Pirated CD's and DVD's are destroying the home entertainment industry in Bangladesh with dozens of production companies against the wall in what is already a highly competitive business, reports bdnews24.com.
Industry insiders say that within three to five hours of a new release being launched, pirated copies flood the local markets offering less expensive and second-rate alternatives.
In many cases illegal manufacturers manage to stay one step ahead of the game by releasing their copies prior to the official launch.
"Piracy has almost sent our business to the graveyard," Nazmul Haq, an anti-piracy campaigner and CEO of music production house G-Series, told the news agency.
Haq said: "About 10 large and respected companies have been forced to shut down in the last 10 to 15 years because of rampant piracy."
Working as an industry expert, Haq recently joined government officials on one of their rare attempts to stem the proliferation of pirated CD's.
"We seized a huge number of pirated CD's in Comilla about three months ago. This operation alone realised over Tk.10 million in fines for the government," Haq said.
An investigation by bdnews24.com found little or no monitoring, or implementation of laws that are already on the books. Moreover there is an unchecked flood of cheap CDs continually entering the country.
Saiful Islam, project coordinator for World Com Ltd, one of six optical disc plants in Bangladesh, spoke to the news agency.
"Some 4 to 5 million blank CDs, each costing maximum 11 taka, are imported into the country every month. About 90 per cent of these are used for piracy," he said.
"At least three times as many pirated copies are released in the market as legal versions," Saiful added.
Music and film albums are currently being pirated on a huge scale around Dhaka as well as in Comilla, Mymensingh, Munshiganj and Gazipur, according to industry insiders.
Nazmul Haq from G-Series said: "Pirated versions can be purchased for one third the price of the original product."
"This has forced well known music houses such as Don, Sargum, Concord and Disco to be wiped out from the industry."
"Everyone prefers to buy their entertainment at the lowest possible price."
"If piracy continues at the current levels no producers will invest in the industry for the foreseeable future," added Haq.
The current state of the industry has forced many established artists to set up their own companies in an attempt to take control the way their work is distributed.
However, industry experts admit that the cheaper price illegal versions can sometimes dramatically increase an artist's exposure in the market.
In other words there is no such thing as bad publicity.
Tanzin Ahmed, a university student in Dhaka said: "I can buy a pirated DVD for Tk 50-70. I do this because I can't afford the original version."
"But it's not only the price, you can buy songs from 10 different singers clubbed together on one pirated CD," added Tanzin.
Piracy poised to destroy home entertainment industry
FE Team | Published: September 29, 2007 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00
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