Stationary manufacturer with more than 500 million baht assets raided for software piracy
Big firms, SMEs among companies raided for software piracy in latest enforcement efforts.
BANGKOK (January 29, 2009) – A company specializing in stationary design and production with registered assets of more than 500 million baht and a roster of international clients is among five companies raided through the first part of this month for use of unlicensed software, a violation of the Thai Copyright Act.
Police allege the company’s design department used unlicensed software for product development purposes. The value of the Autodesk software allegedly pirated by the company is 1.8 million baht. Directors of the company hold liability for the software copyright infringement, and face possible fines and jail sentences, according to police. The stationary firm, whose name cannot be released, is based in Samut Prakan province.
“We continue to investigate a wide variety of companies based on our investigations of software piracy and tips received from the public about companies with unlicensed software,” said Police Colonel Sarayuth Pooltanya of the Economic and Cyber Crime Division. “We will continue to conduct enforcement actions against companies that choose to violate software copyrights—no matter the company’s size, industry or location.”
On the days following the raid of the stationary company, police officers from the Economic and Cyber Crime Division raided two companies in the design and building business, both located in Chonburi. One of these companies has registered assets of more than 200 million baht and the other is classified as an SME. The estimated value of the infringed software allegedly used by these companies is 688,000 baht and 1.1 million baht, respectively. Both companies have Thai ownership.
A company with UK ownership and a company with Japanese ownership also faced police raids for suspected software piracy this month.
Police found a UK industrial engineering company using unlicensed design software at its branch in Rayong. The company relied on the software to provide engineering solutions to local customers in the oil and gas industry. The value of the pirated software is 800,000 baht.
Half a million baht worth of unlicensed software was found at a Japanese manufacturer of industrial machinery. The company, with a sales office in Bangkok, relied on the software for the planning of installation of machinery for customers in Thailand.
“We know that there remain a large number of organizations that violate software copyrights in their business operations,” said Police Colonel Sarayuth. “We ask that people with information about software piracy come forward to provide information to us. We will protect your identity.”
Those who report the use of unlicensed software by calling 02-714-1010 or by reporting it on line 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.
