(AFA - 2007)Read the text and answer questions 21

Every year, criminals make millions of dollars selling fake perfumes, clothes, medicines and computer software. Counterfeit goods account for about 7% of total trade across the globe. And the criminals' gains are other people's losses. Take, for example, governments which are unable to collect revenue from indirect taxes and customs duty on legitimate sales.

Over 30% of sales in mainland China are estimated to be counterfeit. In India, fake products account for 10% of the revenue for the entire health sector. Five out of six Yamaha bikes sold worldwide are not the real thing. Nike, the brand which tells you to "just do it", loses $70 million annually to the menace of fake brands and pirate products. Identical fakes cost Gillete $20 million a year, and Proctor and Gamble loses a staggering $150 million on a twelve-month average in China alone.

Sometimes consumers prefer to buy an illegal copy of a video, CD-ROM, cassette or software package because it costs less. In Russia, for example, copies of Microsoft's Office 2000 program sell for just 1% of the list price. Frequently, however, buyers don't realize they are buying a fake instead of the genuine article.

(Taken from Skyline 5 - Macmillan)

 

The sentence "...the criminals gains are other people's losses" means