Copyright (Amendment) Bill tabled for first reading

KUALA LUMPUR: A fine of up to RM200,000 or imprisonment not exceeding 20 years for those who commit offences relating to streaming technology is among the new subsections in the Copyright (Amendment) Bill 2021, which was tabled for the first reading in the Dewan Rakyat today.

According to the bill, no person shall commit or facilitate copyright infringement in any work, among others, by making a streaming technology for sale or hire, as well as importing a streaming technology.

Any person who contravenes the subsection shall be liable to a fine of not less than RM10,000 and not more than RM200,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 20 years, or both, upon conviction.

The bill to amend the Copyright Act 1987 was tabled by Deputy Minister of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Datuk Rosol Wahid.

Also tabled by Rosol for the first reading were two more bills, namely the Geographical Indications Bill 2021 and the Patents (Amendment) Bill 2021.

The Geographical Indications Bill 2021 was enacted for the protection and registration of geographical indications in relation to goods and for the implementation of the relevant treaties and their related matters.

Geographical indication is an indication which may contain one or more words which identifies any goods as originating in a country or territory, where a given quality, reputation or other characteristic of the goods is essentially attributable to their geographical origin.

The bill, among others allows owners to apply for the registration of a geographical indication of any goods in the form as determined by the registrar together with payment of the prescribed fee.

The Patent (Amendment) Bill 2021 was tabled, among others, to enable the products of microbiological processes to be made patentable inventions.

It also allows the federal or state governments to have the right to patent their inventions.

-- BERNAMA