AS the Internet becomes the emerging provider of goods and economic benefits to Filipino consumers in health services, education, information and electronic commerce, it has also become a growing venue for a much bigger and larger arena for pirated software.

The Philippines has an estimated software piracy rate of 77 percent, resulting in annual losses of over P1.24 billion. The use of illegal software may become a factor that would stifle the development of its electronic commerce as well as the growth of its local software industry.

This was underscored by Business Software Alliance (BSA) as it reaches the 60th day of its 90-day grace period targeted at companies involved in software piracy. BSA is an organization of software developers worldwide which seeks to curb software piracy, educate computer users on software copyrights and advocates public policy that expands trade opportunities.

BSA started its 90-day grace campaign against illegal software Feb. 10 with BSA and the National Bureau of Investigation conducting its first-ever criminal raid against a corporate end-user resulting in the confiscation of 22 personal computers installed with unlicensed business applications software belonging to various BSA members.

Currently at a critical point of its campaign, BSA is assisting more than 10,000 companies nationwide in auditing their software "before the enforcement officials come knocking on their doors.'' Reports from the local BSA hotline indicated that software piracy is most prevalent in the architectural, engineering, services, shipping and manufacturing business sectors. BSA added that it has also received reports on a wide variety of other businesses as well.

BSA further said that many of the businesses that BSA and the NBI have investigated are "good, reputable companies.''

"These are not fly-by-night operations. They pay their taxes, they obey the environmental laws, they obey the health and safety rules, but when it comes to software copyright compliance, they don't think it's important. What we're trying to do is educate them,'' said BSA vice president for enforcement Robert Kruger during a press briefing at the Filipinas Heritage Library. Kruger warned of severe repercussions to the Philippine economy should the use of illegal software among corporate end-users continue to persist.

Kruger also warned that the Philippines might not be able to harness its potentials to become the information technology hub of Asia if the high incidence of piracy continues. He added that the Philippine software industry could more than double its economic activity by 2001 if software piracy in the country can be reduced to the 27-percent rate in the United States.

Huey Tan, BSA vice president for Singapore Representative office, said that his team has met with some of the local Internet Service Providers to work closely with them to identify software piracy on websites. He refused to elaborate which software companies met with BSA.

BSA is present in 65 countries around the world. BSA hopes that one of the incentives that it created by running campaigns is to urge companies to take advantage of the grace period to get legal. Kruger appeals to companies that are still using illegal software that there is still a chance to essentially do the right thing.