Call for research cooperation: Public and Alternative Higher Education Practices
Via: Stef Langmans
Panchayati Raj system gets Microsoft solution called, ironically (humorously?), "Swaraj"
Via: "Prashant Iyengar"
Govt plans curbs on B2C e-trade
Via: "Prashant Iyengar"
Govt plans curbs on B2C e-trade
Bipin Chandran
Posted online: Thursday , November 22, 2007 at 0239 hrs
New Delhi, Nov 21The government wants to bring goods sold over the
Internet to customers in India under the purview of domestic retail
trade guidelines. The move would impact a burgeoning business that has
clocked a turnover of around Rs 2,500 crore in 2006-07 and is growing
by over 30% annually.
The proposal aims to block backdoor entry into the domestic retail
market by international retail companies. Overseas companies account
for most of the retail business on the Net.
Government sources said it was currently possible for a company to
sell products in India over the Internet without confirming to
existing retail norms. For example, a global retail company could set
up warehouses across India and sell its products online, which is a
violation of existing norms.
"The goods can be sourced and shipped from India. A retailer can set
up a neighbourhood warehouse like it would in the case of a normal
retail venture, and sell on the Internet to circumvent retail norms,"
said the official.
Present retail norms allow single-brand retailers with 51% foreign
investment. In the case of e-commerce, 100% foreign investment is
permitted in business-to-business e-commerce, while no foreign equity
is allowed in business-to-customer e-commerce ventures. In the case of
wholesale trade, 100% FDI is permitted.
Once implemented, Internet companies will not be able to sell goods in
India unless they are single-brand products and the firm is 49%
Indian-owned. The government is of the view that selling products on
the Net, although billed and tax paid abroad, violates domestic retail
guidelines. This would also mean that an Indian company selling goods
in India over the Internet would not be allowed foreign investments.
Govt plans curbs on B2C e-trade
Bipin Chandran
Posted online: Thursday , November 22, 2007 at 0239 hrs
New Delhi, Nov 21The government wants to bring goods sold over the
Internet to customers in India under the purview of domestic retail
trade guidelines. The move would impact a burgeoning business that has
clocked a turnover of around Rs 2,500 crore in 2006-07 and is growing
by over 30% annually.
The proposal aims to block backdoor entry into the domestic retail
market by international retail companies. Overseas companies account
for most of the retail business on the Net.
Government sources said it was currently possible for a company to
sell products in India over the Internet without confirming to
existing retail norms. For example, a global retail company could set
up warehouses across India and sell its products online, which is a
violation of existing norms.
"The goods can be sourced and shipped from India. A retailer can set
up a neighbourhood warehouse like it would in the case of a normal
retail venture, and sell on the Internet to circumvent retail norms,"
said the official.
Present retail norms allow single-brand retailers with 51% foreign
investment. In the case of e-commerce, 100% foreign investment is
permitted in business-to-business e-commerce, while no foreign equity
is allowed in business-to-customer e-commerce ventures. In the case of
wholesale trade, 100% FDI is permitted.
Once implemented, Internet companies will not be able to sell goods in
India unless they are single-brand products and the firm is 49%
Indian-owned. The government is of the view that selling products on
the Net, although billed and tax paid abroad, violates domestic retail
guidelines. This would also mean that an Indian company selling goods
in India over the Internet would not be allowed foreign investments.
Anti-piracy moves `hurt sales`
Via: "Prashant Iyengar"
Anti-piracy moves `hurt sales`
Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson / London November 21, 2007
Retailers are urging the music industry to drop piracy protection for
online downloads.
Retailers are urging the music industry to drop piracy protection for
online downloads after new figures showed the average Briton has
bought fewer than three digital tracks in the past three years.
Incompatible proprietary technologies, aimed at defeating rampant
piracy in the digital music era, are instead "stifling growth and
working against the consumer interest", said Kim Bayley,
director-general of the Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA).
Her warning comes as high street retailers and digital music
specialists watch pre-Christmas sales trends nervously. The music
industry makes at least 40 per cent of its revenues in the fourth
quarter, but the traditional sales build-up has started later than
usual.
Although Leona Lewis — the X Factor winner backed by Simon Cowell's
Syco label — this month notched up the highest first-week album sales
for a debut artist, album volumes are down 11 per cent, or 12 million
units, for the year to date, according to the Official UK Charts
Company and Music Week.
Recorded music companies had been "quick to complain" that the slide
in CD sales had not been offset by growth in digital music, Bayley
said, but their embrace of digital rights management (DRM) systems
"might have added to the slow take-up of legal digital services".
Just 150 million tracks have been downloaded legally in the UK over
the past three years, she added. "Sadly, that amounts to an average of
less than one 79p per download per head of population per year."
The ERA's appeal comes as more companies experiment with the DRM-free
MP3 format, following a pre-emptive challenge in February by Apple's
Steve Jobs. Most recently, Universal Music this month began offering
its classical and jazz catalogue in MP3 format.
In April, EMI "unlocked" its catalogue, charging consumers a premium
for DRM-free versions of its music on Apple's iTunes store, and has
since signed deals with other digital retailers for MP3 files encoded
at more than twice the quality of standard audio files.
"There are certainly experiments, but there's still a certain element
of resistance within the music industry," Bayley said. "At the moment,
[DRM] just puts consumers off," she said, adding that confusion about
formats was driving people toward illegal downloads.
She cited research this month that found consumers were almost four
times as likely to choose an MP3 file as a DRM-protected track when
the two were offered alongside each other.
The ERA, which represents high street retailers and online sites, said
it was making the appeal now in the hope that music companies would
drop DRM protections before the Christmas season and the January sales
rise, when consumers load up the iPods they receive at Christmas.
Anti-piracy moves `hurt sales`
Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson / London November 21, 2007
Retailers are urging the music industry to drop piracy protection for
online downloads.
Retailers are urging the music industry to drop piracy protection for
online downloads after new figures showed the average Briton has
bought fewer than three digital tracks in the past three years.
Incompatible proprietary technologies, aimed at defeating rampant
piracy in the digital music era, are instead "stifling growth and
working against the consumer interest", said Kim Bayley,
director-general of the Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA).
Her warning comes as high street retailers and digital music
specialists watch pre-Christmas sales trends nervously. The music
industry makes at least 40 per cent of its revenues in the fourth
quarter, but the traditional sales build-up has started later than
usual.
Although Leona Lewis — the X Factor winner backed by Simon Cowell's
Syco label — this month notched up the highest first-week album sales
for a debut artist, album volumes are down 11 per cent, or 12 million
units, for the year to date, according to the Official UK Charts
Company and Music Week.
Recorded music companies had been "quick to complain" that the slide
in CD sales had not been offset by growth in digital music, Bayley
said, but their embrace of digital rights management (DRM) systems
"might have added to the slow take-up of legal digital services".
Just 150 million tracks have been downloaded legally in the UK over
the past three years, she added. "Sadly, that amounts to an average of
less than one 79p per download per head of population per year."
The ERA's appeal comes as more companies experiment with the DRM-free
MP3 format, following a pre-emptive challenge in February by Apple's
Steve Jobs. Most recently, Universal Music this month began offering
its classical and jazz catalogue in MP3 format.
In April, EMI "unlocked" its catalogue, charging consumers a premium
for DRM-free versions of its music on Apple's iTunes store, and has
since signed deals with other digital retailers for MP3 files encoded
at more than twice the quality of standard audio files.
"There are certainly experiments, but there's still a certain element
of resistance within the music industry," Bayley said. "At the moment,
[DRM] just puts consumers off," she said, adding that confusion about
formats was driving people toward illegal downloads.
She cited research this month that found consumers were almost four
times as likely to choose an MP3 file as a DRM-protected track when
the two were offered alongside each other.
The ERA, which represents high street retailers and online sites, said
it was making the appeal now in the hope that music companies would
drop DRM protections before the Christmas season and the January sales
rise, when consumers load up the iPods they receive at Christmas.
GM food: Supreme Court issues notice to Centre
Via: "Prashant Iyengar"
http://www.thehindu.com/2007/11/20/stories/2007112056461100.htm
National
GM food: notice to Centre
Legal Correspondent
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice to the Centre on
a petition seeking a ban on the import and sale of
genetically-modified processed food.
A three-judge Bench issued notice on the petition filed by Gene
Campaign and its president Suman Sahai challenging the August 23
notification granting exemption for such import. The petition
contended that the exemption granted in favour of the food stuffs
derived from living modified organisms would have adverse impact on
health and environment.
(c) Copyright 2000 - 2007 The Hindu
http://www.thehindu.com/2007/11/20/stories/2007112056461100.htm
National
GM food: notice to Centre
Legal Correspondent
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice to the Centre on
a petition seeking a ban on the import and sale of
genetically-modified processed food.
A three-judge Bench issued notice on the petition filed by Gene
Campaign and its president Suman Sahai challenging the August 23
notification granting exemption for such import. The petition
contended that the exemption granted in favour of the food stuffs
derived from living modified organisms would have adverse impact on
health and environment.
(c) Copyright 2000 - 2007 The Hindu
Imitate or die
Via: "Prashant Iyengar"
http://www.financialexpress.com/printer/news/240737/
Imitate or die
Posted online: Sunday , November 18, 2007 at 2358 hrs
China makes computers, but imports most of its chips. India makes
drugs, but copies almost all of the compounds; it writes software, but
rarely owns the result. The bolder claims made for all three
industries thus have a similar, hollow ring. They have flourished, but
mostly on the back of other countries' technology. "We are not at the
stage of Intel Inside," admits Arvind Atignal of Clinigene, a
clinical-research firm, drawing his own analogy between desktops and
drugs. "We are the keyboard, screens and peripherals."
How much does this matter? Joseph Xie of SMIC, the Chinese chipmaker,
spent seven years working inside Intel. Its strategy, he says, was
simple: "get there first; make most of the money; let the second guy
get the change." That is certainly one way to run a technology firm.
But competing in that race is expensive and exhausting. Few of Intel's
rivals still try to keep up with it, nanometre by nanometre.
Countries of China's and India's heft and ambition cherish the idea of
pushing back the limits of technology. But that push is risky, costly,
frustrating work. Although China and India could devote their
considerable intellectual resources to solving the problems faced by
economies on the technological frontier, why cross that bridge until
you reach it? Seen in this light, India's generic drugmakers are
models not laggards. They invest in just enough know-how to exploit
the rest of the world's discoveries. Thanks to them, Indians enjoy
some of the world's cheapest medicines.
Under the WTO's Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights agreement
(TRIPS), India has ceded the right to free-ride on foreign advances.
It now grants 20 years of patent protection to inventions hatched
after 1995. In return, it hopes tighter laws will inspire Indians to
new exploits in innovation, and reassure foreigners wary of inventing
or making original products in the country.
The tougher laws may yet succeed. A recent study by Bruce Abramson of
the World Bank expresses high hopes. A 'patent chic' is already
detectable in the country, he reports. He has even heard of Indian
farmers calling lawyers in the hope of patenting their prize
vegetables. But, as yet, the new regime has not proved its worth. Over
17,000 patent applications were filed in India in 2004-05, almost 40%
more than the year before. But only 3,500 were by Indians. Of the 49
most prolific filers in the past decade, 44 are either foreign
companies or subsidiaries. Of the five Indian firms, all are either
government-sponsored institutes or generic-drug companies, which did
fine before TRIPS.
The new regime will be costly to run, if India takes it seriously. But
the larger cost lies in the opportunities for unabashed imitation that
India has now forgone. These lost opportunities might be quite big.
Had Indian firms been prevented from copying fluoroquinolones, for
example, the Indian public would have been worse off by the equivalent
of $255million a year, reckons a study of the antibiotics market by
Shubham Chaudhuri of the World Bank, Pinelopi Goldberg of Yale and
Panle Jia of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
India could resolve not to invent another thing, and still prosper
mightily. It does not even have to catch up with the world. As noted
earlier, it has much to gain merely by catching up with itself. A
report by the World Bank ("Unleashing India's Innovation") cast its
eye over thousands of Indian enterprises—makers of drugs, foods, car
parts and textiles, as well as metal-bashers and garment-weavers. In
each industry, it found a thick clump of unproductive companies
operating far behind the industry's vanguard. In garment-making, for
example, the bank found a few highly productive companies, in which
the value-added per worker was over Rs 6,00,000 in 2004. But in over
60% of the industry, that figure was less than Rs 1,00,000. Even
ignoring the very best firms, the bank still found a leading group in
each industry that was about five times as productive as the average
firm. It calculates that India's national output could be 4.8 times
bigger than it is if only enterprises were 'to absorb and use the
knowledge that already exists in the economy'.
Learning new tricks is not the only way to thrive. China may have
stopped inventing things (clocks, compasses, gunpowder and so on)
after the 15th century. But it did not stop growing. The empire found
fresh farmland to till, using the same old techniques, and new markets
to exploit, selling the same old goods. Likewise, today's China still
enjoys a lot of scope for 'extensive' growth—doing more with more—as
well as 'intensive' growth—doing more with less.
"China is very much a top-line country," says Max von Zedtwitz of
Tsinghua University in Beijing. Although outlays on R&D are
increasing, many people still appreciate size over sophistication. In
the scramble to grow, a company that sets aside precious resources for
research can be at a disadvantage. By the time its investment pays
off, the firm's rivals might be twice as big. "They will acquire you,"
says Max von Zedtwitz.
Technological pursuits have opportunity costs. Other, perhaps more
lucrative, uses can always be found for the resources so expended.
That is why no firm in China is betting billions on a risky search for
the next blockbuster drug. "If I had even a hundredth of that kind of
money," says Hai Mi of WuXi PharmaTech, a pharmaceutical firm in
Shanghai, "I'd rather open a restaurant."
—(c) The Economist Newspaper Limited 2007
http://www.financialexpress.com/printer/news/240737/
Imitate or die
Posted online: Sunday , November 18, 2007 at 2358 hrs
China makes computers, but imports most of its chips. India makes
drugs, but copies almost all of the compounds; it writes software, but
rarely owns the result. The bolder claims made for all three
industries thus have a similar, hollow ring. They have flourished, but
mostly on the back of other countries' technology. "We are not at the
stage of Intel Inside," admits Arvind Atignal of Clinigene, a
clinical-research firm, drawing his own analogy between desktops and
drugs. "We are the keyboard, screens and peripherals."
How much does this matter? Joseph Xie of SMIC, the Chinese chipmaker,
spent seven years working inside Intel. Its strategy, he says, was
simple: "get there first; make most of the money; let the second guy
get the change." That is certainly one way to run a technology firm.
But competing in that race is expensive and exhausting. Few of Intel's
rivals still try to keep up with it, nanometre by nanometre.
Countries of China's and India's heft and ambition cherish the idea of
pushing back the limits of technology. But that push is risky, costly,
frustrating work. Although China and India could devote their
considerable intellectual resources to solving the problems faced by
economies on the technological frontier, why cross that bridge until
you reach it? Seen in this light, India's generic drugmakers are
models not laggards. They invest in just enough know-how to exploit
the rest of the world's discoveries. Thanks to them, Indians enjoy
some of the world's cheapest medicines.
Under the WTO's Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights agreement
(TRIPS), India has ceded the right to free-ride on foreign advances.
It now grants 20 years of patent protection to inventions hatched
after 1995. In return, it hopes tighter laws will inspire Indians to
new exploits in innovation, and reassure foreigners wary of inventing
or making original products in the country.
The tougher laws may yet succeed. A recent study by Bruce Abramson of
the World Bank expresses high hopes. A 'patent chic' is already
detectable in the country, he reports. He has even heard of Indian
farmers calling lawyers in the hope of patenting their prize
vegetables. But, as yet, the new regime has not proved its worth. Over
17,000 patent applications were filed in India in 2004-05, almost 40%
more than the year before. But only 3,500 were by Indians. Of the 49
most prolific filers in the past decade, 44 are either foreign
companies or subsidiaries. Of the five Indian firms, all are either
government-sponsored institutes or generic-drug companies, which did
fine before TRIPS.
The new regime will be costly to run, if India takes it seriously. But
the larger cost lies in the opportunities for unabashed imitation that
India has now forgone. These lost opportunities might be quite big.
Had Indian firms been prevented from copying fluoroquinolones, for
example, the Indian public would have been worse off by the equivalent
of $255million a year, reckons a study of the antibiotics market by
Shubham Chaudhuri of the World Bank, Pinelopi Goldberg of Yale and
Panle Jia of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
India could resolve not to invent another thing, and still prosper
mightily. It does not even have to catch up with the world. As noted
earlier, it has much to gain merely by catching up with itself. A
report by the World Bank ("Unleashing India's Innovation") cast its
eye over thousands of Indian enterprises—makers of drugs, foods, car
parts and textiles, as well as metal-bashers and garment-weavers. In
each industry, it found a thick clump of unproductive companies
operating far behind the industry's vanguard. In garment-making, for
example, the bank found a few highly productive companies, in which
the value-added per worker was over Rs 6,00,000 in 2004. But in over
60% of the industry, that figure was less than Rs 1,00,000. Even
ignoring the very best firms, the bank still found a leading group in
each industry that was about five times as productive as the average
firm. It calculates that India's national output could be 4.8 times
bigger than it is if only enterprises were 'to absorb and use the
knowledge that already exists in the economy'.
Learning new tricks is not the only way to thrive. China may have
stopped inventing things (clocks, compasses, gunpowder and so on)
after the 15th century. But it did not stop growing. The empire found
fresh farmland to till, using the same old techniques, and new markets
to exploit, selling the same old goods. Likewise, today's China still
enjoys a lot of scope for 'extensive' growth—doing more with more—as
well as 'intensive' growth—doing more with less.
"China is very much a top-line country," says Max von Zedtwitz of
Tsinghua University in Beijing. Although outlays on R&D are
increasing, many people still appreciate size over sophistication. In
the scramble to grow, a company that sets aside precious resources for
research can be at a disadvantage. By the time its investment pays
off, the firm's rivals might be twice as big. "They will acquire you,"
says Max von Zedtwitz.
Technological pursuits have opportunity costs. Other, perhaps more
lucrative, uses can always be found for the resources so expended.
That is why no firm in China is betting billions on a risky search for
the next blockbuster drug. "If I had even a hundredth of that kind of
money," says Hai Mi of WuXi PharmaTech, a pharmaceutical firm in
Shanghai, "I'd rather open a restaurant."
—(c) The Economist Newspaper Limited 2007
Copyright notices to ISPs on the rise
Via: "Prashant Iyengar"
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2007/11/19/stories/2007111951240200.htm
'India has registered fastest increase in infringing activity'
Piracy issues
Over 15,000 notices have been issued till September this year.
Monthly average notice has risen from 220 in 2006 to 1,682
L. N. Revathy
Coimbatore, Nov. 18
Business Software Alliance has issued more than 15,000 notices to ISPs
(Internet service providers) in India till September this year, on
infringing activity.
Sharing this information with Business Line, the BSA'a Vice-President
and Regional Director (Asia), Mr Jeff Hardee, said the monthly average
notice issuance has risen from 220 in 2006 to 1,682 this year.
"India has registered the fastest increase in copyright infringement
compared to any other country in Asia," he said and attributed it to
"lack of awareness and total disregard of the copyright laws".
Stating that it is important for people to understand that what they
do on the Net "can and will be tracked" he said, "It is sad to note
that India is not among those countries that have ratified the WIPO
(World Intellectual Property Organisation) Copyright Treaty." The WIPO
Treaty has been ratified by 62 countries.
"While the Government maintains that the Corporate Law is under review
and the Bill would have to be passed incorporating the amendments,
there is a need to understand that there are a large number of
corporates here and they deserve good protection to transact online,"
Mr Hardee said.
Cautioning about file sharing services, he said users invariably
become victims of identity theft when they download files in the same
location in which their personal data is stored, for, the data that is
stored in the system gets uploaded without the users' knowledge.
According to Tiversa study, about 12 million people are logged on to
P2P networks worldwide at any given time and 450 million copies of P2P
software downloaded. "While China and India compete for leadership in
many sectors, including IT, China is surely acting upon illegal
downloading.
China's National Administration of Copyright (NAC) has launched a new
campaign to crack down on illegal downloads of films, music, software
and textbooks in the country's latest move to fight piracy," he said.
The IDC study shows that the piracy rate in India has fallen to 71 per
cent in 2006 compared to 82 per cent in China, "but the decline is
very slow.
China managed to bring the rate down by 10 per cent from 93 per cent
in 2001 to 82 per cent last year, but India could manage only a 2 per
cent reduction in three years," Mr Hardee said, emphasising the need
for initiation of stringent measures to curb piracy. (India has
registered a piracy loss of over a billion dollars in 2006 against
$565 million in 2005.)
Mr Hardee further pointed out that China was working on a plan to
develop a software industry to bring down the piracy rate, while the
orientation in India was only on export of software services.
"China is keen to develop a local market. India has a huge domestic
market due to the steep rise in PC penetration. The Government though
is not giving much attention," he alleged.
(c) Copyright 2000 - 2007 The Hindu Business Line
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2007/11/19/stories/2007111951240200.htm
'India has registered fastest increase in infringing activity'
Piracy issues
Over 15,000 notices have been issued till September this year.
Monthly average notice has risen from 220 in 2006 to 1,682
L. N. Revathy
Coimbatore, Nov. 18
Business Software Alliance has issued more than 15,000 notices to ISPs
(Internet service providers) in India till September this year, on
infringing activity.
Sharing this information with Business Line, the BSA'a Vice-President
and Regional Director (Asia), Mr Jeff Hardee, said the monthly average
notice issuance has risen from 220 in 2006 to 1,682 this year.
"India has registered the fastest increase in copyright infringement
compared to any other country in Asia," he said and attributed it to
"lack of awareness and total disregard of the copyright laws".
Stating that it is important for people to understand that what they
do on the Net "can and will be tracked" he said, "It is sad to note
that India is not among those countries that have ratified the WIPO
(World Intellectual Property Organisation) Copyright Treaty." The WIPO
Treaty has been ratified by 62 countries.
"While the Government maintains that the Corporate Law is under review
and the Bill would have to be passed incorporating the amendments,
there is a need to understand that there are a large number of
corporates here and they deserve good protection to transact online,"
Mr Hardee said.
Cautioning about file sharing services, he said users invariably
become victims of identity theft when they download files in the same
location in which their personal data is stored, for, the data that is
stored in the system gets uploaded without the users' knowledge.
According to Tiversa study, about 12 million people are logged on to
P2P networks worldwide at any given time and 450 million copies of P2P
software downloaded. "While China and India compete for leadership in
many sectors, including IT, China is surely acting upon illegal
downloading.
China's National Administration of Copyright (NAC) has launched a new
campaign to crack down on illegal downloads of films, music, software
and textbooks in the country's latest move to fight piracy," he said.
The IDC study shows that the piracy rate in India has fallen to 71 per
cent in 2006 compared to 82 per cent in China, "but the decline is
very slow.
China managed to bring the rate down by 10 per cent from 93 per cent
in 2001 to 82 per cent last year, but India could manage only a 2 per
cent reduction in three years," Mr Hardee said, emphasising the need
for initiation of stringent measures to curb piracy. (India has
registered a piracy loss of over a billion dollars in 2006 against
$565 million in 2005.)
Mr Hardee further pointed out that China was working on a plan to
develop a software industry to bring down the piracy rate, while the
orientation in India was only on export of software services.
"China is keen to develop a local market. India has a huge domestic
market due to the steep rise in PC penetration. The Government though
is not giving much attention," he alleged.
(c) Copyright 2000 - 2007 The Hindu Business Line
Call for Submissions: Socio-Legal Review, National Law School of India University
Via: "Nirupama Pillai"
Next1-10/26