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Draft amendments to the Thai Copyright Act have been approved by the cabinet
01/02/2022
On the 29th of September 2020, the Thai cabinet approved a set of draft amendments for the Copyright Act B.E. 2537 (1994). These amendments have been designed to bring Thai Copyright law in line with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty.
These Amendments have now received approval from the Thai Senate and will become effective 180 days after publication in the Royal Thai Government Gazette.
What are the new changes to the Copyright Act?
1 • Amending the definition of the term ‘service provider’.
The Draft Amendment introduces the following four categories of service provider:
- An intermediary service provider;
- A temporary computer data storage service provider;
- A computer data storage service provider;
- A computer data locating service provider.
The draft amendments also address the limited liability of service providers. Service providers must comply with the following conditions in order to be exempt from potential liability for copyright infringement:
1. An intermediary service provider will not be liable for copyright infringement if they:
Have only transmitted computer data through an automated technical process;
Are not the original source for the transmission and do not select its recipients;
The data is not altered.
2. A temporary computer data storage service provider will not be liable for copyright infringement if they:
- Transmit the computer data through their computer system without changing or editing the content of such data.
- Do not use technology to obtain information related to the usage/activities of service users;
- Have a system for keeping the data up-to-date.
3. A computer data storage service provider will not be liable for copyright infringement if they:
Do not know, or could be reasonably expected to know, that any data on their computer system has infringed copyright;
Immediately removes any liable data from their system or restrict access to such data upon notification of copyright infringement.
4. A computer data locating service provider will not be liable for copyright infringement if they:
Do not know, or could be reasonably expected to know, that any data on their computer system has infringed copyright;
Immediately removes any liable data from their system or restrict access to such data upon notification of copyright infringement.
2 • The new “Notice and take down” scheme for removal of infringing data
Service providers must also comply with the newly created “notice and take down” scheme, in order to be exempt from liability.
If a copyright owner has reasonable grounds to believe that a copyrighted work has been infringed on a computer system, they can notify the service provider of the infringement and request the service provider to remove or cease to provide access to the relevant data. Upon receipt of the notification, service providers must take down the content requested as quickly as possible. Additionally, the service provider must notify the user who has committed the alleged infringement, or otherwise risk exposing themselves to liability.
If the user lodges an objection to the allegation, the service provider must notify the copyright owner.
Additionally, if the copyright owner does not file a lawsuit against the alleged infringer within 15 days, then the service provider may restore the data from the alleged infringement to the computer system.
3 • Updated definition for the term “technological measures”.
Technological measures will now be defined as, “a technology used to protect the rights of that copyright owner, or rights of an actor/actress provided within this Act, or a technology that controls the access to a copyrighted works or any recorded, with efficiency.
4 • Removal of the term “Avoiding technological measures”.
Under the Draft Amendment, the provision, manufacture, sale, or distribution of services, products, or equipment that are produced for the primary purpose of circumventing technological protection measures will also now be considered as an infringement. Anyone who participates in any of these activities is subject to prosecution.
5 • Update to the period of copyright protection
These Amendments also address the period of copyright protection for the following areas, audiovisual materials, movies, audio/sound recording and broadcasting work.
Section 21 of the Draft Amendment states that these areas list above are to have 50 years of
protection after the creation of the work, but if there is an advertisement relating to such work, the protection period will start from the first time the advertisement has been broadcast”.
How does this affect my business?
These new amendments pose significant changes to the existing Copyright Laws in Thailand. For example, changes to the definition of service provider and the new ‘notice and takedown’ requirements impose extra duties and requirements upon companies. Failure to ensure complete compliance could lead to legal issues down the line.
In order to ensure your business will be fully compliant when these amendments come into force, why not see how the Belaws team of experts can help you.
In conclusion
If you are interested in learning more about how your business can navigate the often tricky Intellectual Property laws, why not book a Consultation with one of our IP experts here.
Please note that this article is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
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