Thailand launches campaign against rampant online streaming theft
Thailand is working with other Apec member countries over copyright protection of online content, in the face of streaming-service hacking and other infringements, Department of Intellectual Property director-general Vuttikrai Leewiraphan said on Friday.
The Kingdom and 20 other Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) member states are pushing for measures to tackle the problem of copyright violation of online content, he said.
The move comes after numerous hacking attacks of online streaming services and cases of illegal access to online content. The Apec members also discussed measures to prevent the production and sale of devices used in copyright violations of online content, according to Vuttikrai, whose agency is under the Commerce Ministry.
On Monday and Tuesday, representatives of Apec member states attended an online meeting hosted by the Department of Intellectual Property.
Thailand is hosting the Apec 2022 summit and related meetings this year.
Vuttikrai said that copyright protection of online content was necessary for Thailand as the industry is worth an estimated 200 billion baht.
“Online streaming is a channel of distribution for Thailand’s content industry, including music, movies and drama series. The [online] channel is convenient, speedy and preferred by today’s consumers,” he said.
The department’s push is aligned with the government’s policy boosting Thailand’s soft power through digital content.
The director-general said his agency would also promote public awareness of the need to respect intellectual property rights through streaming systems and the Internet.