Australia - Judge jails music pirate and warns "respect artists' livelihood"

Sydney, 9th September 2009

The head of a piracy syndicate operating across Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific was yesterday sentenced to 15 months jail and 300 hours community service in the Sydney District Court.

Passing sentence, Judge Colin Charteris told the individual that his conduct and that of other music pirates was "robbing creators of the work of their livelihood."

"These are offences where the deterrence of others is paramount," he explained. "No penalty other than a period of imprisonment is appropriate. What you have done is rob the artists of their work and now you will have to give something back."

The man in question had been convicted of 32 charges arising from the illegal manufacture of more than 50,000 remixed compilation albums and their distribution through a complex network across Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific.

Judge Charteris said the parliament had made it clear that copyright theft was a serious crime and it was important the courts "protect performers and artists so they can be adequately rewarded for their efforts."

The piracy operation was dismantled by the Australian Federal Police and investigators from Music Industry Piracy Investigations (MIPI) on 22 April 2008, when 11 simultaneous search warrants were executed across Sydney.

The District Court ordered the jail sentence be conditionally suspended for a period of 3 years.

Criminal penalties for copyright infringement are up to AU$60,500 and 5 years imprisonment per offence for individuals.

Further information and photographs are available from MIPI.

For further information contact:
Dean Mitchell, Investigations Manager
Tel: +61 (02) 8569 1177