More than 38,000 pirated CDs confiscated from Riyadh streets

The campaign, which involved Riyadh police Secretariat of Al Riyadh Region, initially focused on the Olaya market area but later on extended to Haraj Bin Gassem, south of Riyadh.

The street vendors were extensively questioned by the authorities to find out their sources for the seized CDs, which contained movies and games that violate copyright laws. They were later on asked to sign commitments not to repeat their violation. Vehicles used as a storage and pickup points for pirated CDs were seized as well mid-way into the offensive.

Scott Butler, CEO, Arabian Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAA) said, "We commended MoCI Undersecretary H.E. Abdul Rahman Al Hazzaa for supporting coordinated efforts to fight all forms of piracy and copyright crimes. The broad initiative that the Saudi authorities recently concluded in particular realizes H.E. Al Hazzaa's order to clamp down on street piracy.

"In such a short span of time they were able to dramatically reduce the number of illegal vendors roaming Riyadh's streets. This campaign has generated significant awareness among the public that the government is taking a strong stand against street sales of pirated materials," Butler added.

H.E. Al Hazzaa had earlier stated that he would sustain the campaign until street vendors were no longer visible, as part of his drive against intellectual property rights (IPR) violators. Similar initiatives are being planned by the government to uphold copyright laws and establish a fair environment especially for major IPR-reliant businesses such as Pay TV, motion pictures, computer gaming.

The annual KSA market for counterfeit products currently stands at around $4bn, reflecting a large market that has become major attraction to counterfeiters. The government is thus closely coordinating with organizations such as AAA to educate the public and businesses on the serious economic, legal and social consequences of copyright crimes.