40,000 pirated items confiscated in 2015

AMMAN — The authorities confiscated around 40,000 pirated items in 2015, including books, CDs and DVDs, of which around 2-3 per cent were porn movie DVDs, according to the National Library Department (NLD).

The number of pirated items confiscated last year is lower than 2014, when the figure stood at 48,000, NLD Director General Mohammad Abbadi said.

"There is a decline in the cases reported to courts as the number of stores selling such items has been dropping," Abbadi told The Jordan Times on Sunday.

In 2015, the department referred some 360 cases of intellectual property right violations to court compared with 460 cases in 2014.

"More than 15 stores selling pirated items went out of business in 2014 as the number of people who access movies, songs and games online is on the rise, which is largely due to smartphone penetration in Jordan that exceeds 70 per cent," he said.

Around 4,000 stores in the country sell pirated items, according to Abbadi, and the number will continue to decrease in the next few years as more people are using their devices to access "anything they want".

He said 2015 witnessed a 25 per cent rise in sales of pirated books compared to 2014, which he attributed to an increase in the number of books being published in Jordan. 

"Many writers from the Arab world started to come to Jordan to publish their books due to the regional situation, and Jordan is the leading publishing destination at present."

Abbadi noted that the NLD will continue to crack down on sales of pirated items in 2016 with a focus on those selling pirated books.

The Jordanian Copyright Law stipulates that it is a crime to download software, music or movies that are protected under the legislation. Offenders face a prison sentence of between three months and three years and a fine ranging from JD1, 000 to JD6, 000.