The congressional group will focus on copyright piracy in China and Russia, because the "scope and depth" of the problem in those countries, it said A group of U.S. lawmakers has named six countries, including China and Russia, as those they will closely monitor for continuing copyright piracy problems.Also on the Congressional International Anti-Piracy Caucus’ 2006 piracy watch list are Mexico, Canada, India and Malaysia. The release of the watch list is an attempt to call attention to copyright piracy in countries where it has reached “alarming levels,” the group said in a statement.“International piracy is just a fancy way to say stealing on an enormous scale,” Senator Gordon Smith, an Oregon Republican and co-chairman of the group, said in the statement. “Governments have the obligation to crack down on the systematic theft of intellectual property within their borders. Stopping the hemorrhage of U.S. revenue is critical to successful economic relationships with other countries.” The congressional group will focus on copyright piracy in China and Russia, because the “scope and depth” of the problem in those countries, it said. Copyright piracy in those two countries cost U.S. companies US$4 billion in 2005, and the problem there is “largely the result of a lack of political will to confront the problem,” the group said in its statement.The release of the watch list comes as the U.S. government plans a round of trade talks with China starting Tuesday. Copyright piracy will be one of the topics discussed.A spokesman for the Chinese embassy in Washington, D.C., didn’t immediately return a phone call seeking comment. Russia is working hard to fix copyright privacy problems, and the Russian parliament has worked on combating piracy in hearings this year, said a spokesman for the Russian embassy. “Our government takes the problem of piracy very seriously,” said Yevgenniy Khorishko. “We know of the problem, and we’re doing what we can.”The congressional group’s report said China is “awash” in pirated goods. When warehouses or manufacturing facilities for pirated goods are raided by Chinese police, the products are seized, but owners face only small fines, the group said. Some Chinese Internet service providers have become online warehouses for pirated digital works, the group’s report added.Russia hosts 47 plants manufacturing optical disks containing pirated materials, the report said. The country is also home to perhaps the largest Internet pirate site in the world, which Russian authorities have declined to investigate, the group said. In Canada, piracy is growing, with street vendors selling pirated goods. Canada is becoming a leading source of pirated movies through the use of camcorders in movie theaters, the group said. Pirated software is widely available in retail stores, and Canada’s lax border security allows pirated goods to arrive from other countries, the group said.A Canadian embassy spokesman wasn’t immediately available for comment. SecurityTechnology IndustryCareers