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Copyright Act Section 77 — Compounding, Director-General settlement and fines
Copyright Act (พระราชบัญญัติลิขสิทธิ์) — Section 77.
Plain-English Summary
Two different mechanisms apply. Section 66 makes offences under the Act compoundable (อันยอมความได้), meaning the injured owner can settle. Section 77 separately lets the Director-General of the Department of Intellectual Property settle by administrative compounding (เปรียบเทียบ) the offences under Section 69 paragraph 1, Section 70 paragraph 1 and Section 70/1 paragraph 1, which are the fine-only tiers. Section 73 doubles the penalty for a repeat offence committed within five years after serving a sentence. Under Section 76, half of any fine paid under a judgment goes to the copyright owner, without limiting the owner's civil claim for any excess.
Official Text
Official Thai text at the Royal Gazette / Office of the Council of State. Translation summary only.
Consult official sourceParent Statute
Copyright Act
พระราชบัญญัติลิขสิทธิ์ · B.E. 2537 (1994)
The Copyright Act B.E. 2537 (1994) protects creative works of a creator in the literary, dramatic, artistic, musical, audiovisual, cinematographic film, sound recording and broadcast categories, or any other work in the literary, scientific or artistic domain (Section 6). Computer programs are part of 'literary work' (Section 4). A creator owns the copyright in the work they create, subject to conditions on nationality or residence, or on the place of first publication (Section 8). The Act contains no registration provision. In court, the plaintiff is presumed to own the work sued on unless the defendant disputes that anyone owns the copyright or disputes the plaintiff's right (Section 62). The Minister of Commerce administers the Act (Section 5).
The summary above is a plain-English educational paraphrase of Section 77 of the Copyright Act. It is not an authoritative translation. For the binding Thai text, consult the Royal Gazette or the Office of the Council of State. Educational use only — not a substitute for advice from a Thai-qualified lawyer.
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