First software piracy court case nears

The defendant Gold Long John is a contractor of famous brands like Adidas and Nike

The plaintiffs in the case include Microsoft and Vietnamese software producer Lac Viet, who have sued Dong Nai province-based Gold Long John, a Taiwanese producer of footwear and clothing for major brands like Adidas, Converse and Nike. Both plaintiffs are members of the global software alliance BSA.

“In many countries in the region, software piracy is not uncommon but this is the very first lawsuit. We hope the case, along with the implementation of the Penal Code in the near future, will add an effective channel to help achieve a set target of bringing the piracy rate in Vietnam down to 70 per cent by 2018,” Tarun Sawney, BSA’s senior director for anti-piracy in Asia-Pacific, told a press conference in Ho Chi Minh City last week.

“This company is a foreign-invested enterprise with 200 workers. It’s not a small company. I think it’s in a good position to use legal software but chose not to. This is an unfair playing field. Other companies pay for licensed software. Why doesn’t this company pay for licensed software like other companies?” he added.

In June 2013, Vietnamese inspectors and police raided the company in Nhon Trach 2 Industrial Park, and found unlicensed software from Lac Viet and Microsoft on 69 computers on the premises. The illegal software was valued at about VND1 billion, or $45,000.

Lac Viet and Microsoft representatives told the press that initially they did not want to sue the Taiwanese company, and instead expected to go through mediation. However, after a lack of good will on the part of the defendant over a three month-period, they decided to take the legal route.

Lac Viet CEO Ha Than said, “We finally filed a complaint against the company to the Dong Nai Province People’s Court and hope our legitimate interests will be protected by the law.”

He added that the fight against software piracy which started in 2004, had solely concentrated on administrative fines over the past nine years. “I think the case will tell foreign investors that law enforcement in software piracy is under way .” Than added the company would pursue the case

However, Rebecca Ho, a senior lawyer with Microsoft, said Microsoft had left the door open for Gold Long John if the company showed willingness to discuss the issue.

Sawney from BSA warned that global brand names may re-consider future orders for their manufacturing contractors in Vietnam if they are found using illegal software as anti-piracy was already a global issue. He added, “I believe foreign companies doing business in need to uphold Vietnamese laws. The use of illegal software by foreign firms hurts the attractiveness of Vietnam as an investment destination and is unfair to local businesses operating in the same industry.”

Vu Ngoc Hoan, acting chief of the Copyright Office of Vietnam, said the government was making great efforts in reducing the software piracy rate of 81 per cent in 2011 down to 70 per cent by 2018, hoping to hit the regional average of 60 per cent by 2023. “There are lots of things to do and one of the key things is to continue to raise public and corporate awareness over the use of legal software,” he said.

Hoan added his agency supported the case as administrative fines had not had much effect.