From Russia With Love – Why Russians Pirate - Part #1
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Let me first start by saying that I want to thank both Kyle and his wife Svetlana for taking the time to not only send me photos of Russian pirated software, sold openly in Moscow, but for also providing me with some thought provoking written commentary.
Kyle, a Midwesterner from the USA, admits to having used pirated software in the past but states that he eventually ended up buying the software and is currently using legal copies of Microsoft Windows XP Home and Word. He further describes himself as an expert with computers who has done some of his own programming. In a previous email he had told me he had decided to live in Russia for his wife, a computer programmer, working for the banking industry who loves her homeland. Nice.
Another World
Kyle explains that though he still doesn’t condone piracy and believes in respecting the rights of those involved in writing software, he also understands that there are different viewpoints on each side of the ocean. He has come to respect the Russian people and explains that they look at the issue differently than we do. He then states:
“People in the USA spend 100s of dollars on lottery tickets. If they had a 100 dollars here they would give it to the little old lady trying to sell homemade sauerkraut to get enough rubles to buy food for her little dog.” Though Kyle continues to buy his software at USA prices, the Russians view him as “just a rich American,” and laughingly say “He can afford it!”
Kyle explains that he wishes to provide insight about life in Russia and to share their view on illegal software. By doing this he is hoping that people will use this knowledge “to gain more insight into what makes the world go around.”
Photos
So how do the Russians sell their copied software? Nope. It’s not late at night, in a dark alley, where strangers meet. It’s in a mall with shops featuring all of the latest titles.
These are some of the photographs that Kyle has sent to me with more to follow:
Entrance to the software market
3 Comments
Kyle Keeton
March 20th, 2007
at 7:04am
Nice
Tim Hodkinson
March 20th, 2007
at 7:10am
Although I agree with your view that violating copyright is wrong and people shouldn’t do it because it’s no different than stealing any other kind of thing, I can’t help but feel that you’ve raised a point about cultural attitudes that explains much of the current controversy over piracy.
In some cultures, the concept of “copyright”, owning the right to copy, which in turn includes the exclusive right to sell the copies of something –is a foreign idea. Although I’m not sure it’s a foreign idea amongst Russians, ripping off Western patents and copyrighted materials has a long tradition in Russia from the Communist days. It’s understandable that people growing up in such a confusing legal environment don’t have the clear, crisp view of piracy that us Westerners do.
In China, I’m sure many view copyrights, especially ones held by rich US companies as something ridiculous.
When you consider cultural products; movies, music, then the “ownership” of their copies is even more vague in the minds of many non-western peoples (even some westerners too…) and appears to be little more than the imposition of foreign attitudes and laws to which local governments give lip service to in order to make foreign trade deals.
Murder is wrong in every society, but “copyright” violation is something else. I think the West needs to have a little patience with countries where copyright is either a totally foreign concept, or is applied differently.
Ron Schenone
March 20th, 2007
at 8:10am
Hi Kyle,
Part #2 tomorrow.
Tim,
I agree. I think patience is needed. But I also think that a different price schedule is also in order. In part s #2 -#3 will covers this more in depth.
As always your comments are great. Thanks, Ron