BANGKOK — The Department of Intellectual Property (DIP) under the Ministry of Commerce has published statistics on the suppression of intellectual property infringements in the first half of 2024 (January to June). A total of 747 cases of intellectual property infringement under the Trademark, Copyright and Patent Act were prosecuted and a total of 1,723,914 counterfeit items were confiscated.
While the number of cases fell by 20.19 percent compared to the same period last year, the number of items seized rose by 33.73 percent .
The division is as follows:
- Royal Thai Police seizures: 443 cases, a decrease of 3.28 percent compared to the same period last year, with 1,330,477 items seized, an increase of 25.8 percent. This included 266 cases under the Trademark Act with 799,642 items, 174 cases under the Copyright Act with 527,605 items and 3 cases under the Patent Act with 3,230 items.
- Department of Special Investigation (DSI) seizures: 4 cases, a decrease of 42.86 percent, with 78,666 items seized, a decrease of 20.19 percent. All cases fell under the Trademark Act.
- Customs seizures: 300 cases, with 314,771 items seized.
The DIP worked with the Royal Thai Police, the Internal Security Operations Command (ISOC), the Customs Department and the DSI to crack down on intellectual property violations, particularly counterfeit goods hidden in large warehouses before being distributed to smaller retailers and online sales.
Meanwhile, the Foreign Trade Department has been actively addressing the problem of substandard and low-priced imported goods, following the policy of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce Phumtham Wechayachai.
On August 16, the Director-General of the Ministry of Foreign Trade, Ronnarong Phoolpipat, held a meeting with 30 business groups from the Thai Chamber of Commerce, the Board of Trade of Thailand, the Federation of Thai Industries and various associations. The discussion focused on the impact of imported goods on Thai companies and the competitive situation between Thai SMEs and foreign products.
The products discussed included plastics, clothing, gifts and souvenirs, stationery and office supplies, air conditioning, steel, machinery and metalwork, ceramics, granite and marble, cosmetics, food supplements and furniture.
The aim was to understand the import situation and competition between Thai and foreign goods, as well as to gather suggestions and solutions to improve the competitiveness of local products in terms of quality and price.
Business people expressed concern about the overall impact on consumer goods, services and investment. They cited problems such as substandard and cheap products, smuggling at borders, false product declarations and the establishment of foreign companies in Thailand, which do not benefit the country or Thai consumers.
Among the proposals were stricter quality controls on imported goods, the introduction of tax measures to protect domestic producers, strengthening Thai companies’ production and entrepreneurial skills to maintain market share, and revising laws and agreements that hinder Thai trade.
For corporations that need to import capital goods, they asked to consider the impact of measures against imports as importing components is necessary. The ministry will compile all feedback for integration at the policy level to address the issues in cooperation with all relevant authorities.
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