Joint actions by the Economic and Technological Crime Suppression Division (ECOTEC) and Business Software Alliance (BSA) between February and May 2007 have netted six cases of corporate software piracy involving 230 PCs and 643 illegal software programs amounting to over 22 million baht in value. The raids were conducted in Bangkok, Nonthaburi, Ratchaburi and Ayuthaya provinces.

Bangkok, Thailand (June 7, 2007) -- Pol.Maj.Gen. Visut Vanichbut, the Commander of ECOTEC revealed that software programs being infringed belonged to Adobe, Autodesk, Microsoft, Solid Works, Symantec, and ThaiSoftware.  The combined revenue losses as per the software being infringed amounted to 22,265,648 baht.  The highest single violator with 233 illegal software programs was a company in Ratchaburi.

Pol.Maj.Gen. Visut Vanichbut announced that the Division will consistently and closely pursue the policy of enforcing anti-piracy laws to reduce sales, distribution and usage of pirated software programs.  “ECOTEC is ready to crack down on the sale and use of illegal software in Thailand. High-ranking corporate executives are subject to a court fine not exceeding 800,000 baht or a jail term not exceeding 4 years or both, if found guilty of violating the Copyright Law.” he added.

Mr. Tarun Sawney, BSA’s Director – Anti Piracy, Asia, disclosed that the enforcement action to address software piracy and stem its growth in Thailand has been conducted in conjunction with sustained educational outreach and awareness building programs on the legal use of software by corporations.

Mr. Sawney thanked the Department of Intellectual Property for holding an educational seminar with BSA.  He said an independent study undertaken by IDC, the information technology (IT) industry’s leading global market research and forecasting firm, indicated the global software piracy was at 35% in 2006 whilst that of Thailand was 80%.

The rate of software piracy in Thailand remains high and revenue losses have increased from 8,806 to 14,314 million baht, placing it fourth in the Asia-Pacific region after China (82%), Indonesia (85%), and Vietnam (88%).  Software piracy has had a severe and widespread negative impact on Thailand’s, economic growth, IT industrial job creation, tax earnings and stunted GDP growth.

Mr. Somporn Maneeratanakul, Managing Director of ThaiSoftware Enterprise Co., Ltd. a Thai owned software company, noted that the anti-piracy raids in Thailand were a clear indicator of the effectiveness and earnest determination of the Royal Thai Police to address the software piracy issue.  “BSA helps protect the intellectual property rights of all software publishers including ThaiSoftware.  We pledge our full support to the anti-piracy campaign as it gives our product a lifeline,” he concluded.

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About BSA
The Business Software Alliance (www.bsa.org) is the foremost organization dedicated to promoting a safe and legal digital world. BSA is the voice of the world's commercial software industry and its hardware partners before governments and in the international marketplace. Its members represent one of the fastest growing industries in the world. BSA programs foster technology innovation through education and policy initiatives that promote copyright protection, cyber security, trade and e-commerce. BSA members include Adobe, Altium, Apple, Autodesk, Avid, BEA Systems, Bentley Systems, Borland, CA, Cadence Design Systems, Cisco Systems, CNC Software/Mastercam, Dell, EMC, Entrust, Frontline PCB Solutions - An Orbotech Valor Company, HP, IBM, Intel, INUS Technology, McAfee, Microsoft, Minitab, Monotype Imaging, PTC, SAP, SolidWorks, Sybase, Symantec, Synopsys, Tekla, The MathWorks, Trend Micro and UGS. BSA local affiliates include ThaiSoftware Enterprise.

In Thailand, BSA works closely with the Association of Thai Software Industry (ATSI) and the Association of Thai ICT Industry (ATCI) in the promotion of intellectual property rights.

How to Report Software Piracy in Businesses
The Business Software Alliance operates a toll-free anti-piracy hotline at 1800 291 005 to receive reports on the use of pirated or unlicensed software in businesses. A reward of up to 250,000 Baht is available for any information leading to successful enforcement action against any company using infringing software belonging to members of the BSA. All reports are treated with the strictest confidentiality.

Contact Information
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Suntaree Chinprahut / Nisittha Chaiyen
Tel. 0-2631-2290-5 ext 222, 310
Fax. 0-2234-6192-3
E-mail: suntaree@neotarget.com, nisittha@neotarget.com