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Pirate DVD epidemic
New figures reveal pirate DVD production within the UK has increased 133%.
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A new £1m awareness campaign has been launched by the DVD industry, aimed at highlighting the involvement of serious criminals behind DVD piracy.

New statistics released from the Federation Against Copyright Theft (FACT) highlight that pirate DVDs are increasingly being produced within the UK, rather than imported from abroad. Seizures of DVD-Rs in the UK shot up by a massive 133% in the first half of 2005 compared with the same period in 2004, reaching 386,569 units. This is in contrast to the downward shift in the seizures of imported pressed DVDs - which are typically from the Far East and Malaysia - with seizures this year down on the figure for 2004 by 123,719 to 661,581.

This increase is an indication that the criminal gangs involved in DVD piracy have got more organised and are now producing the disks from within the UK, rather than importing them from abroad in order to stay ahead of the game by trying to evade detection at British ports.

DVD piracy has strong links to serious crime gangs and according to FACT, there is also an increasing involvement of illegal Chinese immigrants selling pirate DVDs on the streets across the UK. Behind these street sellers are gangs who operate activities such as people trafficking, drug smuggling, prostitution, illegal gambling and racketeering alongside their pirate DVD trade.

DVD pirates are also increasingly using online auction sites to sell their wares. FACT has recently stopped a number of 'big players' from trading on eBay, including Tahir Mahmood from Rochdale who was ordered to pay back £30,000 of his ill-gotten gains from DVD piracy and other similar crimes, after pleading guilty to selling counterfeit DVDs on the internet.

DVD piracy is often seen as a 'soft' crime where nobody gets hurt but in fact nothing could be further from the truth. The sellers of pirate DVDs are involved in a much wider web of criminality that also embraces drug dealing and exploitation of minors. Piracy is also a very real threat to the future of the UK's creative industries and everyone who depends on them for employment. The UK film industry is fighting back and today launches a major new campaign to convince the public that DVD piracy is not the sole pursuit of loveable 'Del Boy' characters but altogether a much darker and damaging world.

On Monday 12th September 2005, a major campaign from The Industry Trust for IP Awareness is being launched by TV presenter Jonathan Ross at BAFTA in London. The campaign aims to raise awareness that serious criminals lie behind the seemingly innocuous pirate DVD trade, and that by buying pirate DVDs from car boot sales and street traders, consumers are feeding crime in their local communities. At the centre of the campaign is a £1m awareness drive which will be rolled out nationally to promote the issue of DVD piracy.

Other speakers at the event will present perspectives from different sectors of the DVD industry who are affected by the problem of piracy, including film studios, TV, retail and law enforcement agencies.

Lavinia Carey, Director general of the BVA and director of the Trust, said: "The problem of DVD piracy has not gone away but has started to take new forms, illustrated by the rise in pirate traders using online auction sites and 'home-grown' pirate discs. Consumers have to open their eyes to what is happening. Our message is simple: if you buy pirate DVDs, you are funding criminal activity in your own community."