Pirated books
HarperCollins is sending document to the US Embassy and relevant agencies in Vietnam to help in prevent piracy and protect the property rights of US authors and publishers. It indicated it would take action in the courts if nothing was done to address the problem.
In 2005, HarperCollins signed an exclusive deal with First News-Tri Viet Publishing House for the Secrets of the Millionaire Mind series, written by T. Harv Eker. But the books were blatantly pirated by other publishers.
First News-Tri Viet has been unable to remove all pirated copies of the series from the market. HarperCollins said it was considering suspending copyright deals.
Nguyen Van Phuoc, the director of First News, said, "They (HarperCollins) can't comprehend why a copyrighted series was illegally printed by more than three publishers and sold openly on the market for a long time, even though Vietnam is a member of the World Trade Organisation and a signatory to the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works."
Phuoc said that pirated books account for 80 percent of sales in northern Vietnam, causing serious financial damage to legitimate publishers. More than 200 titles bought by First News from US publishers are being pirated.
In Hanoi, pirated copies of contemporary English-language books and bestsellers can be found on almost every street corner, printed in HCM City and notable for the proliferation of typographical and formatting errors but bearing the brands of major publishing houses. They are sold at a fraction of the price of legitimate copies.
A representative of author T. Harv Eker said some training courses that use or are based on the series proliferate, despite being in violation of copyright.
First News cooperated with police in a raid on Huy Thi Printing House for alleged piracy, but the court ruled that books were not regulated.
Phuoc said ongoing rampant piracy was damaging the publishing industry and Vietnam's credibility.