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The Business Software Alliance is working closely with the Malaysian authorities to weed out illegal software usage by companies.
COMBATING software piracy in Malaysia is a humongous task for a body like
the Business Software Alliance (BSA), especially when studies reveal that
some 70% of companies in Malaysia are still using pirated software despite
the stiff anti-piracy laws.
BSA, an international body with representatives in over 60 countries,
says its own study found that the Malaysian IT industry suffered RM360
million in revenue loss in 2001 due to software piracy.
To prevent the problem from getting out of hand, the BSA and the
Malaysian Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs have joined
forces.
For a start, the BSA hosted its first training workshop for the
ministry's enforcement officers recently. Twenty-two selected personnel
from Sarawak, Penang, Selangor, Pahang and Kuala Lumpur attended the
three-day event held in Lumut.
`The workshop was aimed at sharpening the skills of these officers so
that they don't lose their cases in court,' says an official linked to the
event. A highlight of training is the holding of a moot court, where the
ministry's officers are expected to prosecute and win cases.
In this, the officers have to face highly experienced opponents,
including senior officers from the Attorney-General's Chambers, who act as
defence counsels for the `infringing companies'.
The activity is similar to the moot courts conducted...