GOVT TO TIGHTEN IMPORTS OF EMPTY OPTIC DISCS

Jakarta, Feb 3 (ANTARA) - The Industry Ministry will tighten the importation of optic disc machines and raw materials as well as empty optic discs in an effort to increase control over the optic disc industry, a senior official said.

"We need to provide guidance to and supervise the optic disc industry by among other things tightening optic disc imports," Director General for Chemical and Agro-Industry Affairs Benny Wachyudi said here on Wednesday.

He made the remarks during a coordination meeting on guidance, development and supervision of the optic disc industry.

He said that up to now violations of intellectual property rights were still often committed through optic disc recording media such as CDs, VCDs and DVDs.

Indications to that effect can clearly be seen in the circulation of pirated optic discs at malls and rampant piracy practices of the product through central processing unit (CPU) duplicators.

"The chance for abuse of non-optical disc technology as well as the procurement of machines, equipment and raw materials to practice piracy are also open," he said.

To make it worse, he said, the supervision and licensing for the opening of the optic disc industry at malls were not restricted.

He said the government had issued a law on intellectual property rights in 2002, a government regulation in 2002 on high-tech production means for optic disc and several other regulations on technical matters.

The director general said that a number of relevant agencies had a common responsibility to overcome violations of intellectual property rights in the field of optic discs. This was included in Presidential Decision No. 4 / 2006 on the formation of a national team for the elimination of intellectual property right violations.

He said that efforts to eliminate intellectual property right piracy through optical disc recording media would not be successful unless they were handled comprehensively from the industry sector to the trade/retail one.