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No sympathy for the guy. | |
I'm usually a bit wishy-washy when it comes to Piracy issues, but this guys was making money off it. I have no sympathy for him. | |
Exactly how I feel. | |
Agreed. Profiting from pirating is a whole other ballpark. | |
"Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association...our team in the Intellectual Property Crime Unit." These guys sure like their long titles and sub-commitees.
Would have to agree, piracy is ripping stuff to give for free, this guy is making a 100% profit, almost. Although wouldn't be surprised if he stole those systems and original games in the first place. EDIT: You have just been quoted three times in a row, feel special. | |
what...the...<expletive> Well, that decides it then. I'm never going to the UK or any country that has more than 600 government thought police agencies. EDIT: But I'm not supporting his Piracy. The guy is guilty. But I don't like the UK's spiderweb government, the way they control everything. | |
Lock him up, our economy seems to be pretty fucked in Britain at the moment, and probably in other places around, guys like this aren't really helping the situation | |
I personaly think that copying stuff or piracy is fine as long as no one lossing anything and no ones gaining more than the entertainment they copy, other than that though I think ppl just shouldent do that.
Thats why ppl shouldent do that. | |
I honestly doubt its any were near 100% profit and just because the guys a pirate doesn't mean he's a burglar. | |
100% profit? Seeing the backup games are usually sold for very little I doubt he made a huge profit. Console chipping is usually done at a reasonable price too. The guy isn't funding potentially violent criminal organisations or anything. Also I find it disgusting how the authorities made out they are protecting the consumer from "health dangers" or lack of quality control. | |
If you really want to be a pirate, at least have the god-damn common decency to pick up the soldering iron and do it yourself. That way we can point and laugh when you brick your system. Unless you have a 360, which seem to be criminally easy to mod. | |
Good to see justice being served. -Joe | |
He didnt pirate any PS3 games, the PS3 was just too awesome for his burners to handle :p Dont XD | |
Once again there is proof that its not JUST the pc that suffers from piracy. | |
Oh and america doesnt? the country where someone only has to utter the word terrorism and problem solved? | |
100% profit means that in his line of business, buying games, copying them, chipping 360s; he is making almost a complete profit. I am not saying 100% profit in that he is making millions of dollars, I am simply stating that he has almost no expense, only profit. But he is not making 100% entirely, as buying games and systems do come in effect. | |
Not true, many criminals get away with their crimes. I feel a bit sorry for this guy as he probably didn't know he was doing wrong, but it is still his fault. P.S. What does "chipped" mean in this case? | |
Modifying systems in order to play pirated or imported games. It's a very grey area of law which is generally only enforced in conjunction with piracy charges. | |
Pretty much my thoughts exactly. Although I will say that's a LOT of games to get seized. | |
When I think it through your right after he covers the cost of the original games and equipment he's swimming in green profit. £ that is not $ :p | |
You've somehow found a way to track me? Again? *rumbles* stupid tracking devise in my shoe....I'll have to incinerate them again. | |
He still has plenty of expenses, the chips he needs to install cost a fair bit, discs, postage to customers etc. Of course not having to pay tax helps a bit. He wouldn't buy the games and rip them himself though, its all available for download. I know far too much about this subject. I live in England too so I probably have these Organisations With Long Winded Names watching me through my telescreen for the next few months. | |
Entrapment. I *think* chipping is legal in Australia. Given that there's a store down the road from me that advertises it... | |
Incinerate all you want - We know where you live. and where you keep your shoes. And where you buy your shoes. | |
10 years? | |
Piracy must be dealt with. I think the law should be tougher on it, but on the vendors. The guys making money must be taken care of. I think it'd be a stupid move to crack down on illegal music when you've got worse crimes. | |
An unlimited fine... I wonder how many zeros are gonna be put on that paper :P | |
He had four PCs, over 1000 copied titles and a web site dedicated to his business... I'm pretty sure he knew very well what he was doing. It will be interesting to know how much prison time he will get. From the scope of his dealings I'd guess 3 to 6 months for a first time, individual offender should be more than enough to give him a good scare. Anything over a year would be excessive. | |
"Such illegal activity can pose real health dangers for the public" Maybe I'm just thick - how does this have anything to do will people's health? | |
It hasn't got anything to do with it, just another random comment to make the guy look bad. In any case, people that make money off of pirating get no sympathy from me. Good riddance. | |
300 wii games? thats like...300 minigames!! WOW!!! | |
Do you think anyone's ever going to get an actual unlimited fine? I mean if you broke a law that came with an unlimited fine, and you broke the hell out of it. I mean really really broke it; you broke it, picked it back up, and broke it again. Obviously it would be legal to impose an actually infinite fine (i'm assuming), but would any judge do it? | |
Agreed. This guy is a scumbag thief and deserves to go to prison. Perhaps the article should have mentioned "counterfeiter" in the title since that's really what he is. | |
What really annoys me about stuff like this is the stupidly high punishment for this and the bullshit crap about him being a "health danger". Thats what pisses me off about this country the most, defraud corporations or the government and the justice system will be all over you, but if you rape, murder or steal from innocent people the police and the courts couldn't give a shit. | |
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The First Pirate Bust Of 2009
It's not a happy new year for one UK resident who was busted for piracy.
The unnamed Staffordshire man, in his thirties, was apprehended after a joint raid by Trading Standards and the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA).
Prior to the official raid, investigators set up a sting operation where they visited him to have their Xbox chipped and purchase pirated games. The console and games were then forensically examined to provide the evidence needed to obtain a search warrant.
Four computers with burners and more than 1,000 illegally copied games were seized in the raid - including 700 Xbox 360 games, 300 Wii titles and 100 PlayStation 2 games. Three Xbox 360 and two Nintendo Wii consoles were also seized. The man admitted to running an illegal chipping operation via his Gumtree.com site for nearly two years.
Michael Rawlinson, managing director of ELSPA, has said "Our team in the Intellectual Property Crime Unit (IPCU) will step up its fight against counterfeiters and illegal chipping services in 2009. Such illegal activity can pose real health dangers for the public and certainly deprives gamers of any proper quality control. Furthermore, it can cause the industry to lose vital income and with it jobs across the UK. "
A POCA (Proceeds Of Crime Act) investigation has already begun to estimate the criminal gain from the offender's illegal activities. The crime itself carries up to ten year's imprisonment, and an unlimited fine.
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