Due to heavy, long term pressure from groups such as the BSA and the Recording Industry of America Association, which threatened difficulties for trade agreements for Thailand, the Thai government has now started to crack down heavily on the unauthorised copying by its citizens including the introduction of "one of the most aggressive legislative schemes for the protection of intellectual property rights in any developing nation.
Once the new airport is completed, all international traffic is expected to go there and Don Muang will become domestic only. There is also a train station at Don Muang for destinations to the north and northeast.
Traffic jam on Ploenchit Road with Skytrain aboveAir pollution is a major problem in Bangkok, blamed on the city's massive traffic jams. The recent construction of elevated second-level expressways has eased the problem a little.
Bangkok is the economic center of Thailand. The Chao Phraya River allows Bangkok to function as a port. The Stock Exchange of Thailand is located in Bangkok. Tourism is a major source of revenue.
Bangkok is subdivided into 50 districts (khet, also sometimes called amphoe as in the other provinces), which are futher subdivided into 154 kwaeng.
In 1999 an elevated two-line 'Skytrain' (officially called BTS) metro system was opened. The first line of the underground Bangkok Metro opened to the public in July 2004. The remains of a failed elevated railroad project (the Hopewell project) can still be seen all the way from the main railroad station out towards the Don Muang airport - due to the Asian financial crisis the construction was halted and the concrete pillars were left unused.
Although many attempts have been made at cracking down on illegal copying by raiding Pantip and other venues over the years, these have been ineffective and illegal copying of copyrighted material is still a booming business. The BSA, an American software copying prevention group believes that it could extract 80 million USD from Thailand if all of illegally copied software there was stopped
For travel by train, most passengers begin their trips at Hua Lamphong, at the southern end of the Metro. Here, trains connect Bangkok to Malaysia to the south, Chiang Mai and beyond to the north, and Khon Kaen and beyond to the northeast.
The urban sprawl of Greater Metropolitan Bangkok extends beyond the borders of Bangkok province, spilling into the neighbouring provinces of Nonthaburi, Samut Prakan and Pathum Thani. The province as it is today was created in 1972 when the previous Bangkok province - changwat Phra Nakhon - merged with Thonburi province
Several elevated highways, and a partially-finished ring road around Greater Bangkok, have been built to overcome the jams.
The city contains many buddhist temples (known in Thai as Wats), among the best known being Wat Pho and Wat Arun. Khaosan Road, near the Grand Palace complex, is a popular destination for young backpackers. Bangkok's educational and cultural facilities include several universities, a fine arts academy, a national theater and a national museum.
An elaborate network of canals (khlong) gave the city the nickname "Venice of the East", at a time when all transportation was done by boat. Today almost all are filled in and converted into traffic-filled streets. However, many do still exist, with people living along them, and markets being conducted there as well.
The Chao Phraya runs from north to south for 370 km from the central plains to Bangkok and the Gulf of Thailand. However in Chainat the river splits into the main river course and the Tha Chin river, which then flows parallel to the main river and exits to Gulf of Thailand the about 35 km west of Bangkok in Samut Sakhon. In the low alluvial plain which begins below the Chainat dam many small canals (khlong) split off from the main river, used for the irrigation of the rice paddies.
However, these measures have not yet halted the appetite of Thai citizens for unauthorised copies, the sale of unauthorised discs continues and the raids have been called "half hearted". The BSA states, however, that reduction of illegal copying is a long term goal and that the aim now is more to re-educate the Thais towards the BSA's own views.