, however,
> and the scale of the problem is still enormous. Hollywood studios and
> makers of luxury goods continue to fret about the widespread availability
> of illegal knockoffs of their wares on Chinese streets.
>
> The mixed results have caused a split in the trade community on how to
> proceed, with some U.S. and European officials increasingly arguing a more
> combative approach is needed to ensure further action.
>
> The piracy issue is likely to be on the table next month when Treasury
> Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke visit
> Beijing for the first round of a new U.S.-China dialogue intended to
> address outstanding economic tensions. The talks are also expected to
> address U.S. calls for China to open its markets further to American
> financial-services companies, as well as U.S. demands that Beijing allow
> the yuan to rise against the dollar.
>
> Still, some companies are saying the direction of change is now clear
> enough to allow them to invest for the future in the confidence that
> improvements will continue. Pharmaceutical giants AstraZeneca PLC and
> Novartis AG this year each committed to spending $100 million on research
> and development in China. Drug companies depend on selling patented
> products, and both companies cited China's strengthening protection of
> such rights in support of their decision to invest.
>
> "The positive momentum leads us to believe that things can only get
> better," said Keith Feldman, general manager of the international
> home-entertainment unit of News Corp.'s Twentieth Century Fox studio. He
> said the improving enforcement of intellectual-property rights is one
> reason Fox decided to try to start selling DVDs in China, even though it
> must still compete with illegal copies that can sell for less than a
> dollar.
>
> "There's no question they have made progress," Secretary of Commerce
> Carlos Gutierrez said in an interview this month during a visit to
> Beijing.
>
> Surveys this year by the American Chamber of Commerce in China and the
> U.S.-China Business Council found that roughly a third of each of their
> members reported an improvement in enforcement of trademarks, patents and
> copyrights.
>
> Many of the changes started to happen after the government put together a
> high-level task force on the issue in early 2005. Headed by Vice Premier
> Wu Yi, the group in March produced an "action plan" committing the
> government to several changes in legislation and practice.
>
> One shift brought about by the plan has been a requirement that all new
> computers sold in China come with legitimate operating-system software
> already installed. Previously, most computers in China were sold as empty
> boxes, and retailers often added illicit copies of software like
> Microsoft's Windows and Office. Microsoft executives say they have seen a
> significant pickup in sales since the new rule went through early this
> year.
>
> China hasn't been able to make much progress in controlling the many
> thousands of producers of illicit goods located across the country,
> ranging from DVD factories hidden in chicken farms to car-parts plants
> that produce knockoffs on the night shift.
>
> Laws on the books prohibiting such activity are poorly enforced. Moreover,
> financial penalties aren't heavy, and few piracy or counterfeiting cases
> are criminally prosecuted, allowing many violators to stay in business
> after repeated crackdowns. That is why the top priority for foreign
> businesses has become tougher law enforcement and more criminal sanctions.
>
> U.S. and European officials are also feeling increased political pressure
> to do something about what critics call China's unfair trade practices.
> That is creating division among businesspeople and government officials on
> the best way to tackle one of the most significant trade issues they
> confront.
>
> Some want to continue an approach they credit for much of the recent
> progress: stressing to Chinese policy makers how piracy endangers China's
> own prosperity, rather than how much it hits the bottom lines of
> multinational companies. The more hawkish, however, feel negotiations have
> produced too much talk and not enough action and increasingly want to use
> international trade law to force more changes.
>
> "There is no division on the goals: tougher enforcement, revision of the
> criminal code and more criminal sanctions. But there is some division on
> tactics, on how we reach those goals," said Myron Brilliant, vice
> president for Asia at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
>
> A congressional commission in October called on the Bush administration to
> take a case against China's intellectual-property practices at the World
> Trade Organization -- an action considered the weapon of last resort in
> international trade disputes.
>
> U.S. trade officials say they have been preparing for a case but for the
> moment want to continue with negotiations.
>
> A WTO case -- in essence, a highly public and official statement that
> China is violating treaties it signed -- could cost the plaintiff a lot of
> goodwill in Beijing. Chinese Minister of Commerce Bo Xilai said this month
> that a WTO case by the U.S. would have a "very negative impact" on its
> relationship with China. China will make further improvements, he said,
> but the process will take time. Chinese officials have told visiting
> negotiators that a WTO dispute would weaken those within their government
> who are pushing for more action to protect on intellectual property.
>
> ---- Michael Phillips in Washington and Jason Dean and John W. Miller in
> Beijing contributed to this article
>
>