INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY / 2006 STATISTICS : Officials say more arrests reflect improved enforcement

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY / 2006 STATISTICS : Officials say more arrests reflect improved enforcement.

PHUSADEE ARUNMAS

Arrests for intellectual property infringements increased significantly last year, reflecting more effective measures in cracking down on underground businesses, Commerce Ministry officials say. A total of 8,895 IP violations were brought to courts between January and November 2006, with 2.68 million units of illegal products seized, compared with 7,689 cases and 2.26 million units seized for all of 2005.

IP owners such as the US-based Motion Picture Association, one of the most powerful lobby groups, have expressed satisfaction with improved crackdowns in recent years, said Puangrat Asavapisit, director-general of the Intellectual Property Department.

She said the response of industry groups such as the MPA was the best measure of Thailand's attempts to suppress illegal activities.Even so, Thailand remains among a number of countries on the ''watch list'' of the US Trade Representative, under Washington's so-called Special 301 law, which could mean a reduction in trade preferences.

Normally, the USTR reviews IP protection by its trading partners in January and February of each year, she said.

According to Ms Puangrat, the department has also asked the owners of some department stores to terminate leasing contracts with tenants who sell counterfeit goods.

Officials say that about half of all counterfeit goods are sold in certain department stores while the rest are found at street stalls and other markets.

Bangkok Post
Sunday January 14, 2007