Online music retailer CD-Wow is to face charges in the British High Court, after the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) claimed it had breached copyright regulations.

The company has admitted 'parallel importing' - selling CDs in the UK which are destined for other countries - a practice that potentially breaks British law.

The BPI, which represents British record labels, bought 33 CDs that it said CD-Wow should not have been selling in the UK. Because discs made in Asia are cheaper than British versions, the company is able to undercut UK-based retailers by shipping discs from Hong Kong.

However, CD-Wow said that the breaches were genuine mistakes due to errors in its stock-keeping system, and that it is willing to pay fines relating only to the 33 CDs.

The BPI counter claimed and said that the breaches of the law are deliberate and "systematic", meaning the company may have sold many more copyright-infringing CDs than it found. It is pursuing CD-Wow for full damages.

A representative of CD-Wow told Computeractive that it agrees parallel importing is illegal, but described the law as "ridiculous", adding that the company would be campaigning for a change in the law, allowing it to continue to sell the cheaper editions from the Far East.