I refer to the Malaysiakini report Gov't mulls going after pirated VCD owners .

The recent salvo fired by by the Malaysian government towards owners (or buyers) of pirated video discs is yet another example of action that is too little, too late. Not surprisingly, the announcement was made at the World Intellectual Property Organisation Seminar held in Malaysia.

Was the minister attempting to impress someone? If he was, I think it may have been better to keep his mouth shut until a more effective method of curbing music and movie piracy has been proven.

The first question on many people's minds must be ‘Why now?’ Indeed, why now when the peddlers of pirated software have made bundles after years of selling what must total millions (billions?) of discs? Why were they allowed to flourish?

The pirated disc sellers conduct their business openly, in malls, ‘pasar malam’ and makeshift stalls, so nabbing them should have been a ride in the park. Were the authorities not aware of the magnitude of the pirated music and movie industry until now?

The question of ‘why now’ is also relevant in the face of changing technologies. Discs are on the way out. These days, movies stored on thumb drives, flash cards, hard drives, X-boxes and what have you are gaining popularity. Large capacity hard disks and thumb drives also mean that shelf space need no longer be taken up by stacks of disc boxes and envelopes.

Movies and music, legit or otherwise, can be stored and retrieved at the push of a button. In the fast changing world of digital media, discs are seen as fragile, unreliable way of media storage.

Soon, the only people who still rely on 'old fashioned' bulky players and discs are those in the lower-income category. These are people who can ill-afford the price of cineplex tickets for the family, never mind the costs of original software.

These are the people for whom a break from the hard realities of life and quality time with family are to be found in cheaply-acquired movies watched in front of an 'old fashioned' TV set.

Soon, these very same people are going to have to pay hefty fines for something they could just- about afford in the first place. The more tech savvy and deep-pocketed amongst us will find ingenious ways of acquiring and storing movies and music, away from prying eyes!