Comments on: Russia: Limonov and Copyright http://globalvoicesonline.org/2006/06/02/russia-limonov-and-copyright/ The world is talking. Are you listening? Tue, 14 Feb 2012 23:04:52 -0500 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Global Voices Online » Blog Archive » Russia: Roma Wedding and Christmas http://globalvoicesonline.org/2006/06/02/russia-limonov-and-copyright/comment-page-1/#comment-646837 Global Voices Online » Blog Archive » Russia: Roma Wedding and Christmas Sat, 27 Jan 2007 00:16:00 +0000 http://www.globalvoicesonline.org/?p=11263#comment-646837 [...] - Tanya Kotova is a student of the award-winning Russian photographer Sergei Maximishin (LJ user remetalk), who was mentioned in a Global Voices translation in June 2006 - here. [...] [...] – Tanya Kotova is a student of the award-winning Russian photographer Sergei Maximishin (LJ user remetalk), who was mentioned in a Global Voices translation in June 2006 – here. [...]

]]> By: G. Stolyarov II http://globalvoicesonline.org/2006/06/02/russia-limonov-and-copyright/comment-page-1/#comment-99784 G. Stolyarov II Tue, 06 Jun 2006 16:56:10 +0000 http://www.globalvoicesonline.org/?p=11263#comment-99784 Greetings. Pirated software is ubiquitous in Russia and in other countries of the former Soviet Union. Whenever I returned to Minsk for a visit, I was not able to avoid seeing a variety of peddlers on the streets or in subway stations selling obviously pirated disks—without any fear of censure or persecution. There is a reason behind this, of course. Most people in Russia and Belarus simply cannot afford the highly-priced legal versions of the software. How would they be able to purchase a computer game for $50 or an art program for $700 if their monthly wages are about $100? So the pirates step in to supply them with a commodity that they desire at prices they can afford; there are low entry barriers to this market and little oversight to prevent this from happening. Furthermore, stringent legal crackdowns on this activity will probably cost more money than is currently lost by the programs’ creators due to the piracy. My intention here was not to justify the widespread piracy; it was to explain why it occurs. I am G. Stolyarov II http://www.panasianbiz.com Greetings.

Pirated software is ubiquitous in Russia and in other countries of the former Soviet Union. Whenever I returned to Minsk for a visit, I was not able to avoid seeing a variety of peddlers on the streets or in subway stations selling obviously pirated disks—without any fear of censure or persecution.

There is a reason behind this, of course. Most people in Russia and Belarus simply cannot afford the highly-priced legal versions of the software. How would they be able to purchase a computer game for $50 or an art program for $700 if their monthly wages are about $100? So the pirates step in to supply them with a commodity that they desire at prices they can afford; there are low entry barriers to this market and little oversight to prevent this from happening. Furthermore, stringent legal crackdowns on this activity will probably cost more money than is currently lost by the programs’ creators due to the piracy.

My intention here was not to justify the widespread piracy; it was to explain why it occurs.

I am
G. Stolyarov II
http://www.panasianbiz.com

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