MY film producer to reportedly sue eCommerce platform RM50m for selling pirated copies of film

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Malaysian film producer Ayu Puteh of Pencil Pictures & Records is suing an eCommerce platform for RM50 million selling pirated copies of her film Ada Apa Dengan Dosa, according to multiple media reports including The Star, New Straits Times and Harian Metro. She explained that the eCommerce platform "never sought distribution rights from her" nor obtain her permission to sell the film.

According to Ayu, she brought up the issue of the pirated films being sold online in June, but action was only taken after National Film Development Corporation (FINAS) CEO Ahmad Idham Nadzri recently said it is investigating the sale of pirated local films on eCommerce platforms, The Star reported.

The Star added that Ayu also came across several Telegram chat groups with users sharing download links to the pirated films. The film producer added that she hopes the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission will clamp down on such groups. While media reports did not name the eCommerce platform involved, Shopee Malaysia was recently embroiled in this issue after Astro AWANI reported that local films including Iskandar Family The Movie and Ada Apa Dengan Dosa were sold illegally on Shopee. The listings for those two films have since been removed.

In a statement to A+M, Shopee's regional MD Ian Ho reiterated that listings have since been removed and the sellers involved, banned from Shopee. He added that the company remains committed to providing all its users with a safe and secure shopping environment and it takes a strict zero-tolerance approach to the sale of prohibited items on its platform.

"We have stringent processes in place to prevent items that violate our policies or local regulations from being listed on Shopee. Our listing policy is regularly reviewed and updated in accordance to the latest Malaysian laws and regulations. When, in isolated cases, determined bad actors manage to evade these screening processes, we take immediate action to protect the Shopee community," he explained.

Ho said that it is working closely with the relevant authorities but are unable to further comment on ongoing legal matters. In a previous statement to A+M, Ho clarified that Shopee has no part in creating the contents of listings and that the sellers on its platform are independent individuals or businesses who are not associated with Shopee. He added that the company has also taken preemptive measures to blacklist any related keywords to intercept new attempts to sell and buy such items.

In light of the new development, Ho once again reiterated that Shopee has blacklisted related keywords and reminded sellers that sales of pirated goods are not allowed on the platform. Shopee's prohibited and restricted items policy lists potentially infringing items. These include but are not limited to replicas, counterfeit items, and unauthorised copies of a product or item which may be in violation of certain copyrights, trademarks, or other intellectual property rights of third parties.

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