Foreign Manufacturers Ripping Off Thai Brands

[djayz]

One of the best stories in a long time. I loved it!

More red bull for China and thte Chinese!!

Unfortunately Thailand doesn't have too many other products worth copying...

What goes around comes around.

[TAWP]

So "bastardization" may be a bit harsh, it's rather a natural development in a free market system with competition as the motor of development.

No, it is only the natural development in an anti-free market setup of corporatism.

The only ones that truly benefit from it is multinational or other huge corporations, not SMBs.

It is very rare to find any hard proponents of a truly free market that is pro-IP laws. And they are reducing in numbers...

[Considered Opinion]

I must confess that made me laugh after the years and years that people have spent trying to manufacture things in Thailand that they designed overseas only to find 12 months after they released them that a Thai company was copying them.

One can only laugh and point out that there is such a thing as karma.

[elshaheen]

What is new with this story? Simple, this is called Competition. Everyone does it.

Samsung and LG copy / rip off a competitor’s product, take it apart and copy it and stamp their own name. Why, they don’t have the mental capacity to be creative. Bill Gates snatched some basic computer code and made it into Windows OS.

[softgeorge]

I was wanting to buy some authentic ripcurl clothing in Thailand can any point me in the right direction?

[whybother]

I was wanting to buy some authentic ripcurl clothing in Thailand can any point me in the right direction?

There is a RipCurl shop in Esplanade (Ratchada, just down from Rama 9).

[moetownblues]

Now I would like to see western governments applying the same land ownership, visa, and citizenship rules for Thais that we have to put up with in Thailand. "Oh! Aren't they awful! Look how badly they are treating us poor Thai citizens!"

Not necessary for western governments to do anything. It is up to the Thai government to rule over the Thais as they do us farang. I.E. if it is deemed NOT RIGHT (illegal) for a farang to own land HERE then it should be equally NOT RIGHT and illegal for a Thai to own land outside of Thailand. Any Thai found owning land outside of Thailand should be prosecuted HERE with loss of citizenship the highest penalty. Anything less would be a double-standard which of course the Thais are famous for.

Won't happen. My thai wife has actually owned two (2) properties in Melbourne for about 15 yrs (Before I met her) The value of these properties now are out of reach of your average aussie and the rental income she gets comes straight into the thai economy. Perfectly legal

[dominique355]

So "bastardization" may be a bit harsh, it's rather a natural development in a free market system with competition as the motor of development.

No, it is only the natural development in an anti-free market setup of corporatism.

The only ones that truly benefit from it is multinational or other huge corporations, not SMBs.

It is very rare to find any hard proponents of a truly free market that is pro-IP laws. And they are reducing in numbers...

Well, we have seen an economic system where IP rights were only on paper, no real reward for development and inventiveness and it failed miserably: communism.

In fact, as soon as a country started to truly commit to protecting intellectual property, instead of allowing stealing, the economy has gone up. If inventiveness and investment into R & D cannot be protected, who would invest? Who would risk new development? Look at Taiwan, Hongkong, Japan and compare to Thailand.

Free market without protection of intellectual property is simply not "free" market.

There are plenty of examples of single guys and small companies coming up with a brilliant idea, protecting it, exploiting it and making a success. In fact, the so-called SMEs would not survive without IP rights, which allow them to survive next to the big companies.

[KKK]

Now I would like to see western governments applying the same land ownership, visa, and citizenship rules for Thais that we have to put up with in Thailand. "Oh! Aren't they awful! Look how badly they are treating us poor Thai citizens!"

Not necessary for western governments to do anything. It is up to the Thai government to rule over the Thais as they do us farang. I.E. if it is deemed NOT RIGHT (illegal) for a farang to own land HERE then it should be equally NOT RIGHT and illegal for a Thai to own land outside of Thailand. Any Thai found owning land outside of Thailand should be prosecuted HERE with loss of citizenship the highest penalty. Anything less would be a double-standard which of course the Thais are famous for.

Won't happen. My thai wife has actually owned two (2) properties in Melbourne for about 15 yrs (Before I met her) The value of these properties now are out of reach of your average aussie and the rental income she gets comes straight into the thai economy. Perfectly legal

You missed the point..it's not just about legaity or economy, it is about standards/morals,. WHAT'S GOOD FOR THE GOOSE IS GOOD FOR THE GANDER. If foreign ownership of land is considered BAD by a country (Thailand) it should apply to its citizens (Thais) not just its foreingers (Farang). Australia allowed your Thai wife to own property in Australia (NO DISCRIMINATION) while an Australian cannot own property here (DISCRIMINATION) DOES NOT make that RIGHT. Its SHOULD BE just as WRONG as the Thais decided that foreign ownership of land is WRONG not AUSTRALIA. It is all about double-standard. Something that the Thais experts at..

If the above does not make you happy then I suggest you petition all countries that offer an open land purchase policy (NO DISCRIMINATION) immediately pass laws that forbid THAIS (AND ONLY THAIS) from purchasing land in those countries. Personally I would not be happy with that as it smacks of discrimination. ALL PEOPLE ARE EQUAL. It is the Thais who think they are a little more equal than others. Some of their own medicine might make them wake up.

Edited December 5, 2010 by KKK

[KKK]

Thailand doesn't have too many other products worth copying...

Where is their Faraday, Watt, Brunel, Ohm, Gates, etc....I know of none. They invented/discovered nothing with the possible exceptions of corruption, fried rice and katoeys.

Edited December 5, 2010 by KKK

[gemini81]

Thailand doesn't have too many other products worth copying...

Where is their Faraday, Watt, Brunel, Ohm, Gates, etc....I know of none. They invented/discovered nothing with the possible exceptions of corruption, fried rice and katoeys.

jasmine rice and muay thai (oh wait..muay thai came from cambodian bogador, according to the writings in and around phnom penh) not a whole lot else worth copying! except for a few female clones or robots I'd like.

[TAWP]

So "bastardization" may be a bit harsh, it's rather a natural development in a free market system with competition as the motor of development.

No, it is only the natural development in an anti-free market setup of corporatism.

The only ones that truly benefit from it is multinational or other huge corporations, not SMBs.

It is very rare to find any hard proponents of a truly free market that is pro-IP laws. And they are reducing in numbers...

Well, we have seen an economic system where IP rights were only on paper, no real reward for development and inventiveness and it failed miserably: communism.

In fact, as soon as a country started to truly commit to protecting intellectual property, instead of allowing stealing, the economy has gone up. If inventiveness and investment into R & D cannot be protected, who would invest? Who would risk new development? Look at Taiwan, Hongkong, Japan and compare to Thailand.

Free market without protection of intellectual property is simply not "free" market.

There are plenty of examples of single guys and small companies coming up with a brilliant idea, protecting it, exploiting it and making a success. In fact, the so-called SMEs would not survive without IP rights, which allow them to survive next to the big companies.

This just isn't true. The reality is that examples ranging in the hundreds and more of big companies misusing IP laws to their own benefit (including filing over-scoping patents or patents that suffer from prior art disqualification) where a small company has neither the time nor means to fight it and therefor have to comply with licensing against the larger company - while most large companies (I am talking about the computer technology and software world now) sign exchange-deals in range of thousands of patents that they interchange with each-other at no cost as they therefor both gain access to the patents and also don't have to spend time or energy dealing with the issues...

Or maybe we should bring up the whole fraudulent submarine-filing of patents? Or companies that have never created a product but still owning hundreds of patents and living on licensing-fee's these filings bring them as they are filing claims against large number of technology companies?

IP laws, trademarks, copyrights or patents, are NOT a pre-requisite for a free and open market - it is the opposite. Patents are a government-enforced monopoly. Nothing free about that.

Oh, I should forward your idea that the lack of IP laws would equate with communism. A few scholars will have fun with that quote. Including some Nobel laureates.

Reading for some:

http://www.againstmonopoly.org/index.php?limit=0&chunk=0&topic=IP%20Law

http://www.isei.manchester.ac.uk/research/researchareas/whoownsscience/

http://blog.mises.org/13302/without-rejecting-ip-progress-is-impossible/

http://blog.mises.org/14363/intellectual-property-as-socialistic-human-rights/

[Piengrudee]

Rich Farang bankers ripping off poor Thai farmers.Stand Chrt, HSVC, UOB, CIMB, B of Scot, Citibank etc, are just some example that sucks poor Thai farmers dry with high interest rate.

[Thaddeus]

Rich Farang bankers ripping off poor Thai farmers.Stand Chrt, HSVC, UOB, CIMB, B of Scot, Citibank etc, are just some example that sucks poor Thai farmers dry with high interest rate.

And they only do it to Thais don't they, and of course the rich Thai bankers would never ever consider doing such a thing to their own people.

[checazzo]

Could this be karma?

Why would it be karma? Care to explain?

I think what he/she means is that what goes around comes around. Thais have been pirating things for years and now something of thier own is being pirated. Go to any market and you can buy Guchi for 100 baht or any of the latest DVD's even before they have been released.

Well, they do something about and law enforcement working to reduce it.

Except you are some xenophobe racist who stereotype all Thais and blame all for what a few have done there is no reason to say any Thai patent/copyright holder has lost his right to complain because of the other pirates.

People make such silly and thoughtless comments will telling for sure here other stories how and unwelcome foreigners are or that they are always get ripped off. But that is probably only a karma like payback for this ugly mindset.

All this CDs - everyone know that is a copy, but when it comes to food products like drinks and and seasoning products fake products bearing a much greater risk like the health of the costumer.

Take it easy! Talk about being insecure. It is more ironic than anything, however making statements about the policies in Thailand are not racist unless they suggest that it is due to a genetic flaw of some kind which it is not. Counterfeit products are common in most developing countries, not just in Thailand. That being said, most developing countries realize it would be ridiculous to blame other countries for counterfeiting their goods while they themselves are guilty of the same. Hypocrisy? Not that other countires aren't hypocritical but dire pane al pane e vino al vino, call a spade a spade.

Having worked for multinationals in Thailand and the US, I can say without a doubt racism is more prevalent in Thailand than in corporate America. If anyone makes a racist remark at the workplace in the US it is grounds for termination, however in Thailand, there is almost no consequence for being openly racist except to their superiors.

I don't know your ethnic background, however you seriously need to acquire a clue and a life, unless of course you work for the TAT or equivalent, in which case you just need an education.

[MAJIC]

Now I would like to see western governments applying the same land ownership, visa, and citizenship rules for Thais that we have to put up with in Thailand. "Oh! Aren't they awful! Look how badly they are treating us poor Thai citizens!"

Not necessary for western governments to do anything. It is up to the Thai government to rule over the Thais as they do us farang. I.E. if it is deemed NOT RIGHT (illegal) for a farang to own land HERE then it should be equally NOT RIGHT and illegal for a Thai to own land outside of Thailand. Any Thai found owning land outside of Thailand should be prosecuted HERE with loss of citizenship the highest penalty. Anything less would be a double-standard which of course the Thais are famous for.

Exactly:

This attitude: I can win your marbles,but you can't win mine,should cease,

but how do you educate them?

[mca]

This is terrible, It is a disgrace that poor Thais are being cheated by the evil foreigners - that is the Thais role in life. :jap:

" Ladies and Gentlemen. Welcome to the annual " Thai Visa Forum I Am A Moron Awards " live from Impact Arena in sunny Bangkok and sponsored by our good friends at Chang Beer. As usual the competition has been fierce and in some cases downright frightening at the level of cretinism, obsession, dribbling, stereotyping, chip on shoulder xenophobia and just blind ill informed ranting coupled with a sense of wit on par with a vacuum cleaner exhibited by people who amazingly actually managed to find their way to the airport and fly to Thailand completely unaided" .

Edited December 5, 2010 by mca

[KKK]

Now I would like to see western governments applying the same land ownership, visa, and citizenship rules for Thais that we have to put up with in Thailand. "Oh! Aren't they awful! Look how badly they are treating us poor Thai citizens!"

Not necessary for western governments to do anything. It is up to the Thai government to rule over the Thais as they do us farang. I.E. if it is deemed NOT RIGHT (illegal) for a farang to own land HERE then it should be equally NOT RIGHT and illegal for a Thai to own land outside of Thailand. Any Thai found owning land outside of Thailand should be prosecuted HERE with loss of citizenship the highest penalty. Anything less would be a double-standard which of course the Thais are famous for.

Exactly:

This attitude: I can win your marbles,but you can't win mine,should cease,

but how do you educate them?

They don't need educating, they already know. They just choose to do nothing about it and gain from it. Only course of action I can think off is to keep on exposing it letting them know, we know and hopefully they will shamefully change when they've lost enough face.

[newermonkey]

Hmm... What a great idea!

BTW . Red Bull is not a Thai product, its Austrian and has Chaleo Yoovidhya (Thai) as a partner:

Red Bull is an energy drink sold by the Austrian Red Bull GmbH. It was created as an adaptation of the Thai energy drink Krating Daeng (which translates as "Red Bull")

In 2009 it was discovered that Red Bull Cola exported from Austria contained trace amounts of cocaine. Red Bull has also been the target of criticism concerning the possible health risks associated with the drink.

^{Info ripped off from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_bull}

Edited December 6, 2010 by newermonkey

[liveinlos]

For a country that openly sells every counterfeit and pirated product in the world, you would think they would be the last one to complain that this is happening to them. Turnaround is fair play.

[whybother]

Hmm... What a great idea!

BTW . Red Bull is not a Thai product, its Austrian and has Chaleo Yoovidhya (Thai) as a partner:

Red Bull is an energy drink sold by the Austrian Red Bull GmbH. It was created as an adaptation of the Thai energy drink Krating Daeng (which translates as "Red Bull")

In 2009 it was discovered that Red Bull Cola exported from Austria contained trace amounts of cocaine. Red Bull has also been the target of criticism concerning the possible health risks associated with the drink.

^{Info ripped off from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_bull}

I think you would find that given that Red Bull is an adaptation of a Thai drink, with (effectively) the same name, that it is probably a Thai product.

Your argument basically says that Vegemite isn't an Australian product because it is owned by a US company.

[Thongkorn]

My wife use to work in factory in Bangkok , it made Lipo, AND, they made redbull under license and put it in Tins for Red bull. the cost of the product was about 8/9 baht a tin for Red bull, So who is worse , Red bull for charging extortionate prices in Europe or the Thais for copying it cheaper.

[dude007]

Did the Thais forget how much Intellectual Property infringments they commit every day at Panthip Plaza of Fortune Town or anywhere on Sukhumvit or Silom? Wihout citing the Louis Vuitton purses, the Channel parfume, the omega watches, etc... the list is endless.

When you throw the ball against the wall, it comes back... also in Thailand!

[Piengrudee]

Red bull copy Kating Daeng. Katinng Daeng copy Lipo. Lipo copy . . . . . . stc.

[dude007]

One of the best stories in a long time. I loved it!

More red bull for China and thte Chinese!!

Unfortunately Thailand doesn't have too many other products worth copying...

What goes around comes around.

wrong! They have the massage to export (with happy end). Politicians made it already clear in their suggestion!

[TAWP]

One of the best stories in a long time. I loved it!

More red bull for China and thte Chinese!!

Unfortunately Thailand doesn't have too many other products worth copying...

What goes around comes around.

wrong! They have the massage to export (with happy end). Politicians made it already clear in their suggestion!

You cannot Trademark, Copyright or Patent an idea (even if the latter is 'wobbly' in the US in Software Patents).

[LaoPo]

Red bull copy Kating Daeng. Katinng Daeng copy Lipo. Lipo copy . . . . . . stc.

Maybe you should to read this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Bull#History

LaoPo

[KCPhuket]

Red Bull is not Thai, it is Austrian. Kating Daeng is Thai.

Yes, it is an adaptation of Krating Daeng first marketed as Red Bull in 1987...at that time the ownership was 51 percent Thai.

I would be concerned also what the Chinese might put in the counterfeit drink as they have a history of puttings some deadly stuff in baby formula!

[teatree]

There's quite a big difference between copying food and drink and copying general merchandise.

If you buy a Gucci bag from a market stall in BKK you would have to be stupid to think it was real. You buy the bag knowing full well it is a fake.

I would guess the people buying the fake Red Bull have no idea it is fake and what ingredients are in it.

[Wavefloater]

LOL -- It looks like the shoe is on the other foot, but I seriously doubt they can see that.

The Thai Book of Inventions is one blank page, and the quality of Thai products is generally dismal, so this must be a situation that shocks and confuses the h*ll out these people.

As other people hinted, they should go cry the blues to all the companies they've been ripping off for so many decades. I don't see a lot of sympathy coming their way.