Ebay cracks down on DVD pirates

Hundreds of pirate DVDs ready for sale on online auctions have been seized, and anti-piracy organisation the Federation Against Copyright Theft (FACT) has warned it will prosecute persistent offenders.

It issued the warning after its Internet Investigations Team recently helped the Metropolitan Police (Newham Borough) and Newham Council Trading Standards arrest a 22-year old man, following a house-raid in Canning Town, London.

He was found in possession of several hundred counterfeit DVDs, including copies of TV and film titles such as The Sopranos, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and 24, all ready to be shipped to potential Ebay buyers.

Kieron Sharp, FACT's director general, said this raid showed it would actively pursue illegal traders.

FACT is supported in its pursuit of pirates by Ebay. The online auction site said the arrest was a good deterrent to those selling pirate goods on the site. “We do not want these people on our site,” said Ebay spokeswoman Vanessa Canzini.

FACT recently launched a guide on Ebay, giving advice to both sellers and buyers of DVD’s. Eddy Leviten, a spokesman for FACT, said it would rather educate consumers about piracy and the risks associated with this than prosecute them.

“Whilst we would rather prevent the sale of these DVD’s rather than prosecute, we will not hesitate to do so. This arrest is evidence that we can, and will, find those selling such products on the site.

"It is early days but we have seen a slight increase in complaints from the public who have come across those trading counterfeit DVD’s,” he said.

In the meantime he warned buyers to “be vigilant” when buying online. Anyone unsure about a DVD or CD should ask the seller questions and keep the responses. This will help if they need to report the seller to either Ebay or FACT.

FACT has also put similar guides on auction site Ebid.