AMIPCI, BSA to sign anti-piracy agreement

Mexico's internet association AMIPCI and the Business Software Alliance (BSA) were due to sign on Wednesday an agreement to work together to fight piracy, Infochannel reported. The agreement follows on the heels of a report published last week by consultants IDC showing that pirated software accounted for 65% of the total used in the country in 2004, up three percentage points over 2003. The partnership will involve planning educational campaigns to create public awareness about intellectual property rights, illegality and other issues related to fighting piracy. "We believe it is very important to create awareness through the different media to encourage the increasing use of original software. AMIPCI is committed to legality, ethics and is joining forces to make Mexico a country that rejects piracy," AMIPCI president Alfredo Reyes Krafft said. Last week's study showed that piracy levels in Mexico were marginally lower than the 66% average for the region. Piracy in 2004 meant losses of US$1.55bn for the legitimate software industry. The global average of pirated software was 35%, down one percentage point from 2003. However, losses from global piracy rose to US$33bn from US$29bn the previous year. The Business Software Alliance is a global organization dedicated to promoting security and legality in the digital world and presents a voice for the commercial software industry and its hardware partners.