Multa Fidrus, The Jakarta Post, Banten
Commercial users of pirated computer software will soon face sterner measures from the Banten police.
"We are warning all private companies to replace illegal software with legal versions," police chief Sr. Comr. Rumiah Kartorejo told a press conference Tuesday.
Police have allotted a two-month window for companies to replace pirated software before raids are conducted.
"It's difficult to stop the distribution of pirated software, but the enforcement of intellectual property rights can help reduce demand," Rumiah added.
Representatives of the Jakarta police held a workshop Tuesday to familiarize members of the province's business community with the Intellectual Property Rights Law, later signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Business Software Alliance (BSA) at police headquarters.
According to the MoU, BSA will begin providing the police with technical assistance and data to help support investigations.
BSA representative Donny A. Sheyoputera said the alliance fully supported police efforts to enforce the law and to protect intellectual property rights.
"To assist industrial firms and end-users ... we are offering a computer software certification program or Piagam HKI, which is supported by the National Police," he added.
By joining the program, companies will receive proof of their software's legality, as well as support and recognition from the National Police, in addition to seeing improvements in work performance, Donny said.
BSA has recorded several cases of pirated software use -- either by end-users or commercial retailers -- discovered by the police, with only a few suspects prosecuted in criminal court, he added.
Over the past six months, the police in Jakarta, Tangerang, Batam and Yogyakarta have been enforcing regulations against the use of pirated software more vigorously.
According to BSA's annual reports, as well as a survey conducted by the International Data Center, 87 percent of computer software installed in Indonesia in 2005 was illegal.
Enforcement efforts managed to lower that figure to 85 percent in 2006 and 84 percent in 2007.
The use of pirated software in Indonesia has so far cost the state Rp 3.8 trillion (US$411 million) in losses, Donny said.
"If Indonesia manages to reduce the use of pirated software by 10 percent in the next four years, the absorption of skilled workers into the information technology sector will soar," he said, adding the growth of the software industry will increase state income from taxes, inviting more foreign investment.
In its attempt to improve enforcement against illegal software, BSA, in cooperation with the US Commercial Service, held a workshop for prosecutors and police, training 120 officers on the detection and prevention of pirated software use.
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