Since April 2001, anyone who knowingly uses pirated software in business commits a criminal offence under Hong Kong’s Copyright Ordinance. The maximum penalty is imprisonment of four years and a fine of $50,000 for each infringing copy. At present, Customs is investigating about 60 cases involving the use of pirated software.
After the implementation of the new legislation, Customs and the BSA claim that piracy has dropped.
Rewards under the new scheme will be paid out according to the following three stages:
Customs is appealing to all businesses to use legitimate software as well as to implement proper software asset management measures in order to comply with the law.