Bangkok--25 Dec--Vero Public Relations
Manufacturing, construction and real estate firms caught using unlicensed software in the course of business
The Royal Thai Police continue to expand the geography where they enforce violations of corporate software piracy with raids of seven companies in Chang Mai last week. The companies were caught using 7.8 million baht worth of software in their business operations.
This geographic expansion has helped police conduct increased enforcement of the Thai Copyright Act, which protects software copyrights, to include nearly 300 companies using unlicensed software in their business operations this year. The majority of the police raids conducted in 2013 have taken place in areas of major industrial production and manufacturing. The raids in Chang Mai signify efforts to enforce laws against software piracy on a national scale.
Among the companies raided in Chang Mai were three companies in the real estate industry, including one firm with annual revenues of more than 500 million baht. Manufacturing and construction companies were also among the raided companies in Chang Mai. Together, these companies have average annual revenue of 223.5 million baht per year. All of the companies in Chang Mai were found to be using Autodesk software.
“We encourage all business executives to manage their software carefully, and ensure their software is fully licensed,” said ECD Deputy Commander and Spokesperson Pol. Co. Gen. Chainarong Charoenchainao. “Pirated software carries a lot of risk, including trade risks, supply chain risks, data security risks and legal risks. It is not worth it for Thai business to take chances with pirated software. To compete at a global level, we advise companies to use legal software and IT. The consequences of using pirated software are simply not worth the risks, especially for manufacturers.”
Police have made efforts to educate manufacturers about the use of legal software. In particular, police officials are asking manufacturers to protect export opportunities through good software asset management practices and to ensure compliance with Thai copyright laws.
“Many manufacturing companies rely on software and technology,” said Pol. Co. Gen. Chainarong. “We ask these companies to ensure their software licenses are compliant with Thai laws.”
With Thailand remaining on the Office of the United States Trade Representative Priority Watch List for intellectual property rights violations, police have increased the pace of raids. In 2013, police nearly doubled their raids of companies using pirated software from 179 total raids in 2012 to nearly 300 in 2013. Police also indicate that 2014 will see an increase in enforcement activity of up to 30 percent from the results posted in 2013.
The increased police activity runs in parallel with the Department of Intellectual Property’s declaration that 2013 is the Year of IPR Protection in Thailand.
Under Thailand’s Copyright Act B.E. 2537, infringement of a copyrighted computer program carries punishment of imprisonment and/or a fine.
Those who report the use of unlicensed software by calling the BSA Hotline at 02-714-1010 or by reporting it online are eligible to receive an award of up to 250,000 Thai Baht. The identity of the caller is protected. More information is available online at www.stop.in.th.
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