[Ecommerce] Fighting piracy in Brazil

[David Tannenbaum]

http://www.brazzil.com/2004/html/articles/jun04/p156jun04.htm

*  A congressional investigation (CPI, Comiss=E3o Parlamentar de
Inqu=E9rito) discovered that piracy in Brazil is a big business run by
organized crime. "We have to make people aware of the fact that piracy
causes unemployment, fraud and tax evasion, besides strengthening
organized crime," says deputy Luiz Antonio de Medeiros, from S=E3o Paulo,
who was the chairman of the CPI.

*  In April, Brazil saw the First National Meeting of Public Prosecutors
Specialized in Combating Crimes Against Intellectual Property, which
took place in Angra dos Reis, a municipality in the state of Rio de
Janeiro. The encounter discussed the war on piracy.

*  Also in April, the Interministerial Committee to Combat Piracy and
the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) held a meeting in
Bras=EDlia with organizations from the Mercosur member-countries
(Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Brazil, together with associate
members, Chile and Bolivia) to discuss copyrights and the war on piracy
in Latin America.

  The purpose of the encounter was to seek a common agreement for the
region, based on a debate over proposals, as well as to promote training
and technical cooperation.

  "Our main goal is to work out an exchange of experiences with respect
to the observance of intellectual property rights, more specifically in
relation to combating piracy in the Mercosur countries, Bolivia, and
Chile," said Isabella Pimentel, consultant at the WIPO office of
Economic Development for Latin America and the Caribbean.

*  Since last year, the federal government is promising to wage an
offensive against piracy in Brazil. In 2002, a national educational
campaign was prepared to raise popular awareness of the harm done by the
consumption of falsified products and to impede their entry into the
country. Posters containing information about this type of crime were
affixed in ports, airports, and bus stations.

*  Nevertheless, according to Monteiro, the country still lacks official
data on the economic damages caused by the sale of falsified products.
All that exist are estimates, such as that of the Association for the
Defense of Intellectual Property, which claims losses of approximately
US$ 120 million per year just in the audiovisual sector.

* "Every civilized country in which the capitalist system functions
needs protection from piracy," affirmed Brazil's Minister of Justice,
M=E1rcio Thomaz Bastos. The Minister believes it is important to combat
this misdemeanor right from its roots, since it can grow and open the
doors to organized crime. "This is a war that we want to win, and the
only way we can win is to attack on all fronts," he declared.

--------------------------------------

http://www.brazzil.com/2004/html/articles/jun04/p156jun04.htm

Brazil Tells Brazilians: Piracy Is Robbery

  Out of every three CDs or DVDs sold in Brazil last year, one was
  pirate. Brazil, however, still lacks official data on the economic
  damages caused by the sale of falsified products. All that exist
  are estimates. It is estimated, for example, that the Brazilian
  audiovisual sector loses US$ 120 million a year due to piracy.

Bianca Estrella


  For a three-month period, beginning next week, some 1,800 movie
theatres around Brazil will be showing a series of shorts, each about 45
seconds long, on the damage done by piracy.

  The film shorts will compare piracy to robbery and attempt to make
people aware of the problems created when they buy counterfeit films or
make unauthorized downloads.

  There are 120,000 jobs in the Brazilian audiovisual sector which pays
some US$ 64.4 million (200 million reais) in taxes annually. However, it
is estimated that losses due to piracy reach almost double that=97around
US$ 119.5 million (370 million reais), not to mention the loss of 17,000
jobs. Out of every three CDs or DVDs sold in Brazil last year, one was
pirate.

  A congressional investigation (CPI, Comiss=E3o Parlamentar de Inqu=E9rito=
)
discovered that piracy in Brazil is a big business run by organized
crime. "We have to make people aware of the fact that piracy causes
unemployment, fraud and tax evasion, besides strengthening organized
crime," says deputy Luiz Antonio de Medeiros, from S=E3o Paulo, who was
the chairman of the CPI.

  In April, Brazil saw the First National Meeting of Public Prosecutors
Specialized in Combating Crimes Against Intellectual Property, which
took place in Angra dos Reis, a municipality in the state of Rio de
Janeiro. The encounter discussed the war on piracy.

  For two days solicitors, prosecutors, attorneys, and presidents of
companies that deal with competition and patents discussed proposals for
government policies to combat illegal commerce in the European and Latin
American communities. They also talked about ethics in competitive
relations, cigarette smuggling, tax evasion and trademarks and patents,
among other issues.

  Also in April, the Interministerial Committee to Combat Piracy and the
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) held a meeting in
Bras=EDlia with organizations from the Mercosur member-countries
(Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Brazil, together with associate
members, Chile and Bolivia) to discuss copyrights and the war on piracy
in Latin America.

  The purpose of the encounter was to seek a common agreement for the
region, based on a debate over proposals, as well as to promote training
and technical cooperation.

  "Our main goal is to work out an exchange of experiences with respect
to the observance of intellectual property rights, more specifically in
relation to combating piracy in the Mercosur countries, Bolivia, and
Chile," said Isabella Pimentel, consultant at the WIPO office of
Economic Development for Latin America and the Caribbean.

  Brazil's Al Capone

An operation carried out March 10, in downtown S=E3o Paulo, resulted in
the seizure of around five thousand sacks containing counterfeit goods
and smuggled merchandise, with an estimated worth of US$ 2.5 million
(7,5 million reais).

  Civil police officers, inspectors from the State Secretariat of
Finance and the Federal Revenue Office, Federal Police and Municipal
Government agents, and representatives of the Parliamentary
Investigation Committee (CPI) on Piracy took part in the raid., in the
March 25 Shopping Center, in the central zone of the city,

  According to Jos=E9 Cl=F3vis Cabrera, regional tax supervisor of the
Secretariat of Finance, 50 percent of the items that were seized, such
as cameras, purses, eyeglasses, clothes, watches, and software are
contraband, and the other 50 percent are counterfeit.

  According to the investigations conducted by the CPI on Piracy, the
place raided=97the March 25 Shopping Center, one of the largest shopping
centers in the capital=97belongs to a Chinese-born naturalized Brazilian
businessman, Law Kin Chong, considered one of the biggest black market
dealers in the country.

  For the president of the CPI, Federal Deputy Luiz Ant=F4nio de Medeiros,
from S=E3o Paulo, the task force, besides seizing illegal products, is
seeking evidence "to arrive at the heads of organized crime, like Law
Kin Chong."

  In Medeiros's view, Chong is one of the main targets of the CPI's
efforts, which are aimed at his conviction. "Nobody doubts that Chong is
the biggest smuggler in Brazil. Clearly he is well-prepared, as was Al
Capone, who was very difficult to arrest but was arrested for tax evasion."

  Education

  Since last year, the federal government is promising to wage an
offensive against piracy in Brazil. In 2002, a national educational
campaign was prepared to raise popular awareness of the harm done by the
consumption of falsified products and to impede their entry into the
country. Posters containing information about this type of crime were
affixed in ports, airports, and bus stations.

  The Interministerial Committee to Combat Piracy, which was created in
2001 for the purpose of coordinating and planning programs to combat
piracy, is composed of representatives of the Ministries of Justice,
Culture, Finance, Foreign Relations, Science and Technology, and
Development, Industry, and Foreign Trade.

  Among the challenges faced by the body is the insertion of the battle
against piracy into the context of the Mercosur. At the moment, Brazil
is the only member of the bloc that has a central organization to combat
the sale of falsified products.

  Nevertheless, according to Monteiro, the country still lacks official
data on the economic damages caused by the sale of falsified products.
All that exist are estimates, such as that of the Association for the
Defense of Intellectual Property, which claims losses of approximately
US$ 120 million per year just in the audiovisual sector.

  The second challenge is to instruct police officers about what is, in
fact, piracy. The National Police Academy has already introduced classes
on intellectual property in its curriculum and intends to extend this
subject to state civil and military police academies.

  The third, big challenge singled out by the coordinator of the
committee is raising popular awareness that piracy constitutes a crime,
specified in article 180 of the Penal Code, prescribing punishments of a
fine and one to four years' imprisonment for anyone who acquires,
receives, or transports objects he (she) knows to be of illegal origin.

  In a February 2003 Federal Police operation called Operation Corsair
III to combat piracy on a national scale, 406,758 recorded CD's, 29,528
blank CD's, and 56,559 cases and various inserts for CD's were
confiscated in the state of Pernambuco.

  All-Fronts War

"Every civilized country in which the capitalist system functions needs
protection from piracy," affirmed Brazil's Minister of Justice, M=E1rcio
Thomaz Bastos. The Minister believes it is important to combat this
misdemeanor right from its roots, since it can grow and open the doors
to organized crime. "This is a war that we want to win, and the only way
we can win is to attack on all fronts," he declared.

  The Interministerial Committee to Combat Piracy was created in March,
2001, for the purpose of formulating, coordinating, promoting,
implementing, and stimulating programs of prevention, education, and
repression to combat the violation of copyright laws. One of the
committee's priorities is to increase popular awareness of the harm
caused by the practice of product falsification.

  The plan is to conduct educational campaigns through the media, with
the participation of associations and entities dedicated to the
protection of intellectual property.

  The committee is formed by representatives of the Ministries of
Justice, Culture, Finance, Foreign Relations, Science and Technology,
and Development, Industry, and Foreign Trade. The organ is headed by
Federal Police commissioner, Cl=F3vis da Silva Monteiro.


  Bianca Estrella works for Ag=EAncia Brasil (AB), the official press
agency of the Brazilian government. Comments are welcome at
lia@radiobras.gov.br.

Translated from the Portuguese by Allen Bennett.