The corporate fight against piracy went international Friday as business executives from 14 countries formed an association to "take the fight against intellectual property theft to a new level."
The 70 businessmen were called together by the International Chamber of Commerce, forming Business Action to Stop Counterfeiting and Piracy (BASCAP). The launch of the organization was announced Friday morning in Paris.
"There is currently no one co-ordinating the fight across industries and across national borders," ICC chairman and Vivendi Universal CEO Jean-René Fourtou told the meeting.
Mr. Fourtou said the problem is "spiralling out of control," and to counteract the trend the ICC he would form a group of up to 20 CEOs to lead the initiative.
Meanwhile, in London, Microsoft Corp. announced that owners of pirated copies of the Windows XP operating system could trade them in for the real thing.
Microsoft said the deal, open only to residents of Britain, would help it fight the proliferation of "high-quality counterfeit versions" of its software.
The company said users unsure of the legitimacy of their Windows XP software could submit it to Microsoft for analysis, along with sales receipts and other documentation. Software found to be counterfeit would be replaced.
Microsoft said the project would help it gather intelligence on counterfeiting and "work with the authorities to act decisively against illegal traders."
The offer is open until Dec. 31 and applies to pre-installed versions of Windows XP bought before Nov. 1. It is limited to five submissions per person.
Microsoft said no decision had been made on whether to extend the exchange scheme to Canada, the United States or other territories.
The ICC estimates that counterfeiting goods and intellectual property piracy costs industry $600-billion (U.S.) a year.
"Contrary to popular belief, the problems of counterfeiting and piracy are not simply limited to handbags and CDs," Mr. Fourtou said. "This is a problem that affects all industry sectors, in all corners of the world."
Mr. Fourtou cited figures from the World Health Organization, which showed that up to 10 per cent of all the world's pharmaceuticals are fake. He also expressed concern about counterfeit car parts and reconditioned aircraft components passed off as new with fake certificates of authentication.
"Easy profits from piracy and counterfeiting have recently been equated to the global trade in illegal drugs, which has led the FBI to state that counterfeiting and piracy will become the crime of the 21st century," he said.
He added that organized crime and terrorists were increasingly turning to counterfeiting and piracy to fund their activities.
BASCAP would complement already existing business initiatives to fight counterfeiting and piracy, ICC Secretary General Maria Livanos Cattaui said.
She said BASCAP will concentrate its efforts on mobilizing business, educating consumers and working with governments on the enforcement of intellectual property legislation.
The ICC's Task Force on the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights, which is co-chaired by Universal Music and Microsoft, is made up of members of more than 25 countries including the Czech Republic, Brazil, India, Pakistan, Russia, Israel, Japan, France, Germany, England and the United States.
With files from Associated Press
