Citizens like to sing for entertainment, but "K songs" also have to pay copyright fees. Customs found that a business premises provided infringing songs for customers to "sing K" for profit. Today (15th) about 100 people were mobilized to raid 6 party rooms in Kowloon and the New Territories A total of 9 people were arrested, and 18 sets of karaoke machines and a batch of audio-visual equipment were seized during the operation, with a market value of about 600,000 yuan.
Zhou Liwen, Senior Investigation Officer of the 3rd Team of the Copyright and Trademark Technology Crime Investigation Team of the Customs Copyright and Trademark Investigation Division, explained the case, saying that the Customs has been paying attention to the market situation. After intelligence analysis and the assistance of copyright holders, it locked down several party rooms and restaurants. 4, today (15th) launched the code-named "Magpie" operation, mobilized about 100 people, and raided 4 party rooms and 2 restaurants in Tsim Sha Tsui, Kwai Chung, Tsuen Wan and Kwun Tong, suspected of possessing and providing It is suspected that infringing karaoke songs are used by customers. The party room involved uses social platforms to promote business. The detailed address will only be disclosed after the deposit. It is believed that some party rooms are trying to evade customs enforcement. As for the restaurant involved in the case, there are independent rooms with a minimum consumption of 1,600 yuan. Each room has a karaoke machine.
Customs officers seized 18 sets of karaoke machines used to play suspected infringing songs and a batch of audio-visual equipment, with a market value of about 600,000 yuan. One machine contained as many as 80,000 suspected infringing songs. Customs officers arrested 5 men and 4 women , aged between 25 and 67, suspected of violating the "Copyright Ordinance". Among them, 3 arrested persons are the person in charge of the premises, and the rest are shop assistants. The case is still under investigation and the operation continues. It is not ruled out that more people will be arrested .
Zhou Liwen, Senior Investigation Officer of Team 3 of the Copyright and Trademark Technology Crime Investigation Team of the Customs Copyright and Trademark Investigation Division, explained the case.
(Photo by Lin Zhenhua)
Zhou Liwen emphasized that according to the "Copyright Ordinance", anyone who, without the license of the copyright owner, possesses an infringing copy of a copyright work for the purpose of or in the course of any trade or business, with a view to ordering It is illegal for anyone to use the copyright-infringing copy. Once convicted, the maximum penalty is a fine of 50,000 yuan for each infringing article and 4 years of imprisonment. Business people are reminded to abide by the Copyright Ordinance. In the process of using music video records, you can inquire about relevant matters with the copyright holder.
Customs will continue to strictly enforce the law and crack down on infringement activities at different levels. Citizens should also respect intellectual property rights and refrain from patronizing party rooms and restaurants that offer infringing songs. Citizens can call the Customs 24-hour hotline 2545 6182, or use the dedicated crime reporting email account (crimereport @customs.gov.hk) to report suspected infringing activities.
