Traditionally, the Pakistani economy has been based in agriculture, so I was surprised to learn that Pakistan has made a leap into the new economy. Pakistan is now one of the top 10 sources of pirated recordings and movies. The quality of the material and the packaging is apparently as good as the original source, and (according to the International Federation for Phonographic Industries) “illegal replication facilities in Pakistan were doubling their copying capacity every 18 months“
Here’s how it all breaks down:
- Pakistan produces over 230 million priate CDs annually
- 25 million of those disks are for the local market, the rest go abroad to Dubai, Nepal and India and from there, all over the world.
- Pakistan exports at least 13 million disks monthly (back of the envelope calculations indicate this should be at least 17 million, so I don’t know why the BBC says 13 million)
- These disks sell for $1 in Pakistan (less for orders of more than 10) and $10 elsewhere.
- Profit margins on pirated CDs / DVDs are four to five times the cost
- The recording industry tells us that the annual cost to copyright holders is at least $2.7bn [Source: Pakistan – copyright piracy hub (BBC)]
This is a serious problem for the recording industry:
The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry has published a report claiming that 35% of all CDs sold around the world are illegal copies – that’s 1.1 billion pirate disks. …Clearly the biggest threat to the record industry today is not P2P networks but the more traditional CD copying seen in the the IFPI’s ten priority countries where anti-piracy offensives are most needed
. These aren’t just copies of Hollywood blockbusters, South Asian IP is ripped off as well. When a young man from Karachi bought EMI Pakistan (the largest music archive in the country, with exclusive rights to over 150,000 songs and other compilations) from EMI, he was forced out of business in two years. That latest Bollywood blockbuster that you picked up in mirchmasala alley in Edison may also be from a Pakistani production facility.
“Dutch police have uncovered more than 140,000 pirated CDs and DVDs of popular Indian films and music in a string of simultaneous raids in Rotterdam.”
From the American perspective, this is a great opportunity. Music and movies are going to be pirated anyway, but if Pakistanis can make more money on CDs than drugs or people smuggling, then perhaps the US can turn this into an opening in the war on drugs. Less heroin on the streets and 50 cent CDs for $0.50. What’s not to like about this scenario?
heh. Reminds me of when i was off on a biz trip in e. Asia and came across one of many street peddlers pitching DVD’s (all prices conveniently marked in US Dollars) – his warez included –
Apollo 13 = $1 Miss Congeniality = $1 Gladiator = $1 Titanic = $2
$2 for the Titanic? I asked the dude why – thinking perhaps there was a local demand bubble or some sort of inelastic supply for this, uh, landmark film. He shrugged and said –
“2 DVDs”
Well, there’s a certain logic there, I suppose….
Well, the other thing is that DVDs and CDs that are produced legally simply aren’t cost-effective for local consumers. There was a drive about a decade ago, to abolish illegal video rental stores, and set up legitimate distributors, but it was ridiculously expensive. In a country where a moderately well-off individual (relatively speaking) earns about $300/month, paying $20 for a single CD, or about the same for a single DVD just isn’t appealing, for some odd reason.
Do you remember Rani Mukherjee was invited to all the state dinner during hte recent Musharraf visit because she was the Begum Sahiba’s favorite female star?
OK begum Sahiba where have you been watching all these desi movies?
In London? Or in the US? No – just at home in Islamabad? How come ? aren’t Bollywood movies like illegal in your country?
I guess no one thought to ask her……..
This was the original impetus behind “region coded” DVD’s — to prevent 1st world pricing models from being imposed on 3rd world consumers…. Never really took off though.
Or, more likely, DVD encryption is a profit hedge to prevent developed nations from reimporting DVDs at lower prices.
It’s the same thing. The only way to sell (essentially) the same product at 2 different price points is to create some barrier between the markets. Remove the barrier and the only “white market” price point that survives is an average of the 2 which is too expensive for the developing market….
(unless, of course, you go Black market…)
My point being that it’s not done out of charity, the way you phrased it.
So screw the record & movie companies….corporate greed will always seek the highest prices…they have brought piracy on their own heads and they still don’t get the picture – drop your prices and piracy will become less of a problem. Piracy is a consumer revolution against the corporate machine….viva la Revolution!!! 🙂
Its true, its a revolution. Drop your price and piracy will automaticly reduced.
Why? If pirated disks are always cheaper and just as widely available, why would somebody choose to buy a legal copy?
I think, piracy is certainly a crime but it cannot be stopped so effeciently without reducing the prices of DVD’s and CD’s or other softwares or books. USA says that Pakistan causes a loss of 2.7 bn, but I don’t agree. If you are stopping piracy, providing origional softwares to the customers on usual high prices, customers and user will decrease instatly. People of third world are not finacially sound enough to buy origional material, they would rather leave and discard it for some other entertainment.