Did you know that there is a museum of counterfeit goods in downtown Bangkok? It houses more than 4,000 goods in fourteen categories, including clothing, footwear, watches and eyewear, accessories, cosmetics, automotive parts, and even stationery and office supplies. Open to the public on Mondays at 2 pm and Thursdays at 10 am, it is by appointment only other times of the week. One wouldn’t expect a country whose capital houses such a museum to be cracking down on intellectual property infringement, but apparently Thailand is making an attempt to move from the infringer to the victim, and even receiving pushback from the public that is making a living off of the goodwill built by other individuals and companie s. Historically, Thailand, and particularly Bangkok, has been a hotbed of infringement, with counterfeit goods being openly available for the asking and manufactured in local factories. This culture of infringement also extended to the local music business, which freely played the songs of others, and didn’t seem to be particularly bothered when their songs were in turn played. Boonserm Panyasamphan, a Bangkok-based musician that tours the country with his traveling burlesque group, currently has a hit single called “I Have an Itchy Ear”. He, though, has been playing the music of others for years, and is unconcerned that other bands are capitalizing off of his song. “We play whatever people want to hear,” he says.

But GMM Grammy, a Thai music publisher, is now beginning to crackdown on the unauthorized performance of copyrighted songs. In fact, it is preparing lawsuits to collect performance fees of up to $7,600 a year directly from the artists, in order to offset the losses it says it is suffering from music piracy.

This move, though, is creating quite a backlash, as the country’s musicians voice their opposition. They are arguing that the style of music that they play, known as Mor Lam, has been used, copied, and embellished in Thailand for generations, and as such, is able to be used and copied by all. GMM Grammy, on the other hand, claims that musicians like Yinglee Surjumpol, with her hit song “Your Heart for My Number”, are livening the industry and adding very unique and new elements to traditional Mor Lam—and thus creating protectable copyrights that need to be enforced. Musicians on the side of Mr. Panyasamphan, though, are objecting, descending on television stations and organizing free concerts in an attempt to pressure the government to soften the existing copyright laws. “We have to make a living,” says bandleader Kriangsak Prichawatiwat.

Source: http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304250204579433493214015678

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