Thailand working with e-commerce on intellectual property

Thailand has signed an agreement with major e-commerce platforms to fight intellectual property (IP) rights infringement, gaining new and powerful allies in the Kingdom’s ongoing battle against piracy.

Jurin Lasksanawisit, Minister of Commerce, signed the memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Shopee, Lazada, JD Central and IPR owners. Those e-commerce platforms are the largest in the region for consumers.

Jurin said that the agreement aims to prevent online sales of pirated goods or infringe on copyrights and trademarks. Another goal is to share knowledge on IP rights protections with online merchants.

The Minister stressed that better enforcement of IPR in e-commerce would increase Thailand’s competitiveness while adding value to products and services.

Vuttikrai Leewiraphan, Director-General of the Intellectual Property Department, Ministry of Commerce, said that the government had blocked or disabled over 1,500 URLs during the last two years because they violated intellectual property rights.

“The MoU will help ensure Thailand’s IP protection and enforcement system and establish the appropriate environment for the growth of online trading,” Vuttikrai added.

The government has taken a harder line and made progress on this issue in recent years. One reason is the desire to protect Thai artists and businesses who have also suffered damages from counterfeiters and IP pirates. Partnerships with creators and online platforms are essential for solving the problem.

“The Department of Intellectual Property hopes for direct cooperation from the copyright and website owners to make the suppression efforts more effective,” Vuttikrai said.

Photo courtesy of  http://elearning.dtn.go.th/course/category/IP