Piracy Carries New Jail Threat In Thailand

[george]

Piracy carries new jail threat in Thailand

BANGKOK: -- Thai authorities are tightening the noose on piracy by handing out jail sentences to pirates arrested during joint raids conducted by the Thai authorities and the Motion Picture Association (MPA).

In 2007 alone, 12 cases have resulted in distributors and retailers being sentenced to jail (without suspension) for up to two years and fines of up to $22,000 imposed. In one case, even possession of as little as 78 infringing CD-Rs gained the pirate a three month jail sentence.

This is unprecedented as the Central Intellectual Property and International Trade Court of Thailand has until 2006 only sentenced a Taiwanese national to jail for two years for owning a factory that produced pirated discs.

Mike Ellis, Senior Vice President and Regional Director, Asia-Pacific for the Motion Picture Association said: “We are encouraged by the Thai authorities' tougher stance in meting out jail terms and stiff fines to pirates. We have found in our experience elsewhere that deterrent sentences are essential for effective enforcement. To the pirates, being fined is just a cost of doing business."

“While this is a first step, we look forward to more deterrent sentences. After all, these are but only 12 out of the over 200 cases in which MPA are involved. I’m certain there are more cases that involve Thai films that deserve equally severe punishment,” Ellis continued.

-- businessofcinema.com 2007-10-05

[cclub75]

“While this is a first step, we look forward to more deterrent sentences. After all, these are but only 12 out of the over 200 cases in which MPA are involved. I’m certain there are more cases that involve Thai films that deserve equally severe punishment,” Ellis continued.

Oh my dear Mike Ellis... it's a long waaaaaaaay to go for you. A long way to be duped, over and over, by the thai gvt who honestly doesn't give a rat shit about your problems (they have enough by themselves)...

You remember ? It's exactly like in China. You have a meeting with a brochette of officials, who smile at you. They look so sweet and willing, i should say, eager to help you...

By the way, i bought sunday at Fortune Town (Ratchada, I can send you a map if you want) a few dozen of well pirated DVD.

But I feel a bit blasé.

There are just too many to choose from.

It's on the third floor. Next to the pirated software.

Last word : personally, I condemn IP rights violation. I just want to help you to understand that you have already lost the battle (and the war) in Asia.

And anyway : how can you trust the thai authorities on the movies issue... When they are breaking the IP rights of US and europeans companies on... medications by issuing compulsory licences ?

Movie = drugs ?

I let you think about this funny fact.

I know : it hurts.

Edited November 5, 2007 by cclub75

[Scott]

So, with the risk going up, perhaps the price of the pirated discs will go up!

[stumonster]

aaaaarrr , where is me parrot - run up the jolly roger and keel haul " Mike Ellis, Senior Vice President and Regional Director, Asia-Pacific for the Motion Picture Association "

the cheek of these people - to think they should be paid for allowing them to spam the world with their tales of mediocre morality .

when the MPA stops paying off - sorry , lobbying politicians and police to enforce this , they will be ignored.

[sniffdog]

With the arrival of filesharing sites like rapidshare and the likes, who needs Thai pirates? I used to buy dozens of movie and software DVDs ... since 5 months didn't buy a thing. So with

a couple of my friends ....

Edited November 5, 2007 by sniffdog

[soundman]

When will the stupid multinationals learn to price their legitimate products at a level where it makes it un-profitable for IP thiefs to conduct business? Profits will be about the same.....

ie. in Thailand: Sell a five hundred thousand copies of XP windows at 4000B per copy or......

sell twelve million at 400B per copy.....

[Tony Clifton]

Try filling the Grand Canyon with bricks instead.

[britmaveric]

Ahhh the annual threaten the knock-off merchants article..... didnt realize it was that time of year again.

[lazeeboy]

Ahhh the annual threaten the knock-off merchants article..... didnt realize it was that time of year again.

in thailand you cant walk 10 yards without bumping into a knockoff ,wont have enough room in the jails if they arrest everyone

[Martin]

One viewpoint might be that every knock-off bought in Asia is one little guerilla-warfare action against the economic colonisation efforts by the mighty invaders from the West.

Another viewpoint might see Mike Ellis as akin to a rapist who wants his victims jailed for being spoilsports who wouldn't lie back and enjoy it.

[PadThaiGuy]

In one case, even possession of as little as 78 infringing CD-Rs gained the pirate a three month jail sentence.

dam_n it.

Looks like I will only be able to purchase 77 discs at a time now.

[ignis]

There will always be a market for ‘copy’ software until big companies set a lower price for the low wage Countries…

Take Windows OS + Office, just these 2 items cost more than the average Thai pays for a PC + would cost 3 months wages.

[dominique355]

There will always be a market for ‘copy’ software until big companies set a lower price for the low wage Countries…

Take Windows OS + Office, just these 2 items cost more than the average Thai pays for a PC + would cost 3 months wages.

I guess you guys would talk differently if you were the author of software or music that is copied illegally.

And (state sanctioned) piracy in Thailand does not stop at computer software or music and movies. It goes into fashion and even medicine, machinery (spare parts, even for airplanes) etc.

Piracy will only stop when people understand that it is a criminal act, which might put other people's life at risk.

And about a the cost difference of original software to pirate software. Even the pirates make a hefty profit, when their only cost is an empty CD and a piece of paper for the wrapping.

If Microsoft is too expensive, consider installing freeware. Nobody forces you to use Windows Office. I use "OpenOffice", "Firefox" etc.

[PadThaiGuy]

There will always be a market for 'copy' software until big companies set a lower price for the low wage Countries…

Take Windows OS + Office, just these 2 items cost more than the average Thai pays for a PC + would cost 3 months wages.

Come on, selling a software package worth thousands of dollars for 100bt?

Microsoft has a big building full of College graduates working on that stuff for years.

It's their product and should be able to sell it for whatever price they want.

Let the Thais develop their own operating software and sell it for 100bt.

[quiksilva]

There will always be a market for 'copy' software until big companies set a lower price for the low wage Countries…

Take Windows OS + Office, just these 2 items cost more than the average Thai pays for a PC + would cost 3 months wages.

Come on, selling a software package worth thousands of dollars for 100bt?

Microsoft has a big building full of College graduates working on that stuff for years.

It's their product and should be able to sell it for whatever price they want.

Let the Thais develop their own operating software and sell it for 100bt.

Who says it can't be done?

A PC game in England costs in the region of 2000-3000 Baht, whilst here in the LOS the very same, latest genuine original title costs 600 Baht.

[ignis]

There will always be a market for 'copy' software until big companies set a lower price for the low wage Countries…

Take Windows OS + Office, just these 2 items cost more than the average Thai pays for a PC + would cost 3 months wages.

Come on, selling a software package worth thousands of dollars for 100bt?

Microsoft has a big building full of College graduates working on that stuff for years.

It's their product and should be able to sell it for whatever price they want.

Let the Thais develop their own operating software and sell it for 100bt.

Not at all…. 18,000 baht was wanted on Saturday for Office 2007, my friend earns 10,000baht per month. [many earn much less] He bought the OS for 6,000baht, but there is no way he could buy the real Office…

As said the CDs/DVD’s cost very little, so shell we say that 1 million people just in Thailand would buy the genuine Office if it was say 2,000 baht = 4 million baht in sales.

On another point:

Activating the OS…… what a performance…… you have to phone read all the numbers displayed to get the numbers to activate……. No there was no one that spoke Thai, the lady said to phone back on Monday !!!!!! I phone for him gave and got the numbers, I have no idea how to do 3 way calling so had to relay the numbers each way via house phone and mobile…

Edited November 6, 2007 by ignis

[Scott]

I actually don't quite understand the mentality of a lot of people. Piracy is illegal and it is stealing. It has nothing to do about "the little guy" etc. These people aren't a bunch of Robin Hood's, they aren't giving the profits to orphans and widows (or paying taxes, I might ad).

In general, I buy the genuine article (if you can even find it here in Thailand), because it's quality is superior. A friend came over with about 10 pirated discs a few years ago and we were planning a marathon moving watching session. Of the 10 discs, 2 worked, the rest acted up somewhere in the middle to end of the movie--nothing but a bunch of disappointment.

Most of us can live our lives just fine without DVDs. If you can't afford them, don't buy them.

I noticed a few months ago there was a big hoopla about pirating Thai movies and music, which doesn't seem to happen quite so much!

[TAWP]

Piracy will only stop when people understand that it is a criminal act, which might put other people's life at risk.

I actually don't quite understand the mentality of a lot of people. Piracy is illegal and it is stealing. It has nothing to do about "the little guy" etc. These people aren't a bunch of Robin Hood's, they aren't giving the profits to orphans and widows (or paying taxes, I might ad).

Ah, the ignorance...

In most countries pirating software isn't a criminal act, it's a copyright infringement. That is a civil case.

And you cannot steal something by copying it. The original is still there.

[jbowman1993]

I go to Phantip once every couple of months and buy all the pirated movies and tv show seasons that I can watch. Is it illegal? Is it immoral? I don't lose any sleep over it, so must be ok (for me).

I'm glad there are so many of you who take the high road and only purchase "authentic" copies. Good for you! To each their own.

[ZZZ]

Software piracy is heavily, but secretly, promoted by the big software companies (Microsoft). They are only interested to enforce copyright for commercial use.

For private use they operate the same way as drug dealers, they supply free or cheap samples to get you hooked on it. Then when you really need it, commercially, they charge you an arm and a leg for it, disgusting

If there were no pirate copies around everyone would use open source software, get used to that and keep using it for commercial applications, thats when Microsoft would have to cut their prices to what they actually should be, about 10% of current prices.

Edited November 6, 2007 by ZZZ

[Sourdough Al]

Software piracy is heavily, but secretly, promoted by the big software companies (Microsoft). They are only interested to enforce copyright for commercial use.

For private use they operate the same way as drug dealers, they supply free or cheap samples to get you hooked on it. Then when you really need it, commercially, they charge you an arm and a leg for it, disgusting

If there were no pirate copies around everyone would use open source software, get used to that and keep using it for commercial applications, thats when Microsoft would have to cut their prices to what they actually should be, about 10% of current prices.

It is all about market share.

Microsoft is not all that concerned about piracy in Asia because they know that most people can not afford the prices charged. Those are the prices that the western markets pay. They would rather have millions of pirated copies of MS software on machines in Asia than millions of copies of Linux and Open Office!

In China, Microsoft recently dropped the price of MS Office to some ridiculously low price to stimulate consumption and stave off the advances of open source software.

There are still many billions of $$$ to be had, even with the rampant piracy prevalent in the third world countries.

[Cyberstar]

What does MS Office has to do with pirated movie-DVD's? Although I agree that Microsoft gains on the little man running pirated Windows as opposed to everybody running open source (and thus realizinthat these are at least as good) --- this certainly cannot be an excuse for selling/buying pirated movies...

[peter991]

Be afraid - be very afraid, if you are bringing back pirated movie DVDs back to your home country. If you are caught bringing in pirated DVDs into Australia the penalty can be as high as $AUD20,000 (620,000 baht) per DVD! Just to be on the safe side, I post my purchases back to Australia. Fedex and DHL in Thailand have told me they will not allow parcels containing pirated DVDs to be sent out of Thailand.

Peter

[ZZZ]

Some airports, like London Stansted, have even deployed DVD sniffing dogs

[astral]

All pirates should be hung from the Yard Arm, or made to walk the plank.

[sriracha john]

Piracy issue in Thailand....

wake me when the price goes over 99 baht

[mellow1]

The US. and Europe don't care about it or they would really hit the country in the pocket book. People in Thailand are making money on it and that's all that counts. I have never met anyone in Thailand that buys the real thing. Everywhere you go its openly sold. If you sell pirated Thai movies etc.. you will get busted. Nothing new and nothing will change.

[soundman]

All pirates should be hung from the Yard Arm, or made to walk the plank.

or keel hauled!

[melonf]

Re Movie DVDs

One of the problems for the MPAA is that the pirate copies are superior products to the official releases (once the copy is based upon a real DVD rather than the camcorder version)

1) Copies are region free and hence will play on my regionally restricted laptop

2) The local Thai releases suffer from unacceptable censorship whereas the copies can be of the unrated versions etc

3) You can't even get legitimate X movies in Thailand. So any copy version is welcome

4) There are thousands of farang movies worth seeing that simply dont appeal to the Thai distributors so havent obtained a legit release

[Scott]

so, I wonder, in prison do they watch legitimate DVD's or are they pirated?