ENG-2005 — Page 160

126 Commerce and Industry

Copyright cases

Trade descriptions

cases

1 119

Cases effected

Persons arrested

Seizure value

9 794

955

$137.1 million

725

$305.2 million

The department maintains stringent control on all optical disc and stamper factories to prevent them from engaging in copyright piracy activities. Optical disc and stamper manufacturers are required to apply for a licence from the Commissioner of Customs and Excise.

During the year, the department took enforcement action against business end-user piracy cases as follows:

Corporate software piracy

Cases effected

Persons arrested

11

21

$1.4 million

Use of infringing music videos in karaoke

26

56

Seizure value

$1.4 million

The department's Special Task Force continued to take vigorous enforcement action against the illicit manufacture and sale of pirated optical discs. Its main enforcement strategies are to carry out repeated and focused raids on retail outlet black spots, and track down their storage and manufacturing facilities. As a result of the department's vigorous enforcement, large-scale illicit manufacturing activities of optical discs and counterfeit goods have been successfully stamped out.

The department also carried out repeated raids against known black spots for selling of counterfeit goods, which resulted in a significant reduction in such illegal activity. In order to evade customs detection, the counterfeiters have to operate for short periods at irregular hours. Some of them only display photographs/catalogues of counterfeit goods to potential customers who are then taken to hidden showrooms. In 2005, the department cracked down 35 such showrooms.

In July, Hong Kong Customs smashed a syndicate exporting counterfeit clothing. to Japan and used the provisions in the Organised and Serious Crimes Ordinance to freeze crime proceeds for the first time in trade mark infringement case. Customs successfully applied for a court restraint order to freeze the crime proceeds of about $22 million.

The second Anti-Internet Piracy Team was established in April. During the year, the department took the first-ever successful enforcement action against illegal peer-to-peer activities on the Internet and arrested a man, who was subsequently sentenced to three months' imprisonment. The teams have achieved the following since they were established: