The authorities have broken up two pirate DVD syndicates, seized equipment worth some RM36 million and arrested 30 suspects.

A team from the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs ministry's intellectual property protection unit carried out the operation yesterday, the Star newspaper said.

In the first raid on a factory in Semenyih, south of the capital Kuala Lumpur, enforcement officials scaled a two-metre wall and broke down a door to gain entry to the factory.

Talaat Husin, the ministry's secretary-general said five DVD printing machines worth RM20 million were seized and 19 workers were detained.

"Initial investigations showed that duplicated discs were immediately shipped out the factory to avoid detection," he said.

Licence to make black DVDs

Talaat said the company only had a licence to produce blank discs, but "they were producing various western film titles for the local and international markets."

In another operation in Batu Caves, just north of Kuala Lumpur, officials seized four DVD machines worth RM16 million and arrested 11 people including the factory manager.

Malaysia is awash with pirated discs despite periodic crackdowns on sellers and a high-profile campaign urging Malaysians to shun them.

Pirated CDs and other copied goods are openly sold at markets and in some shopping malls.