I believe in intellectual property protection. One of the biggest reason for software piracy is the price of the software. Therefore the minister hit the jackpot by saying that software piracy can be reduced with the lowering of prices to an affordable level. However, I do not believe that price control is the way to do it.

I would rather rely on market forces. And market forces do work, especially if the government is serious in bring the price down! The Thai government's ' Cheap PC' initiative is a good example.

It is one of the reasons why a convicted monopoly, Microsoft, is forced to lower its price by offering a 'Thai-only' Windows and Office bundle for US$35.80 (approximately RM130) while the standard Office software elsewhere in the world costs US$399.

There are rumours on the net that the company is considering similar initiatives in India. My question to the minister is, why not follow the same road?

In acting unilaterally, i.e. without consulting software companies, I do not believe the Malaysian government, can successfully lower software prices, however committed it may be. I will be more than delighted if I am proven wrong.

I am a open source advocate, but I do not see any problem in others asking for licensing fee for products, provided it is reasonable. I strongly condemn businesses using pirated software, as I see it stealing other companies product (software) to advance one's business interest.

I am also unhappy with software companies' practices that artificially raise cost for its customer, such as the MS Licensing 6 plan.