Yasuda-san issues piracy warning

Sony Computer Entertainment Asia president Tetsuhiko Yasuda has issued a strong warning to governments in the South-East Asia to continue its work in fighting piracy, an issue which he says is a threat to the development of the games industry in the region.

In a keynote speech during this year's GC Asia conference in Singapore, Yasuda-san noted that the country's government had all but eradicated the issue there, but counselled against complacency.

"I would like to extend my gratitude to the solid efforts that the Singapore government has made," he said. "However, with just a moment of relaxation in efforts to uphold copyright protection, it's possible that the same old problem will occur again.

"Therefore it is essential for the country to understand that upholding copyright protection is indispensable for the stable development of the software industry."

He went on to use the company's agreement with Nanyang Polytechnic, signed in April this year to train students on PlayStation 3 development, as an example - cautioning that future projects created as a result would be at risk.

"In that situation, those students who have made game development their life's dream will suffer the most, and will possibly damage their motivation for creating games," he warned, before requesting that fair treatment should be given to overseas IP as well as that produced locally.

"We cannot allow the activity of the pirate copy providers, who only care about making a quick profit, to destroy the dreams and motivation of the students - they are the very enemies to the creator," he continued.

"Together we should remain vigilant against this unscrupulous pirated product providers - I'm prepared to devote the rest of my life to copyright protection."

Full coverage of this year's GC Asia conference, including the inaugural DICE Summit Asia, is available on the special GamesIndustry.biz GC Asia event page.