The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) has launched a two-pronged drive to enforce Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs), which involves educating consumers and corporations on the one hand, and tightening up its IPRs legislation on the other, Arab News reported.
The Ministry of Culture and Information spokesman stated, “A committee implementing Intellectual Property legislation has been set up.” He added “We have launched a public awareness campaign on the need to boycott pirated products because they have an adverse impact on the economy and discourage investment in the IT sector.”
KSA also banned the sale of pirated computer software, audio cassettes and videos, which the ministry says led to a 27 percent drop in the sale of pirated computer programs last year.
A new copyright bylaw, which aims at eliminating Intellectual Property infringements in the Kingdom, became effective March 14 this year. The bylaw incorporates stringent penalties on IP violators including fines of up to SR500,000, publishing the defaulter’s name at his own expense in local newspapers, and compensation of copyright holders, in addition to termination of work permits if violators are businesses.