Apple may face copyright infringement charges in Thai court

If an iOS app commits copyright infringement, is Apple to blame? That's the question being considered by a court in Thailand.

According to a report by The Register, the television firm Cable Thai Holding (CTH) is accusing the makers of the "Sport Channel" app that streams U.K. Premier League soccer games to the iPhone of breaching an exclusive contract. 

CTH spent $300 million on the exclusive rights to broadcast a game on Saturday, but soon discovered that viewers could stream the same game by purchasing the $30 "Sport Channel" app. CTH is not only accusing Apple of wrongfully allowing the sale of such an app, but also of taking 30 percent of sales revenue, as is its standard practice.

Paiboon Amornpinyokiat, a lawyer for CTH, told the Bangkok Post that the app has sat atop the charts for paid apps for the past two months. He argued that CTH, which is a new cable television firm established in 2012, will suffer significant financial damage as a result. The company is seeking about $3 million from the court as compensation, and wants the app removed from the App Store. So far, The Register reports that letters sent to Apple demanding the removal of the app have gone unanswered.

Thailand views intellectual property infringement as a criminal offense that carries a maximum sentence of four years. Whether or not Apple is ultimately responsible for the existence of this app, the company and the app developers would be wise to mount a strong defense. A Phoenix business attorney can help in situations like this one.

Categorised in: International Business Law

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