Dagupan shop raided

The government, in a joint effort with the private sector, has intensified its crackdown on intellectual property rights (IPR) violators.

A team from the National Bureau of Investigation’s IPR division recently raided a computer gaming shop in Pangasinan for allegedly using the popular video game CounterStrike without the consent of its publisher-owner, Vivendi Universal Group.

Raided was the Internet shop Disc Net in Dagupan City. The owner faces charges for running pirated games on his shop’s 14 computer terminals.

The NBI team found unlicensed copies of CounterStrike and WarCraft III, another popular game by Vivendi.

The computer sets were confiscated and logged in as evidence when the NBI would file a case against the shop owner for alleged violation of Republic Act 8293 or the intellectual property code.

Vivendi’s local partner, Asian Media Development Group (AMDG), has filed complaints with the NBI against various computer gaming centers operating and using pirated games.

AMDG vice president Gerry Castro said his company is compelled to protect the intellectual property rights of Vivendi by pursuing violators to the full extent of the law.

"This will protect our partner’s intellectual property rights and contribute to our pursuit of a piracy-free culture," he said.