KYIV, Ukraine—A U.S. Trade Representative report recently named Ukraine the top country for copyright pirating—a place where films, music, programs, and games, paid for by consumers in other countries, are easily downloaded for free. Experts say the situation is very unlikely to change in the near future.
“Lately I’ve been downloading books and music [for free],” says Ksenia Tarasevich, 24, of Kyiv. “As for films, I watch them online,” she says. She did pay for her anti-virus software, however, because she trusts it to defend her computer better.
Tarasevich says she has almost never paid for music. She has about 50 DVDs, most of which she bought more than a decade ago. Most movies and songs Ukrainians want are on the Russian social network, Vkontakte, or on the Ukrainian file-sharing site EX.ua and other online sources.
The U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) designated Ukraine as its “priority foreign country”—the singular, top category for copyright offenders—in its annual report intellectual property protection on May 1. It is the first country to earn this designation for seven consecutive years.
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