AMCHAM Supports Anti Piracy Software Campaign

AMCHAM executives cited software piracy as a drain on development of Thailand's IT industry and knowledge economy.

On September 16 Thai police officials announced a 30 day countdown to a crackdown on use of unlicensed software by business.  By October 15, police began enforcement of software copyrights by responding to reports of corporate piracy.

"We are pleased with the Thai government's increased vigilance, and look forward to more support for intellectual property in the future" said Judy Benn, executive director, AMCHAM. 

"A better environment for intellectual property development in Thailand will result in economic stimulation and new jobs,"

The anti-piracy team behind the crackdown is headed by the Economic and Technical Crimes Suppression Division (ECOTEC).  Department of Intellectual Property (DIP) has also played a major role this year in educating the Thai business community about intellectual property laws and methods for ensuring that their businesses are compliant with the rights of copyright holders.  National intellectual property awareness campaign was launched in April followed by series of seminar on Software Asset Management in Bangkok and key upcountry cities.

According to a recent study by IDC, reducing software piracy in Thailand by just ten percentage points over the next four years would generate 2,100 new jobs, over US$1 billion (Bt3.5 billion) in economic growth, and over US$55 million (Bt2.275 billion) in tax revenues.

"Software piracy has continued to be a big threat to the growth of the local Information and Communications sector.  It has also caused lost revenue to our economy," said Siripat Patrangul, Thailand spokesperson for the Business Software Alliance (BSA).  "We hope that through this effort, there will be a significant reduction in Thailand's software piracy rate and increase in awareness and respect for intellectual property rights so that our economy can move forward faster."

Among frequently pirated software products are locally developed software applications.  Advocates say that stronger protections for intellectual property will allow local software developers to invest in innovation at greater levels—as opposed to using resources on anti-piracy measures.