Stealing Corrupts

Ten years ago, the law “On Copyrights and Related Rights” was passed in Russia.

, the deputy director of government affairs for the Coalition for Intellectual Property Rights (CIPR), told us how authors are currently rated in the country.

Q: What has changed over these ten years? Have Russians learned to respect intellectual labor?

A: The law adopted on July 9, 1993 was very progressive at that time. It expanded authors’ rights and moreover, for the first time in our history, protected related rights: those of performers, sound recording producers and broadcasting organizations. We may say that this law restored the tradition of protecting copyrights from tsarist Russia. In 1911 a very good copyright law was passed, which even exceeded the then international requirements in some aspects. After the revolution, however, it was canceled, and for 70 years copyrights were poorly protected in our country. In Soviet days we became accustomed to thinking everything was common property. Today that yields results.

Authors themselves shut their eyes to their rights. Very frequently, they do not enter into agreements and merely transfer their rights orally to their acquaintances. Then mutual offenses and quarrels begin. One author recently called me. His work was released on a disc without his consent. He asked me to find out the name of the offender. When we found out that it was his acquaintance, the author chose to forget about the incident. It turns out that authors are shy to claim their rights.

In addition, we do not have sufficient law enforcement practice. Law enforcement agencies and judges don’t try to understand the nature of the violations of copyrights and related rights.

Q: How can we improve the situation?

A: Legislation on the enforcement of copyrights and related rights should be changed as new technology appears. Technologies are developing, copying opportunities are changing and the legislation should react to it. For the past ten years, progress has advanced considerably. In particular, DVDs and the Internet have appeared. International legislation has reacted to these changes immediately. In 1996 the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) passed so-called “Internet agreements” to regulate this sector. In 2000 amendments to the law “On Copyrights and Related Rights” began to be developed. In September 2002 the State Duma passed this law on its first reading. The amendments can be conditionally divided into several blocks. First, the draft law strengthened the enforcement of authors’ rights. The definition of a part of a work was made more accurate; the rights of performance directors were expanded; authors’ rights to translations and their rights to royalties were made more exact, and so forth. Serious changes were made to bring Russian legislation into accordance with “Internet agreements.”

Q: If the law is so progressive, why are pirated goods in demand in Russia?

A: The material factor plays an important role. Licensed discs and programs are too expensive. Given that at least several programs are required for a computer to operate, it turns out that software costs more than hardware.

This past March CIPR, in coordination with the Consumer Union of Russia and KonfOP, conducted a survey about consumer attitudes toward counterfeit products. The results spoke for themselves. Three out of four Moscow shoppers had purchased counterfeit products. More than 50 percent of the respondents said that they bought counterfeits because the prices for originals were too high. At the same time, 77 percent of consumers stated that they would never buy legitimate discs as long as counterfeit versions were available at low prices.

Moreover, the improvement of copying technology serves the purpose of pirates. Pirated copies are increasingly obtaining a higher quality. Nowadays, they are practically identical to the licensed ones.

Q: So it is impossible to fight counterfeiters?

A: That is not true. We need and can fight. Over the past year, a breakthrough has occurred in people’s minds. I think that currently, our country’s leaders are beginning to understand that disregarding intellectual property is very dangerous. It corrupts. People are getting accustomed to stealing and that should be fought.

Pirates can be won only by joint efforts. CIPR initiated the establishment of an intellectual property working group, which includes representatives of the Russian Anti-Piracy Organization (RAPO), the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), as well as state authorities, other associations of rights holders and consumer unions. We intend to conduct a number of workshops for the police and judges on anti-counterfeiting. Many cases cannot be completed because of flawed incriminations. But law enforcement agencies are gradually beginning to respect intellectual property.

At the same time, we understand that persuasion alone is not enough to achieve results. Traditions are important and we don’t have those for the time being. However, the process should come from both sides. Of course, consumers should be more honest, but producers should meet them halfway.