A non-profit organisation, The IP Plus Law Clinic, was formed yesterday to provide legal advice on intellectual property rights and relevant business law matters free of cost.

"Businesspeople, entrepreneurs and artists have no knowledge of the intellectual property rules and regulations and hence are deprived of their just remuneration," Barrister ABM Hamidul Mishbah, chief executive officer ofThe IP Plus Law Clinic, said at the launching ceremony.

He cited the US as an example, where a significant amount is earned every year by exercising intellectual property rights.

The firm, to be managed by Bangladesh Copyright and Industrial Property Forum (BCIPF), would counsel on copyright, trademark and patent, and offer legal tips for technology transfer and formation of new company or business, said Kazi Zahin Hasan, chairman of BCIPF.

Mishbah said software developers are particularly in need of their service as they do not sign a non-disclosure agreement before pitching their ideas to corporates.

Regarding the cases on piracy, he said: "They were filed according to criminal laws and not the IP act, and hence did not get proper judgement."

"We once seized pirated books worth Tk 1 crore and even filed a case. In the end, we had to return the books as per the court verdict," Manjurur Rahman, former registrar of the copyright office, said.

If some precedent is set, book or music piracy would have come down, he added.

"Nowadays, songs are uploaded on the internet within half an hour of the launch of the album. This causes financial loss to the artists," Maksudul Haque, a singer, said, while calling for legal support to curb piracy.