Vendor at Old Airport caught for selling pirated movies
The Ministry of Economy and Commerce has confiscated over 3,300 fake CDs in a surprise raid conducted in an outlet located in the Old Airport area as part of efforts to enforcing intellectual property laws and regulations.
A statement released today said the inspectors from the Intellectual Property Protection Department at the ministry fined the outlet for selling fake and copied CDs, and some 3379 CDs were detected.
The shop was fined for violating the Law No. 7 of the year 2002 on copyright and the related rights which, in a number of its articles, states on punitive measures such as fines and confiscation.
However, it did not provide further details about the amount of fine and other information related to the outlet in question.
The ministry has called on consumers to make sure that the outlet is an agent licensed to sell these items or the items are within the scope of its commercial activity before purchasing the item.
"Consumers are requested to ask the shop to confirm the item specifications in the purchase invoice, since it is hard to verify whether the compact items are authentic or fake with the normal eye when purchasing," said the statement.
This surprise raid comes within the framework of the ministry's ongoing efforts to protect consumers, monitor markets, and ensure that outlets abide by intellectual property rights protection laws.
The ministry warned violators, saying it will be strict with them and will refer them to the concerned entities in order to have proper penalties as per the law.
Customers have been urged to report any violation related to intellectual property rights through the following communication channels: Hotline: 16000; email: [email protected]; and social media accounts:Twitter: @MEC_Qatar; Instagram: MEC_Qatar.
the hardships they are facing here is far more tolerable from the ones they have back home..
dscpnd: I can understand wanting to better your life. But to try and do it KNOWING that you are not going to benefit is wrong.
I also blame agents and others who paint a rosy picture of things and sell visas to innocent people
@britexpat until you know and have witness the true definition of abjected poverty, only then would you understand why people make irrational and imperil life decisions.
I was wondering how much longer this shop could remain open. I've been going there for years to buy DVDs, as slowly all the other pirate stores have been closed down. It's incredible to think that a busy shop on a busy street that everyone in Doha knows sells pirate DVDs could get away with it for so many years. Looks like I'll need to find a new shop. And as for your question Brit - there are a lot of stupid people out there who think they can come to Qatar on their "Freelance" (lol) visas and then find a job and everything will be okay, because Qatar is the richest country in the world (lol). Sadly it almost never works out that way.
Why do people buy visas to come here knowing they will face hardship ?
pirated CDs sales...... what about illegal companies in Qatar bringing peoples in without given jobs.
And the Darwin award for most stupid idea goes to...The Shop owner.