Pragmatic Pricing on PC Security Software is Making Internet Safer in India
Many new and sophisticated threats that can infect your computer are spreading fast online. IBM calls the Internet as ‘Wild West’. Risks have increased exponentially. According to its X-Force 2009 Mid-Year Trend and Risk Report, the problem is no longer limited to viruses, malicious domains, or suspicious websites. There has been an increase in malicious content on trusted sites, including popular search engines, blogs, bulletin boards, personal websites, mainstream news sites and online magazines.
However, the pricing trends are changing in India as some new P.C. security software companies like Kaspersky and Old Horse Norton offer P.C. security suites at reasonable prices.
The following is a brief description of these Internet security suites-
Kaspersky Internet Security 2010
Kaspersky provides more than you expect from a security suite for the price you pay. Some of its salient features are:
- It has a unique safe run mode for potentially threatening applications or websites
- It gives a complete picture of programs installed on your system through
- It warns you about infected or unsafe websites
- It has a secure virtual keyboard to protect from identity theft
Kaspersky priced this security suit at just Rs.350. A PC user who buys his P.C. at around Rs.20,000 should quickly buy this software to protect from Internet threats. This is very cheap compared to its MRP in the USA, i.e. Rs.2746 ($ 59.95).
Norton Internet Security 2010
Norton is the best overall security suite available in the market. It is even better than Kaspersky and is a bit expensive. Some of its significant features are:
- It provides up-to-the-minute protection by updating every 5 to 15 minutes
- It filters unwanted email
- It blocks phishing websites and also authenticates trusted sites
- It prevents hackers from spying and stealing the information as you type
Norton Internet Security 2010 is priced at Rs.950. This is very cheap compared to its MRP in the USA, i.e. around Rs.1557 ($33.99).
Bit Defender
If you are looking just for an anti-virus, consider ‘Bit Defender anti-virus 2009’, which costs only Rs.200 and is reasonably good.
To protect yourself from these threats online, you also need to have an original O.S., but the O.S. pricing is too high to purchase a genuine copy. The price of the Windows genuine O.S. software is almost equal to a branded LCD monitor. In India, most P.C. buyers buy assembled systems rather than branded ones. They then get pirated O.S. and software without much hassle since many local technicians care for this part.
Pragmatic Pricing of Operating Systems: Needed for Safer Internet in India
Though the GDP and PPP in India are far less than the U.S., there is not much difference in the prices of P.C. software. The concept of PPP is to equalize the purchasing power of two currencies. For example, a normal haircut in India costs around Rs.40, but the same thing in the U.S. costs around $ 8, nearly Rs.366. This shows we can get much better items at a low cost in India. But PPP is not working with some companies like Microsoft in India.
The professional version of Windows 7 is available for Rs.12,116 ($264.49) in the U.S.; the same in India costs around Rs.7,900 in the local market. It should be around Rs.1,500 if adjusted according to PPP. Buying a genuine operating system costs nearly Rs.8,000 for a typical P.C. buyer. This is why many home users in India opt for pirated versions and become vulnerable to attacks.
Though most of the P.C. users in India know the dire consequences of pirated software, many cannot use the genuine versions as they are overpriced. However, the P.C. mentioned above security software companies provide the best Internet security software in their class at a reasonable price. ‘Kaspersky Internet Security 2010’ costs around Rs.2746 in the U.S., but it is available just for Rs.350 in India. ‘Norton Internet Security 2010’ costs around Rs.1557 in the U.S., which costs only Rs.950 in India. The pragmatic pricing of these brands is appreciable. These initiatives encourage at least the new generation users to buy genuine software. Industry leaders like Microsoft should do a lot of rethinking on their pricing in India. After all, this is to make the Internet safer to browse.
