Nearly 71.3 percent of Chinese were aware of copyright, according to a new survey released on Wednesday. The figure was 10.7 percent higher than two years ago.

In the fifth national reading survey conducted by the Chinese Institute of Publishing Science (CIPS) last August, the findings also revealed the purchase rate of pirate publications was declining, down 3.6 percent from 45.5 percent in 2005.

An affiliate of the General Administration of Press and Publication (GAPP), CIPS conducts the reading survey every two years to grasp reading trends and the status quo of cultural consumption among Chinese.

Pirate publications, pirate audio and visual products ranked first in terms of purchase rate, with pirate books second. The purchase rate of pirated games software and fake computer software was only 6 percent.

The survey showed more males than females, and more youth than the elderly, were buyers of pirated goods. People with higher educational backgrounds bought more pirated publications than those with less education.

In addition, urban residents were more likely to buy pirated items than rural ones.

The low price as well as convenience in shopping were the major incentive that spurred people to purchase pirated publications, according to the survey.

About 14.6 percent of buyers said they didn't know they were buying fake goods.

Covering 56 cities in 29 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities, the survey raised its sample number to 20,800, an increase of 12,800 from two years ago.

CIPS said future reading surveys would be carried out annually.

(Xinhua News Agency July 24, 2008)