Brazil is battling music piracy which costs the music industry millions. The illegal trade of pirated CDs makes up half of the music industry in Brazil. While authorities have seized large shipments of pirated goods, organized crime is involved in piracy. New police departments have been created to combat intellectual property crimes, but enforcement remains a challenge as few arrests have been made so far. Educating the public is also seen as important to reduce piracy levels in Brazil.

1. 25/11 : 03 13: 1.LEAX
Brazil's war ai
piracv
Erica Aold, of Sao Paulo law firm, Aoki & Farias Advogados
Associados, chronicles her country's battle against music:pirates
vaIued at R$19.8 mL1J.ion
(apJJl"OXim:rtEly S$G.6
U bordcr with Paragua:y. In both cases, there was
BraziL Thc illegal trade is responsibJe for millioo), apprchended at cu5tOms of Santos Port. strong evidente of participati.on by or~;anized
, half of the induso'Y i~;.1) growing bllSi.l)Pr" in
he piracy CDs solei a the counO'y, puttin/!;; It took SOml' l.WO month. to iden~ seize and <:lime gangs in the pirac)' trade.
Brazil second on1y to Chi.na, whcre pirate CDs dtlSO'oy the lIIilSSiveshiprnent of toys. lighttrs, On July 7, 1l00S, the Rio de Janeiro
are thought to malre up 90% of music sold. rcnnis sh~ ele,;Wnic gaxtlt15 nnd other good •. Government launched the lJelegacill de
ln 200 1,10"51:>; to the Bra'Ó)illn music indllstry The ronner secretary 01." the Departme.nt, Repressao ao Crime contra a Propriedade
reached R$70.s million (about US$2:l!i Ulillion). Everardo Maeiel., .tiLtcd that "J3raál is the Imaterial (DRCPI) - a police dep~rtment t!lat
lf Bl<IZildoes not rOOuce this level of pira<-)',the ç(;msuc:,e~ center, not a center for the will sp.::cialize in fighting; crimes lIgainst
CD indusn'y wiJI disappear, as hlls alrcady production of pil'acy goods. Ir is a mistake to intelleetual property. O:>mpanic'S SllCh as Coça-
occurred with tj'e music cassem: incu(ttry. see tlJe symptom and Ilot 1001, for the TQ(lt~of cola, Pep~;, AmBL'V,Kaisel' anil Souza Cruz have
The UllISic industris sitLLation, whil", dire, i. the }ll'oblem". invl.'sted R$'iQ(l,ooo to help final1<;<; c:rc-ation
the
jus"t ane aspect of a much lw-gcr problem: .l3nzil ·:flu(l, hcrwever, is a very difficult (-quatioll. If of iliis new deplU'tml!llt. /
Iases R$IO billion per yenr in loregone revenu ••••• Brazil di.d not prU"ide sllch 3 good market, The chief of p(lliee of DRCPI, Marco Aurélio
due to trade in pirattd 1,"Oods. The ilJ.egal perhaps the problcrn Vlould not be .0 large. Ribeiro, declared that the pl"Íority of this police
reproduction of eopyrighted material, while There is 110 douht that ellective opposition to depntm""t will be to combat pir.lcy ar the
massi"c, is not even tile largcst single problem: it pirate sale:; ean wakcn both the seller. ál:,d produçtion leve!, rather than ~rr.,et salts.
is thc tàshion companies that sufler the gre~ mallllfactllrel'S of pinte prudllCts. A new law entering imo elfect on Augtlst I,
losses due to illegaI reproductions, lolloy.oed by Howt!Ver, despite thç dforcs of J3razilian 200S (I.,w No. 10,695 of JUlJe I, 200:!l) has
phonoreoord indllsO'y alld 50ftwan; and then 1>y outhorities to combat pi,·acy; represenmtive. nf introduc'i'd changes in due Copyright J...;<W~ anel
oeveragc and tobacco companiea. big corporations have exrre.~.c-d concern about Criminal Code. i.ncreasing the penalty for crimes
EVEn thc Br;WJian eeOlomic crillis had no tlle ('.apacity of flrnzilian poli"", to combat t1ús of copyright vioIation. Enforuc:ment, however,
impact on th" ~ro""ing and alarming Rtatistics type of C;me. will remam important: at the time 01' writing in
documenting piracy ih Btazil. T'ile rp.vp.nU€b Rec.ently. .everaI US corpol'ation. huvc mid-JI'Jy 200:1, there Wel'e 0111y eight people that
Irom fake good8 represent some 5% of nation'R entered iuto a partn~TsluF with Br~?ilian haw been arresk..:! for l'iracy al1d vio):rt:ion of
Gross f{evenu~, corrERponding around R$S(l companies to launch publicity campaigns against copytight law$. They wcr':: ali arrested in Jllne
billion per yeal'. for e>chpair of tcnnis shoes soldo pirllCY· Working through the US Consulate, 2000 in Sao Beroal"do do Campo, <J. city in Sal)
a sl.'OOnd pmr sold 15 filke. One third 01' ci~;aretres they a1so brought thl'ee enforccmt:nt agents Paulo stat:e .
• mol<t:d in 8rnzil l'esult {rem 3muggling. More f.i'em US Customs, and one la"')'er fiom the However, the proteçti<:m of intellectuaI
than haU' or the software !lOldin Brazil is illegally DepartmC!Ilt af Justice to o"ain pen;onnel from property rights may not llmply ",Iy on the
COpiL'C!, ar,d falle software l;tllrtll ai ju.t R$& in ÍSraúJ.'a Federal, Military and Civil poli"" lorces. existenoc of appropriate l~ rt i~ also nL'tA.'Ssary
pri.ce. UnSurprisillgIy, l~sse:; for the ~oftwüTe Laçal initiativcs are also sun:ting to pay to inv~t in educating the populati.<:m.To reducc
industry have r(oached R$915 million dividends: in January 2002, Sao Paulo Statc piracy Ievels, inte1eL'tual property OWIlera mu5t
(approximateJy US$:JOlí million) Fel"year. established the Delegacia Especializada no take diréct actiOI1 to enforcc their rights by
Predllcts such as .I3rll?ilian country music Combate aO Crime Contra a Propriedade inve.sting in uwestigation and lítigation against
CDs, unilonns af footbaI team", software imateJi..1 (nF..CCPI), headed by Paulo Fleury. pirares. Any aLtiOI1 against piracy ",hou1d
program~, clothing and perftlwes ~re produccd Mr fleury sRid thot th.:: majOlity m product>l consider not only the awount ofinclemnificatioll,
in B backysrd industry locatffl in severaI pal1::lof solei by so"eet marketers are produced in .m~J1 but aho the seli.al efrect thut a well..,stl'uettu·ed
Bn7-il. HowevL'r, specia1ists in piracy c.omoRt planlS, or enrer the r.oun try illeg'clly via the action = bl'ing to prevent piracy.
calculate that at l",ast th"ee in fi"" illegal
products sold in Bl'azil originate from Clliml,
Sihgapore, Korea al'id MaltWlia. Thosc products AboUlUle 8IIIIIor
ClIUSC loss!lS equivaIent to nine months of tax &ikaAoki isa sp"cia!lst In·lntellectuaJ·flrop~ law witil ",ore tllan
rcvcl1uc aí state and fed'i'l'al Govemmentli 15 Y"B~ of spceiaJist experience in BrãZil• ..tapa" anel dle United
. States. In january 2001, she becam" a fo~ndlng partner in the
The Brazilian Covernment has recent:ly
newl)'-establlslie<l IawflTm, .Aoki & Ririas Advogados Associados.
demol1stratro il>!
incrcasing interest in combatting PrEl'liously.me W<S a partner arnt head of inteUec;tualproperty at
píracy. The Federal &vcnuc Dep-drtment has Tozzi~i. Frcire. Teh,eira & SilvaAdvog.lclO$, d Stroeter; Ro"ster &
M
dL'Stroyecl almost 6$0 tQna of fdkro produ~ Ohno Aclvogados.
34 I July/August 2003 I Copyríght World www.ipworldonline.com