eennffoorrcceemmeenntteennffoorrcceemmeennttbb ulletinul letin

IIssssuuee 2233IIssssuuee 2233 JJuunnee 22000044JJuunnee 22000044

were approximately 24,800

recorded CDRs and DVD-Rs

containing music, films and video

games, 36,000 Euros in cash, fake

Rolex watches, sunglasses, cards

and stamps as well as counterfeit

driving licences.

Director of Anti-piracy, JJoosséé LLuuiiss

PPeerreezz QQuuiinntteerroo of AFYVE stated that

his association had warned on

various occasions that Granada was

an important site, not just for the

consumption and distribution of

pirate copies but also in the

establishment of organised

networks dedicated to

counterfeiting.

Source: AFYVE Spain

Spanish National Police executed

a series of eight raids, targeted

against producers and distributors

of pirate CDRs, in Granada,

Southern Spain. Thirty-nine people

were arrested. Police initiated the

action following complaints made

by AFYVE, IFPI’s Spanish National

Group, on the increasing piracy

levels in that region.

This significant operation has

successfully dismantled an

organised crime gang based in

Granada but with links to other

cities in Andalucia and as far afield

as Alicante. The officer in charge of

the operation, IInnssppeeccttoorr DDaammiiáánn

FFuueenntteess, stated that the gang was

connected with illegal immigration

networks.

During the searches 82 recorders

capable of recording 720 discs per

hour were seized. Also recovered

The music industry's anti-piracy

efforts received a major boost

when a key organised crime leader

was jailed for seven and a half

years on 6th April. This is the first

organised crime case involving

blank CDR importers and is the

result of three years of co-operation

with law enforcement and

continuous lobbying of the

Paraguayan Government.

The jailed man was one of the

most powerful and influential

pirates (“contrabandistas”) in

Paraguay. Also sentenced to six-

year prison sentences were two

accomplices, one of whom

captained the vessel bringing in the

illicit CDRs to Paraguay and the

other a financier and front man for

the venture.

The defendants made every effort

to have the case dismissed or

suspended. This was vigorously

resisted by APDIF Paraguay and the

case was brought before the

Tribunal in Pilar, Paraguay. It took

only one week for the tribunal to

hand down the sentence.

The investigation is ongoing and will

focus on other individuals linked to

this illegal enterprise

Source: IFPI Latin America

In this issue:

2 United KingdomIrelandItaly

3 BulgariaLithuaniaHungary

4 RomaniaMiddle East Review

5 KuwaitSaudi Arabia

6 JordanIndiaIsrael

7 BrazilMexicoU.S.A.

8 Hong KongChinaMalaysia

9 SingaporeTaiwanThailand

10 ZambiaRussiaMauritius

11 Industry newsTraining

12 NewsbitesPortugal/Brazil/ThailandPeople news/Diary 2004

Thirty-nine people arrested in Andalucian piracy offensive

Paraguay: Seven year jail sentence for pirate

An array of illegal product and equipment

confiscated during the operation in Andalucia

One of the largest ever

counterfeit music and film rings

uncovered in the North East was

dismantled recently - when a series

of joint Durham Trading Standards

& Police raids yielded a £250,000

haul of CDs and DVDs.

A BPI/FACT investigation into the

supply of counterfeit product in the

region led to the raids, which took

place at three different premises at

10 am on 13th May. After six

months of surveillance at car boot

sales at nearby Seaham, Tanfield

Lea and Chester-le-Street,

investigators successfully identified

the building from which the ring was

believed to be operating. The

evidence gathered was passed to

the authorities for corroboration and

application for search warrants

under criminal provisions.

Three brothers, believed to be the

ringleaders of the operation, were

arrested at the scene on charges of

conspiracy to defraud and

questioned by Durham Police. A

significant amount of cash and

multiple CD burning towers were

also seized at the scene.

“In terms of manufacturing

capability, this was one of the largest

operations we've encountered in the

UK to date. This factory was clearly

supplying a large network of pirates

in the North East, as it was capable

of churning out tens of thousands of

counterfeits per week.” DavidMartin, BPI Director of Anti-Piracy

Source: BPI

Twenty-one people were arrested

at the culmination of a six-month

investigation by Public Prosecutors

in Naples in February. The operation

led to the seizure of 80 high speed

CDR burners, 25,000 CDs and DVDs

and printing equipment. Fiscal

Police searched several addresses

which had been identified as part of

a major piracy operation, uncovering

evidence of a wide distribution

network for infringing music

products. Individuals at all levels of

the network were arrested, from the

importers of blank CDRs and the

operators of replication plants,

through to the owners of record

stores acting as outlets for these

infringing products.

In a separate action, Fiscal Police in

Naples arrested five people during a

raid on a house near Somma

Vesuviana. The officers recovered

240 CDR burners, 50,000 pirate

CDR discs and more than 16,000

inlay cards. Two cars believed to

have been used by the operators

were also seized.

Raid in San Marino

Police in San Marino raided a well-

known production plant on 20th

February situated within the

principality following a laying of a

formal complaint by IFPI and FPM,

the Italian National Group’s anti-

piracy unit. The plant was

responsible for manufacturing the

pirate titles, the ‘MP3 Collection’

which contained over 50 music

albums and their artwork and

‘Twilight’, a DVD containing BSA

member repertoire. During the raid,

infringing product was recovered as

well as stampers for previous

production. Police enquiries are

continuing.

Source: FPM Italy

Irish police officers recently raided

a cottage in Dromahair, a village

close to the border with Northern

Ireland, and seized a considerable

amount of duplicating equipment

and CDRs. During the raid on 22nd

April 2004, a total of 37 burners

were recovered, as well as

thousands of blank and burned

CDRs. Printers, scanners and

labelling machines were also seized.

The sole occupant of the cottage

was arrested on the premises. He

took full responsibility for the

operation and stated that he had

been working at the premises for

about six months. He said he

worked alone supplying market

traders as far south as Clara market

in County Offaly and Clogher and

Jonesboro markets in Northern

Ireland.

Intelligence suggests that

paramilitary organisations use these

types of operations for fund-raising

activities. It is thought that the

operators pay a percentage for

“protection” but, if caught, are

under strict instructions not to

implicate their ‘protectors’.

Source: IRMA Ireland

22

Regional news: Europe (W)

EB 23 - Jun 04

UNITED KINGDOM

IRELAND

Joint raids smash huge counterfeiting operation Major crackdown on

organised crime

Cottage conceals CDR burning operation

CDR equipment uncovered in cottage

ITALY

CO-OPERATION SECURES

HUGE CUSTOMS SEIZURES

Customs Officers at the Danube

Bridge Station conducted checks

on a Bulgarian registered lorry and

discovered, among boxes of

cosmetics, more than 120,000

pirated DVDs with music and film

content. The driver of the vehicle

had been previously identified in a

similar action conducted by

Romanian Customs Officers in

2003.

After the seizure, Bulgarian Customs

contacted their representative in

Bucharest and provided information

concerning a second Bulgarian lorry,

which had left Bulgaria via the

Russe Border Station. As a direct

result of this information sharing, on

30th April the second vehicle was

stopped at Siret Border Station on

the Romanian/Ukrainian border.

Upon checking the lorry, a further

107,214 pirated DVDs were

discovered and seized.

Enquiries revealed that both lorries

were connected to the same

Bulgarian business and were

transporting cosmetics and the

infringing DVDs to a company in

Moscow. The seizure is the largest

of its kind in Eastern Europe, and

can be attributed directly to the

strong co-operation between

industry investigators and customs

officials in Romania and Bulgaria.

Source: BAMP Bulgaria

Acting on intelligence gathered during their investigations in February this

year, police officers in Vilnius

inspected the business premises of a

private company and discovered an

illegal CDR burning laboratory in

operation. The premises contained

equipment for recording music

cassettes, nine CDR burners, silk

screen printing equipment and more

than 6,000 pirate discs.

Based on evidence found within the

laboratory the police were able to

identify the principal customer who

had ordered the illegal products found

at the premises, and traced a

warehouse where these products were stocked. In a raid on this warehouse

building, more than 30,000 discs were recovered, along with 500 kg of inlays

and booklets. Two suspects were arrested.

Increased co-operation between the music industry association MAHASZ

and Hungarian police authorities has led to significant operations and

seizure of large quantities of pirate products.

The biggest seizure of 2004 to date took place in the north-eastern town of

Kazincbarcika. After several “test purchases”, two brothers were arrested on

21st January. During the searches, large quantities of CDs and DVDs were

found by police and MAHASZ officials, in cars owned by the detainees and in

their homes and garage. Computers and CDR burners used for pirate

activities were also seized. The brothers were taken into custody and their

trial is pending.

In a separate case which was widely publicised by the international media in

April, officers from the FBI co-

ordinated simultaneous raids in

several countries on pirates who were

illegally distributing copyrighted

sound and video files on the Internet.

In one such action, Hungarian Police

arrested two system administrators in

a Technical University dormitory for

their involvement in this file-sharing

network.

Source: MAHASZ Hungary

33

Regional news: Europe (E)

EB 23 - Jun 04

LITHUANIA

Two suspects arrested in CDR laboratory raids

HUNGARY

MAHASZ and Police co-operation yields results

Spindle stack pirate discs

Silk screen printed fakes

A selection of illegal product seized during

the raids carried out by Hungarian Police

BULGARIA

More than 61,000 pirated music

and film products were

crushed in Romania's second public

destruction ceremony for counterfeit

goods, held in Bucharest. The event

was co-ordinated by a cross section

of Law Enforcement and Ministerial

Authorities tasked with addressing

the protection of intellectual

property rights within the country,

and benefited from the presence of

Minister Ionel Blanculescu, Head of

the National Authority of Control,

and Timothy Phillips, Economic

Officer of the United States

Embassy. Wide media coverage of

the ceremony helped to reinforce

the Government's commitment to

raise public awareness of the

dangers of purchasing counterfeit

products.

Source: UPFR Romania

44

Regional news: Europe (E)/Middle East/N.Africa/S.W.Asia

EB 23 - Jun 04

Between 16th March 2004 and

29th March 2004, IFPI’s Head of

Enforcement, Iain Grant, visited the

Middle East, North Africa and South

West Asia Region. During this visit,

he travelled to Jordan, Kuwait,

Pakistan, Lebanon, Egypt and the

UAE - to canvass the opinion of the

local music industry on piracy issues

and lobby the authorities to protect

the intellectual property rights of

IFPI members.

JORDAN

Over the past two years, Jordan has

initiated an anti-piracy program and

the Director of the National Library,

responsible for enforcement, has

had some notable successes against

pirates (see article on page 6).

During his visit, Iain Grant met the

Deputy Prime Minister and the

Minister for Justice to convey his

appreciation and lobbied for

deterrent sentencing.

KUWAIT

This was followed by a trip to

Kuwait, where Iain Grant and staff

from the US Embassy secured an

agreement from the Minister of

Information to initiate anti-piracy

enforcement action. After leaving

the Ministry of Information, Iain met

with the Director General of

Customs and presented him with a

plaque, to show IFPI's appreciation

for his Department's successful

interdictions. (See article page 5.)

PAKISTAN

In Pakistan, the US Ambassador

undertook to relay IFPI's concerns to

the Prime Minister and monitor

intellectual property protection

developments. The Minister of

Finance indicated that the Pakistani

Government was aware of the

importance of intellectual property

and was in the process of

establishing an entity to oversee

anti-piracy enforcement.

LEBANON

The situation in Lebanon is not so

optimistic. Piracy is blatant and the

music industry is suffering severely.

As a consequence, IFPI is mobilising

the international community to

lobby the Lebanese Government for

change. Whilst in Lebanon, Iain

Grant met with both the EU and UK

Ambassadors.

EGYPT

With the exception of one seizure in

2003, involving the recovery of over

two million pirate carriers, the

Egyptian authorities have mainly

focused on retail outlets. Iain Grant

met the head of the Police Anti-

Piracy Unit and Customs to cement

relations and push for investigations

targeting manufacturers and

wholesale distributors. In addition,

he met with the Chief of the IT

Police to acknowledge his unit’s

expertise in e-crime investigations.

Finally, Iain Grant visited the

National Centre for Judicial Studies

and secured an agreement to

educate Egyptian Judges and

prosecutors on the importance of

deterrent sentences.

U.A.E.

In the United Arab Emirates, Iain

Grant reviewed the Regional

Enforcement office and met with

members of IFPI’s Middle East &

North Africa Committee to discuss

regional priorities.

M I D D L E E A S T R E V I E WM I D D L E E A S T R E V I E W

R O M A N I AR O M A N I A

Gen Mostafa Radi - Chief of Egyption E

Crime Unit receiving IFPI plaque

Jordanian Deputy Prime Minister (2nd left)

and Director of National Library (far left)

with Iain Grant and Willem van Adrichem

Second public destruction event in Romania

55

Regional news: Middle East

EB 23 - Jun 04

Pro-active action by Kuwait

Customs in late April resulted in

the seizure of over 21,000 CDs and

DVDs. Kuwait has one of the

highest piracy rates in the Gulf

States and in 2003 this reached an

estimated 60% for Arabic and

international repertoire and even

higher for Indian repertoire.

Steps to tackle the problem were

initiated at a press conference in

April attended by an IFPI delegation

when Director General of Kuwait

Customs, MMrr.. IIbbrraahheeeemm AA.. AAll--

GGhhaanniimm, announced the

establishment of a dedicated IPR

unit in conjunction with Kuwait

Customs.

At the press conference, Iain Grant,

IFPI's Head of Enforcement, stated:

“We applaud the initiative taken by

Kuwait Customs to implement an IPR

unit. Customs play a major role in

detecting piracy at the borders.”

Shortly after the launch of the IPR

unit, Kuwait Customs seized more

than 21,000 CDs and DVDs

originating from Pakistan (music,

films and games) and arrested three

people suspected to be involved in

the illegal importation of pirated

optical discs in Kuwait. Different

points of entry into the country were

used, importing 5,000 discs at a

time.

Later in April 2004, Kuwait Customs

also stopped entry of several boxes

containing approximately 8,000

pirated optical discs from Malaysia

and Indonesia. The investigation is

ongoing and customs authorities are

monitoring the weekly importation

of pirated optical discs from

Pakistan, Malaysia and Indonesia.

Saudi Arabia Ministry of

Information and customs

authorities have stopped a

shipment of over 22,000 pirate

optical discs and arrested two

customs officers suspected of

corruption following a lengthy

investigation into the movement of

pirate goods from Pakistan.

For months, IFPI's office in Pakistan

has collected detailed information

about shipments of pirated optical

discs to more than 45 countries

worldwide. In March, information on

a shipment of about 20,000 pirated

discs on its way from Karachi to

Riyadh was passed on to

Mohammed Al Ghamdi, Anti-Piracy

representative at SOREMA, IFPI's

National Group in Saudi Arabia.

Working together, Saudi Arabia

Ministry of Information officials and

Saudi Customs closely monitored

the progress of the 20,000 pirate

shipment from the moment it

arrived at Riyadh International

airport. The investigation uncovered

that the shipment was loaded on a

plane to Jeddah Domestic airport

and shortly after returned to Riyadh.

The investigation team that had

monitored the complicated

procedures the pirates used to

import the shipment illegally into

the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

consequently arrested the two

Customs officers at Riyadh airport

suspected of corruption and seized

a shipment of over 22,000 pirated

optical discs and approximately

21,000 inlay cards. The shipment

contained pirated music CDs

(featuring international repertoire),

movies and games.

Preliminary investigations into the

recipient of the pirate goods in

Saudi Arabia uncovered that the

same company had previously

received numerous illegal

shipments from Pakistan and

Indonesia. In total, the Saudi

company had received more than

70,000 pirate optical discs in recent

months from Pakistan alone and an

unknown quantity from Indonesia.

Several months ago Customs at

Riyadh International airport had

already seized a shipment of about

40,000 pirated optical discs for the

same company, and another

shipment of 45,000 discs which

was prevented from entering the

country.

Source: Willem van AdrichemIFPI Enforcement

Middle East/SW Asia

K U WK U W A I TA I T

S A U D I A R A B I AS A U D I A R A B I A

Immediate success for IPR Unit initiative

Exemplary operation defeats smuggling syndicate in Riyadh

Mr Ibraheem A. Al-Ghanim being

presented his IFPI plaque by Iain Grant

66

Regional news: Middle East/S.W. Asia

EB 23 - Jun 04

Mamoun Talhouni, Director

General of the National Library

of the Ministry of Culture, and

responsible for IPR Enforcement,

has initiated several major anti-

piracy operations in Jordan in recent

months working in close co-

operation with the IFPI Middle East

Office.

One such operation was a well-

coordinated raid against a prolific

pirate in the country which resulted

in the seizure of more than 20,000

pirated music cassettes, 20 MC

duplicating machines and the

complete printing facility for the

inlays. The court case is pending.

In a separate action, 44 cartons

containing approximately one

million pirated MC inlays were

seized which had been imported

from a neighbouring country.

Willem van AdrichemIFPI Enforcement

Middle East/S.W. Asia

Police/IMI surveillance operation nets CDR pirate

Police officers in collaboration with IMI investigators raided a residence in

Saharanpur, Uttar Pratesh leading to the seizure of 25 CD writers and

over 4,000 pirated CDs. During the search of the premises in February, police

also confiscated more than 32,000 inlay cards and 25,000 stickers.

The raid was a result of a prolonged surveillance operation on the suspect

known to be involved in piracy. The CDs were being supplied to a well-known

shop owner in the area. It is estimated that this illegal operation, running

clandestinely for about a year, was producing approximately 2,500 CDs daily,

mostly throughout the night.

CDR operation discovered in hotel in Chennai

Chennai Police arrested three people and uncovered a haven of illegal

activity when they raided a hotel in the Nammalwarpet area of Chennai

on 26th February. They seized 29 CD writers, more than 3,500 pirated VCDs

and 700,000 inlay cards.

It was during the course of an inspection in the area that the Video Piracy

Unit of the Chennai police received information about an operation in which

audio and video CDs were being burnt on the first floor of a hotel. The hotel

was subsequently raided and the illegal product was confiscated. It is

understood that the CDR unit had been in operation for the past two years

and the pirated CDs were being supplied to shops located in the notorious

Burma Bazaar.

Source: IMI India

Alengthy investigation by IFPI

Israel into the operations of one

of Israel's most prolific organised

crime groups has revealed the

extent of the group's involvement in

the manufacture and distribution of

pirated CDs. In May, Israeli Police

supported by IFPI Investigators

raided a large hangar in the

industrial zone of Ramla and

discovered a CDR laboratory,

equipped with 63 burners, four

printing machines and a large

quantity of raw materials.

Documentation seized during the

raid indicated that the production

capacity of this laboratory was

sufficient to meet the demand from

traders in a large percentage of the

region's markets.

Source: Moti Amitay, IFPI Israel

Approximately one million pirated MC

inlays were seized by the authorities Illegal operation uncovered in warehouse

JORDAN

Ministry of Culture

confronting piracy

INDIA

ISRAEL

Major organised crime operation disrupted

77

Regional news: Latin & North America

EB 23 - Jun 04

International DVD

piracy operation raided

Amajor music DVD investigation

involving an international ring based

in Curitiba, Brazil was dismantled on

26th March. Prosecutors from the P.I.C.

(Promotoria Investigatoria de Crimen

Organizado), accompanied by APDIF do

Brasil and the Military Police from the

State of Curitiba executed three search

warrants on two offices and a private

residence, the latter being the main

target of the investigation. Large

quantities of documents, including

original contracts, were seized. Two

computers were also confiscated, for

forensic examination.

This is only the first phase of the

enforcement action. Phase two will be

to obtain search warrants against the

distributors. The investigation is a joint

effort between IFPI, RIAA and other

National Groups who assisted in

obtaining the necessary information to

initiate a prosecution.

The evidence seized will now be

analyzed and presented to the presiding

judge after the official police inquiry has

been completed.

Police maintain pressure

on Tepito's pirates

Amajor enforcement operation in April

in the notorious Tepito area of

Mexico has resulted in the dismantling

of seven CDR laboratories. A total of

118 burners and 37,000 recorded CDRs

were seized. Four people were arrested.

The Tepito neighbourhood, well-known

for its illegal activities, is a regular target

for enforcement actions by anti-piracy

association APDIF and police authorities.

Some of these actions have also in the

past led to violent clashes between

police and criminal gangs operating in

the area. However, excellent co-

operation between APDIF Mexico and

law enforcement has led to significant

successes in recent years highlighting

the importance of such partnership.

Notably, APDIF Mexico has obtained a

total of seven piracy convictions in

February and March of this year, one of

which resulted in a three-year prison

sentence.

The FBI and Atlanta Police

Department executed Federal

search warrants at two locations in

Atlanta, Georgia on 13th May which

resulted in the seizure of over

250,000 pirate and counterfeit

CDRs and approximately 60,000

counterfeit motion picture DVDs.

Seven individuals were arrested by

the Atlanta Police Department and

charged with criminal violation of

the State of Georgia piracy statutes.

Members of the FBI Swat Team and

Atlanta “Red Dog” Tactical Squad

secured the two locations and were

assisted by a combined search party

that included 60 police officers and

agents including the Atlanta PD

Aviation Squad. Illicit product from

these distribution locations was

traced to ten different states

throughout the South East United

States.

Seven waste containers measuring

6' x 8' x 22' were used to haul off

the seized product which was

immediately destroyed after court

samples were retained for future

prosecution. The product seized

included Hip Hop, R & B, Rap,

Gospel, and Urban Contemporary

music.

Officer Rodney Hanks of the

Portsmouth Virginia Police

Department attended a Music

Piracy Investigation class hosted by

the RIAA on 22nd March. Absorbing

his new found knowledge he

identified a street vendor selling

piratical sound recordings in his

patrol area on March 29th. Officer

Hanks arrested the vendor and

seized 26 counterfeit CDRs which

were retained as evidence.

On April 28th the defendant was

found guilty of violating one of the

criminal codes used in the State of

Virginia for music piracy violations

and sentenced to serve 4 months in

jail and to pay a $500.00 fine.

The judge has made it abundantly

clear to this defendant that

engaging in music piracy does have

some serious consequences. This is

particularly welcome, given that

many judiciaries worldwide fail to

reflect in sentencing the cultural

and economic damage wrought by

piracy.

Mike GeorgeDirector of Training, RIAA

These seizures closely follow the

recent indictment of five people by

the Federal Grand Jury in Atlanta,

GA charged with conspiracy and

pirating of copyrighted sound

recordings stemming from

involvement in a $50 million dollar

pirate sound recording operation

from April 1999 through February

2003. During this period of time

approximately 400,000 pirate and

counterfeit CDRs were seized by law

enforcement in the Atlanta, GA.

Kenny GielRIAA

BRAZIL

MEXICO

U.S.A

Anti-Piracy battle continues in Atlanta, Georgia

Deterrent sentence for street seller

Seven waste containers were used to remove

the seized pirate and counterfeit product

88

Regional news: S.E.Asia/Pacific

EB 23 - Jun 04

284 arrested in anti-

Triad sweep in Kowloon

In one of the largest sweeps conducted

against organised crime gangs in

Hong Kong, law enforcement officers

arrested 284 people and seized more

than HK$2.6 million worth of illicit

goods.

The day-long operation in January was

aimed at the revenue sources of Triad

societies in West Kowloon, Hong Kong.

These societies control illegal brothels

as well as the sale of pirated and

pornographic compact discs and

smuggled cigarettes. The sweep

involved about 300 police officers and

220 officials from the Television and

Entertainment Licensing Authority, the

Office of the Telecommunications

Authority, Customs, Immigration and

Labour Departments officials.

Customs steps up

security after scare

The Hong Kong Customs and Excise

Department was recently placed on

full alert after a suspicious object was

placed outside the head office of its

anti-piracy taskforce in Tsim Sha Tsui

and a bomb threat made.

As a result of the incident, all 80

frontline officers from the Special Task

Force were ordered to carry guns,

pepper spray and extendable batons.

About 40 customs officers who were on

duty were evacuated from the ground-

floor office and police threw a cordon

around the headquarters as bomb

disposal officers were called in. The

fake bomb was discovered by a customs

officer outside the front door of the

taskforce's office just before midnight.

At the time, five suspects who had been

rounded up on the previous Friday in

operations against pirated discs and

smuggled cigarettes were being held in

cells inside the office. Shortly after

01.00 am a Hong Kong Police Bomb

Disposal officer disarmed the device

which had been constructed of metal

tubes, wires and a clock. No explosive

materials were used.

Asurprise plant inspection by the

Ministry of Domestic Trade and

Consumer Affairs (MDTCA) on 9th

February has resulted in the seizure

of 13 infringing stampers and 4,000

discs.

IFPI has long suspected Malaysian

plants, registered for CDR

production, as supplementing

revenue by re-configuring non-active

lines for pirate production. MDTCA

officers uncovered just such a

practice in the course of the

surprise inspection on a licensed

Malaysian CDR facility in February

2004.

MDTCA's Factory Inspection Team

(F.I.T), carrying out late night

licensing checks on several plants,

had their suspicions aroused on

arrival at the plant when their entry

into the facility was delayed by an

hour. On being allowed access,

MDTCA, alerted by the plant's

In a series of encouraging

operations against pirate

syndicates, the authorities have

signalled an intention to step up

enforcement efforts.

In Guangzhou City, PSB officers

recovered four million pirate discs

from a warehouse purportedly used

as a motorcycle service centre. In a

separate action, officers of the Anti-

Smuggling Unit of Punyu Customs in

the Zhujian Delta intercepted a

vessel and discovered 1.79 million

optical discs in 15 containers falsely

declared to be empty.

On 13th March, on conclusion of the

region's most significant criminal

trial for piracy offences, 17 people

were convicted of trafficking in

excess of six million illegal audio

visual products. The syndicate head

was sentenced to seven years and

the remaining defendants to

between one and six years

imprisonment. The syndicate had

smuggled over ten million discs into

China between 2001 and March

2003.

The destruction of 13 million pirate

discs in a ceremony at the Southern

Gate Square of Tianhe Stadium,

Ghangzhou on 26th April symbolised

a determination to address a crime

that threatens economic

development in the region. The

ceremony was presided over by LEI

Yu-nan, Guangdong Vice Provincial

Governor and attended by

representatives from Embassies of

the United States, United Kingdom,

Indonesia, Holland and Malaysia.

obstruction tactics and dubious

excuses, carried out a thorough

inspection despite the fact that

none of the plants three ‘CDR’ lines

were in actual production at the

time of entry. As a result of the

team's diligence and comprehensive

search the infringing stampers and

discs were found on the site. All the

plant's lines were sealed.

In separate and unrelated enquiries,

MDTCA's intelligence unit received

information of an underground

replication operation in Puchong, on

the outskirts of Selangor, Malaysia.

A raid took place on 12th April,

assisted by IFPI personnel, and two

CD/VCD lines were found at the site.

In addition to the machinery, 277

suspected infringing stampers and

5,500 finished discs (local audio

and international film repertoire)

were seized. The lines have been

removed and securely stored

pending further investigation.

HONG KONG CHINA

MALAYSIA

Major strikes against piracy in key cities

Surprise plant inspection uncovers piracy

99

Regional news: S.E.Asia/Pacific

EB 23 - Jun 04

Major Bangkok distribution centre raided

Asignificant raid was carried out in March 2004 on a pirate distribution

centre in downtown Bangkok. Over 97,000 pirate optical discs were

seized, almost two thirds of which featured infringing international music

repertoire. A Thai woman was arrested at the scene.

Based on information provided by IFPI and National Group investigators', the

Bangkok Metropolitan Police raided a private house in the Klongsan district

of the city leading to a huge haul of pirate material.

The warehouse also contained large quantities of software products and

pornographic DVDs. Seventy-four stampers were recovered at the scene,

capable of reproducing hundreds of thousands of pirate discs. Also seized

were over one million inlay cards, a clear indication of the capacity and

sophistication of the syndicate involved.

Subsequent investigation revealed connections to Hong Kong and Malaysia.

Police enquiries are ongoing. Reports by Bob Youill

IFPI Enforcement, S.E.Asia/Pacific

Joint IFPI/MJIB anti-piracy operation

dismantles major laboratory

The Ministry of Justice Investigators (MJIB) officers together with IFPI

Taiwan anti-piracy personnel raided a three storey building suspected of

being an illegal CDR burning centre and discovered eight towers of CDR

burners, each containing seven burners, and more than 25,000 burnt CDRs.

Seven people found on the premises were arrested, including the principal

operator of the laboratory. Evidence indicated that the laboratory had been

operational since December 2003 and that its production was intended

mainly to supply mail order syndicates.

Multiple raids on CDR duplication centres

IPR Task Force Police and IFPI anti-piracy personnel conducted a raid on

24th February on a building where a man was arrested and an extensive

range of pirated products were seized, along with product catalogues and

mail order dispatch envelopes. Customer records were also recovered from a

computer in the building. The raid was the result of a market survey

conducted by IFPI anti-piracy personnel which discovered the operation of a

mail order syndicate in Taichung. An investigation into this syndicate led to

the identification of premises in Beitun, Taichung.

Later the same day, another team was deployed to raid other premises

nearby. More than 10,000 burnt CDRs carrying music, movie and

pornographic video together with 200 CDs, believed to be mastering sources,

were found on a table. As a result of the raids, two men were arrested.

Information recovered during the above raids also led to the identification of

further premises being used as CDR burning laboratories. As a result, an

additional 69 CDR burners and more than 35,000 pirated discs were

recovered together with lines of production equipment.

Police take action on

registered plant

Ajoint investigation between IFPI

and national industry

association RIAS has culminated in

a raid on a registered Singapore

replication facility by the Intellectual

Property Rights Branch (IPRB) of the

Singapore Police Force.

In early 2003, a Singapore-based

music company discovered

infringing copies of two albums

distributed under their label in local

retail outlets. Samples of the

infringing discs were passed to IFPI

to coordinate an investigation.

Having conducted further enquiries

and corroborated preliminary

findings in late 2003, IFPI/RIAS

lodged a formal complaint with the

Singapore Authorities requesting an

investigation into the identified

manufacturing premises. On 1st

March, IPRB officers accompanied

by IFPI personnel, raided three

floors of the production facility, and

recovered infringing discs, stampers

and production records for both the

suspect audio titles and additional

infringing audio product.

IPRB, with IFPI assistance, are

following-up on leads generated

from the raid that indicate that the

customers behind the pirate

production orders are linked to both

Singaporean and Thai based

entities.

SINGAPORE

Dave Mattinson (left) thanks OC Case,

SSgtt Joseph Ho for a job well done

TAIWAN

THAILAND

1010

Regional news: Africa/Russia

EB 23 - Jun 04

Ministry of Culture & Police anti-piracy crisis talks

Motee Ramdass, Minister for Arts & Culture, is planning future talks with Police

Commissioner, Ramanooj Gopalsing, to discuss concerns on the escalating

piracy levels in Mauritius. The meeting, date undisclosed, will focus mainly on the

problem of CD piracy, in particular of local Mauritian artists.

“This is an issue I feel very strongly about”, declared Ramdass. “It is essential that we

look after the rights of our artists and they are properly rewarded for their efforts.”

The meeting with the Commissioner of Police will also be attended by representatives

from the Anti-Piracy Task Force established by Ramdass.

Also planned are talks with Prime Minister Paul Béranger, to raise awareness of the

problems encountered by local artists.

Source: Richard RademanIFPI Enforcement, Africa

Task Force tackles

piracy in Lusaka

The Zambian Government's efforts

to combat piracy in the region

have led to several anti-piracy

operations on market stalls and

shops resulting in the seizure of large

quantities of pirate music cassettes

and CDs.

These actions followed an IFPI

training workshop for police officers

in Zambia in October 2003, which

highlighted the widespread

availability of pirated music products

in the area. The workshop culminated

in the formation of an Anti-Piracy

Task Force, whose impact in the

capital city of Lusaka was

immediate.

To date, seven raids conducted by

enforcement officers from the task

force have resulted in the seizure of

pirated music cassettes and compact

discs worth more than US$105,000.

Despite violent protests against the

seizures, these actions have led to

significant improvements for the

legitimate industry in the area.

The Zambian Government further

illustrated its determination to

combat piracy, with the hosting of a

three-day conference in March on the

protection of intellectual property

rights. The seminar received

sponsorship from the World

Intellectual Property Organisation

and was well supported by rights-

holders in the region.

Source: William Mubanga, Copyright Enforcement OfficerZambia Anti-Piracy Task Force

Officers from Moscow's Law

Enforcement Agencies, assisted

by IFPI Investigators, conducted a

raid in February against a

clandestine DVD manufacturing

plant operating three replication

lines. Following the discovery of

more than 25,000 pirated DVDs and

800 stampers, a criminal action was

initiated against the operators of

this plant.

The nature of the escalating CDR

piracy problem in Russia was

illustrated when Ministry of Interior

Officers from the Tatarstan Region

raided an illegal CDR replication

facility located inside an industrial

unit in March. A total of nine

duplication towers, each housing

four manually loading burners were

in operation at the time of the raid,

alongside three printing machines.

The authorities seized more than

75,000 burnt CDRs carrying

infringing materials and a quantity

of pornographic DVDs.

During a series of co-ordinated raids

in April 2004, officers from the

Ministry of Interior and IFPI

representatives raided three large

wholesale warehouses in Moscow.

These raids led to the seizure of

more than 700,000 infringing

optical discs featuring music in MP3

format and computer software.

Evidence was recovered which

indicated that the goods were being

distributed through a series of

Internet sites, which will now be

subject to ongoing investigation.

During the course of a routine CD

plant inspection conducted by

representatives of the Moscow

Prosecutor's Office and IFPI

personnel in April, officers

discovered that two replication lines

operated by the licensed plant were

being used to manufacture

copyright-infringing DVDs. As a

result of this discovery a full search

of the plant was initiated, resulting

in the seizure of more than 35,000

illegal discs. Consequently, all

replication equipment in the plant

has been sealed and further

production halted pending the

outcome of forensic analysis of the

seized discs.Sergei Avdienko

IFPI Enforcement, Russia/CIS

ZAMBIA RUSSIA

MAURITIUS

Measured optimism as police extract price

for piracy: enforcement operations update

Inspecting the pirate product after a raid

1111

News: Industry/Secretariat

EB 23 - Jun 04

UNESCO, Anti-piracy

Training for Trainers

IFPI was invited to participate in a

UNESCO sponsored training

seminar held in Sofia, Bulgaria

between 17th-20th May. The

seminar entitled “Anti-Piracy

Training for Trainers” was attended

by customs, police and prosecutors

from Bulgaria, Bosnia and

Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia

Serbia and Montenegro, and

Romania all of whom had

responsibility for training in their

respective countries.

The four day training seminar was

divided into sessions on the law and

history of intellectual property rights

including the development of

international treaties and practical

aspects of investigation including

enforcement issues.

IFPI provided an overview of piracy

affecting the music industry and

members of the MPA and the BSA

described the situation in respect of

their industries.

Day three dealt with a general

perspective of piracy in South

Eastern Europe and the legal

framework in the region. In each

case the delegates gave a

presentation dealing with the

legislation in their respective

countries. A visit was made to an

optical disc plant, TOT 2002 Ltd

accompanied by a representative of

the Ministry of Culture who has

overall responsibility for supervising

the production of all optical discs in

Bulgaria. At this plant the delegates

saw discs being pressed and the

artwork being applied.

During the final session a discussion

was held about the evidence

available from plant visits and a

series of case studies were

facilitated by IFPI's Training Office.

The participants were asked to

discuss and debate the issues

involved in hypothetical cases of

music piracy. These practical

exercises which were designed to

tease out knowledge gained during

the previous three days and to

involve the students in an

interactive programme. All the case

studies were based on actual

events.

China fact finding tour

A delegation of eight people from

the National Copyright

Administration of the People's

Republic of China visited IFPI's

offices on Friday 23rd April. The

delegation, headed by the Deputy

Director General, ZHAI Lifeng, was

visiting Europe on a fact finding

mission to obtain an understanding

of EU best practices in regards to

the investigation of copyright

offences.

An overview of IFPI services, in

particular the role of the

Enforcement Unit, was provided

including details of some recent IFPI

investigations involving organised

crime. Optical disc piracy in China

remains at an extremely high level

and the delegates were shown

examples of genuine and

counterfeit discs of both Chinese

and international artists obtained by

investigators from the South East

Asia regional office.

The delegates expressed an interest

in establishing an exemplar

collection programme to assist in

their fight against optical disc piracy

in China and stated that they would

submit a report suggesting such a

course of action. IFPI welcomes

such an initiative.

Graham HaggerIFPI Training Officer

Malaysia: Training

freight forwarders

and prosecutors

Between February and March, IFPI co-

sponsored two training seminars,

the first with MPA and Microsoft, the

second with MPA and BSA.

As part of IFPI's ongoing initiative to

address the issue of Malaysia's large-

scale export of infringing optical discs

overseas, IFPI joined MPA and the

MDTCA in hosting representatives from

the major courier firms (DHL, Fed-Ex,

UPS), bulk cargo handlers (MAS Cargo)

and several local forwarding firms

including the Chairman of the Air Freight

Forwarders Association of Malaysia

(AFAM).

The aim of the seminar was to provide

insight into the difficulties faced by the

optical disc industry in respect of export

of infringing discs, and receive feedback

from the courier and freight forwarders

on how to best tackle the problems. The

seminar included presentations from

MDTCA, MPA and FACT and concluded

with a lively open forum discussion

group chaired by IFPI. Several key

initiatives were agreed to, including

improved information sharing through

identified communications.

Following the Export Seminar, IFPI and

RIM COP representatives co-hosted a

two-day seminar in Langkawi, Malaysia

designed to address experience and

knowledge issues amongst prosecutors

handling Copyright and Optical Disc Act

offence cases.

The well attended program held

between 1st-3rd March 2004 saw over

40 MDTCA and AG's Chambers

prosecutors engage in themed

discussions, chaired by industry

representatives from IFPI, RIM COP,

MPA, BSA and Microsoft.

In his keynote address, well respected

local Judge, Yg Arif Dato' Gopal Sri Ram

drew attention to the provisions within

Malaysia's strong legislation designed to

support prosecutors presentation of

evidence in copyright cases.

“It is hoped the positive response from

attendees will manifest itself in

increasing numbers of convictions for

piracy offences in the near future”. BobYouill, IFPI Regional Co-ordinator,S.E.Asia

T R A I N I N GT R A I N I N G

1212 EB 23 - Jun 04

News: In brief

DDiiaarryy 22000044DDiiaarryy 22000044

28-29 Jun IFPI Regional Anti-

Piracy Enforcement

Meeting (Dublin)

30 Jun-2 Jul IFPI World Anti-Piracy

Enforcement

Conference (Dublin)

SS..EE.. AAssiiaa:: TThhaaiillaannddSS..EE.. AAssiiaa:: TThhaaiillaanndd

Amidst a barrage of publicity, the Thai Government held a destruction

ceremony of forfeited infringing goods on 20th March. A total of 1.1 million

infringing goods were destroyed including a large quantity of pirate optical

discs. The ceremony took place at a government warehouse on the outskirts

of Bangkok used to store seized goods and was attended by representatives

from rights' holders organisations, the Ministry of Commerce Department of

Intellectual Property, Police, Customs, local embassy officials and the press.

A number of local celebrities were also on hand to help publicise the event.

Bob YouillIFPI Enforcement, S.E. Asia/Pacific

WWeesstteerrnn EEuurrooppee:: PPoorrttuuggaallWWeesstteerrnn EEuurrooppee:: PPoorrttuuggaall

Training at the Judges Academy in Lisbon

AFP, the Portuguese National Group of IFPI, and IGAC (General Inspection of

the Cultural Activities) held a training session in Lisbon on 28th May for

future Portuguese Judges (Public Prosecutors). The session was attended by

120 magistrates who were given information about identification of pirate

product, the involvement of organised crime and the scale of piracy in

Portugal as well as the Portuguese legal framework. The level of attendance

to the session was very encouraging and AFP has high expectations of

bringing this training to the curriculum of the Academy, commencing in

2005.

Source: Miguel Ramires, AFP Portugal

PPeeooppllee nneewwssPPeeooppllee nneewwss

Appointments/Movement

Lauri Rechardt Director of Licensing/Litigation (Secretariat) May 04

Tim Smith Senior Legal Adviser (Secretariat) Jun 04

Allan Deaves Intelligence Analyst (Secretariat) Jun 04

Departures

Marino Radillo Regional Co-ordinator (Latin America) Apr 04

Jorge Foch Regional Investigator (Latin America) Apr 04

Geoff Taylor Director of Litigation (Secretariat) May 04

This Bulletin is edited by Isabelle

Betsy, Executive Administrator @

IFPI Secretariat.

Fax: +44 20 7878 7990

email: isabelle.betsy@ifpi.org

ENFORCEMENT BULLETIN

LLaasstt wwoorrdd......LLaasstt wwoorrdd......

General anti-piracy enquiries and

requests for information relating to

enforcement issues should be sent to

the following email address:

enforcement@ifpi.org

Information is also available from

IFPI’s website: www.ifpi.org

The next EB will be in SSeepptteemmbbeerr

22000044..

Contributions / comments are welcomed

and these should be forwarded to the

editor no later than 1100tthh SSeepptteemmbbeerr

22000044 (see below for details).

Mailing list enquiries should also be

addressed to the editor.

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Mobile CDR burning operation discovered on a bus

Acting on information developed through border operations, APDIF

investigators and Military Police in Brazil conducted a stop-check on a bus

near to Sau Paulo. Their intelligence suggested that the bus was being used

to house a mobile CD-R burning laboratory. During a search of the vehicle,

officers recovered 147 CD-R burners, with a vast potential production

capacity. The use of vehicles in this manner is a direct attempt to avoid

detection, and makes the development of intelligence concerning the location

of the laboratory more difficult for the authorities. The arrest of two offenders

in this case illustrates the determination of authorities in Brazil to control the

escalating levels of CD-R piracy in the country.

Source: IFPI Latin America

Portugal: IPR training at the Judges

Academy in Lisbon at the end of May