VZCZCXRO9185
OO RUEHCHI RUEHCN RUEHDT RUEHHM
DE RUEHBK #1338/01 1540941
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 030941Z JUN 09
FM AMEMBASSY BANGKOK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7190
INFO RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUEHRC/DEPT OF AGRICULTURE WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUEAWJL/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUEHZS/ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS IMMEDIATE
RUEHCHI/AMCONSUL CHIANG MAI IMMEDIATE 6621

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BANGKOK 001338 
 
STATE FOR EAP/MLS, EEB/TPP/IPE 
STATE PASS TO USTR FOR WEISEL, BISBEE, AND BAE 
COMMERCE FOR EAP/MAC/OKSA 
COMMERCE PASS TO USPTO 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958:N/A 
TAGS: ECON ETRD KIPR PINR PREL TH
SUBJECT: THAILAND: A NEW INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY STRATEGY 
 
REF: A. BANGKOK 1203 (PATPONG RAID) 
¶B. BANGKOK 379 (RIGHT MOVES ON IPR) 
 
BANGKOK 00001338  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: Deputy Commerce Minister Alongkorn Ponlaboot, the 
government's face of its intellectual property rights (IPR) 
campaign, has devised a new interagency strategy to combat IPR 
piracy in Thailand.  Alongkorn explained to the Ambassador on May 27 
that his proposed strategy, which he has coined "Creative Thailand," 
will become the government's official IPR policy and will involve 
multiple ministries, including the Ministries of Education, Science 
and Technology, Public Health and Agriculture.  His plan has already 
received approval from the government's interagency IPR committee, 
and he now hopes to present the overall strategy to the Cabinet for 
final policy approval later this month.  The Ambassador applauded 
Alongkorn on his personal efforts over the past six months to 
improve the government's protection of IPR and encouraged him to 
keep the pressure on the country's criminal IP syndicates, 
particularly if he hopes to move Thailand off of the Special 301 
Priority Watch List in 2010.  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2. (SBU) COMMENT:  While the government has had multiple IPR action 
plans and strategies in the past, the personal involvement of Deputy 
Commerce Minister Alongkorn, who has tied his career and reputation 
to the success of this IPR campaign, could make a difference if the 
government can continue these efforts over the long run.  What is 
particularly impressive is that Alongkorn has now enlisted the 
cooperation of other key government ministries to implement the 
strategy; whether this cooperation will be realized will be a real 
challenge within Prime Minister Abhisit's still-fragile coalition 
cabinet.  A high profile May 6 raid in the notorious Patpong Night 
Market (reftel), that was largely perceived as a debacle, 
temporarily slowed Alongkorn's IPR efforts, but it appears he is now 
back on track.  We continue to emphasize to Alongkorn and his IPR 
team that the government's efforts must be sustained over a longer 
period and demonstrate significant results, if the government is 
serious about its IPR campaign and its desire to justify the removal 
of Thailand the Special 301 Priority Watch List.  END COMMENT. 
 
Thailand's Intellectual Property Strategy 
----------------------------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) In a meeting with the Ambassador on May 27, Deputy Commerce 
Minister Alongkorn Ponlaboot pitched his policy framework for the 
government's overall IPR strategy.  (Note: We will forward a full 
English translation of the strategy to the Department separately via 
e-mail.)  The National Intellectual Property Committee, chaired by 
Prime Minister Abhisit, adopted the framework on May 25. Alongkorn 
hopes to present the overall strategy to the Cabinet for interagency 
approval by the end of June. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Alongkorn described his plans to the Ambassador as the 
"Creative Thailand Strategy," with the goal that Thai citizens will 
be motivated and inspired to create their own intellectual property 
to propel the Thai economy forward.  The Ambassador commended 
Alongkorn on his continued efforts to improve the government's IPR 
policies and particularly noted Alongkorn's personal efforts to 
convince the Thai public that IPR should be even more important to 
Thai citizens and businesses for the future of the Thai economy than 
to foreign governments and foreign rights holders.  Alongkorn 
concurred, noting that he believes Thailand's "creative economy" 
could become the engine for growth that the country very much needs 
during the current global economic downturn.  He candidly added that 
his dreams of a self-sufficient "creative economy" will depend on 
whether the government can prevent or at least lessen the high 
levels of piracy throughout the country today. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Alongkorn and the staff of the Department of Intellectual 
Property at the Ministry of Commerce have revitalized a six-part 
interagency strategy to make IPR a national policy priority. 
Alongkorn emphasized that the strategy will involve other key 
ministries, including Science and Technology, Public Health, 
Industry, Education, and Agriculture, to ensure the strategy's 
success.  The six components include the following: 
 
- IP Creation: Promote the creation of Thai IP in areas that will 
improve Thailand's economic competitiveness.  Encourage government 
and private investment to develop innovative technologies; 
 
- IP Commercialization: Actively promote marketing and investment 
opportunities for Thai-owned IP to ensure commercial success. (Note: 
 
BANGKOK 00001338  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
The Ministry of Commerce, along with representatives of Thailand's 
film, music, and other creative industries, will host a national 
Intellectual Property Fair, as part of this strategy, on June 12-14 
to promote Thai-owned IP.); 
 
- IP Protection: Improve Thailand's legal regime for intellectual 
property rights and ensure compliance with international legal 
standards.  Propose amendments to the copyright and trademark laws; 
 
 
- IP Violation Prevention and Suppression: Significantly increase 
the government's prevention and law enforcement efforts to protect 
against continuing large-scale piracy and counterfeiting; 
 
- IP Awareness and Education: Raise awareness of Thai citizens and 
businesses of the importance of IP to Thailand's economy.  In 
coordination with IP experts, develop education curriculums to raise 
awareness of students from elementary to university levels. 
 
- Fiscal and Monetary Support for IP Strategy: Source government and 
private sector funds to support the government's overall IP strategy 
implementation.  Coordinate with the Ministry of Finance and 
revenue-collecting agencies to shore up funds to enhance the 
government's activities. 
 
IPR Legal Improvements Already Underway 
--------------------------------------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) Alongkorn asserted that his immediate priority will be to 
improve the government's legal authorities to arrest, prosecute and 
convict buyers, sellers, and distributors of pirated and counterfeit 
goods.  He hopes the court will be able to hand down more deterrent 
sentences to those convicted of IP violations.  He highlighted a 
successful case earlier this year, where the court sentenced three 
IP offenders to two-year prison sentences, a rare occurrence but one 
that he hopes will become more common after the government proposes 
amendments to increase criminal penalties under the various IP 
laws. 
 
¶7. (SBU) Alongkorn has specifically proposed amendments to the 
Copyright and Trademark Acts, changes that will increase penalties 
for convicted sellers and distributors of pirated and counterfeit 
goods.  He has also put forward provisions that will enable the 
government to arrest and prosecute the buyers of pirated goods. 
(Note:  This is a controversial provision that many rights holders 
and IP lawyers believe could derail the entire initiative)  The 
proposed amendments also include landlord liability provisions that 
will enable the government to prosecute those who lease property to 
vendors and distributors of pirated and counterfeit goods. 
Alongkorn has also suggested adding piracy and counterfeiting as 
predicate offenses under the money laundering law. 
 
¶8. (SBU) While the legislative process to amend these laws will be 
lengthy, Alongkorn is personally pushing the changes forward.  He 
chaired a public hearing on June 1 to explain and discuss the 
amendments with interested parties, as required by law.  The 
specific increases for the penalties are still under debate, but 
rights holders at the June 1 hearing told us they were pleased with 
Alongokorn's initiative to improve the laws.  Commerce Minister 
Porntiva Nakasai is expected to propose the final amendments to the 
Cabinet within the next month, after which drafts can be sent to the 
Council of State for additional scrutiny.  The amendments could be 
presented to Parliament by the end of the year. 
 
JOHN