Gov't, self-regulation seen as best defense vs disc piracy

GOVERNMENT regulation and self-imposed industry policies are still the best defense against optical disc piracy, agreed participants of a recently concluded Asian anti-piracy workshop held in Manila.

The Asian Regional Workshop on Effective Practices on Media Production and Anti-Piracy Efforts, attended by representatives of member-countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as well as that of Hong Kong and the United States, highlighted efforts to curb the production, distribution and sale of illegally copied movies, music, software, and video games.

In several presentations, the participants said both the government and private sector should work together to stop piracy. In particular, stiffer penalties should be imposed against illegal optical disc manufacturing and copying plants, while legitimate manufactures should remind their counterparts against illegal activities.

ASEAN Intellectual Property Working Group chairman Haji Shuib Bin Yusop said Asian governments are already implementing their own intellectual property laws, as well as optical media laws.

He said that most of the ASEAN countries have shown significant progress in their efforts to stop piracy.

Some of the participating members during the workshop shared their experiences in their own anti-piracy drives. For instance, Indonesia's Head of Subdirectorate of Industrial Relationship and Investment Promotion Azwar Ratu Pengadilan said his government implemented its own optical media policy under their Intellectual Property Law in 2000, after several illegal disc manufacturing operators relocated to Indonesia.

Since then, Indonesia's Ministry of Industry Trade has released decrees regulating the entry and usage of optical disc-making and copying machines and materials.

The decrees make it more difficult for illegal operators to acquire raw materials for disc production as only licensed manufacturing plants are permitted to purchase the necessary materials.

In Malaysia, Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs director Ahmad Dahur Mahmud said there are 44 legitimate plants now operating in Malaysia. Starting in 2002, Malaysian authorities inspected or raided 33 plants for intellectual property offenses. By 2004 and 2005, the number of plant visits had increased to 341 and 356 raids, respectively.

Mahmud said they have so far suspended the business licenses of about six plants this year.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong's government said it has been among the most successful in its anti-piracy efforts, despite the territory having among the most prolific underground anti-piracy industries several years ago.

Hong Kong Customs senior superintendent Yiu-keung Tam said in his report that between 1998 and 2001 they raided and destroyed a total of 29 factories that were found violating optical disc production laws.

He said their main weapon against pirates was the use of the Source Identification Code (SID), an ID system used to identify the source manufacturer of all optical discs created. SIDs are series of tiny numbers burned into the inner lining of a CD.

Tam also said they have one of the highest maximum penalties for illegal optical disc manufacturing and piracy: two million US dollars and seven years imprisonment.

In addition to government regulation, companies in the optical disc production and reproduction business should also implement policies that will ensure the protection of intellectual property among their counterparts, International Federation of Phonographic Industries Southeast Asian regional investigator John McGuire said.

McGuire said industry players and the government should form compliance bodies that will regularly monitor the industry. He said the group should collect details on optical disc manufacturers and reproducers, particularly their inventory of machines, SID code compliance, production rate, and raw material acquisition.

"These companies should also implement good business practice. They should notify all customers that they employ anti-piracy procedures, they should use the SID code system according to law, employ a dedicated compliance officer and identify their customers and brokers. For big buyers, the optical disc manufacturer should require the buyer to provide ownership and licensing details because they could use the discs to create illegal copies of movies or music. The purpose of optical disc laws is to protect copyright holders rights by monitoring the activities of disc manufacturers," he said.

By Alexander Villafania INQ7.net