OMEN
08-18-2007, 10:34 AM
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You said it ... a Sydney man has been accused of being the first person in the world to illegally copy and upload The Simpsons Movie
A WESTERN Sydney man armed with a video-capable mobile phone faces criminal charges after allegedly becoming the first person in the world to illegally upload The Simpsons Movie to the internet.
The 21-year-old Prairiewood man allegedly uploaded a copy of the film to a US global streaming website hours before the film had screened there.
The youth allegedly saw the eagerly awaited film at a Western Sydney cinema on July 26, the first day of the film's global screenings.
He allegedly used a video phone to secretly record the animated movie before uploading it to the US-based website, where it was quickly viewed or downloaded more than 3000 times.
The Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft (AFACT) said piracy investigators found the footage and had it removed within two hours.
However, it had already been transferred to other sites and within 72 hours of its posting had been downloaded 110,000 times.
It is unknown if the accused man was charging for downloads.
Australian Federal Police yesterday confirmed they raided the man's home yesterday morning "in relation to allegations of criminal breaches of intellectual property law".
Officers would not confirm what was seized but it is understood computer equipment was taken away.
The man was issued with a court attendance notice to face Downing Centre Local Court in October.
He faced charges related to distributing and infringing copyright material and possessing a device for doing so.
AFACT executive director Adrianne Pecotic said AFACT investigators found that the movie had been re-edited with an unauthorised French language version, reformatted and distributed on numerous sites.
She said the material had probably been copied and sold as pirate DVDs throughout the world.
"The speed and spread of illegal copies across the global internet as a result of this camcord copy being made from a mobile phone in a Sydney cinema is staggering," she said.
Daily Telegraph
You said it ... a Sydney man has been accused of being the first person in the world to illegally copy and upload The Simpsons Movie
A WESTERN Sydney man armed with a video-capable mobile phone faces criminal charges after allegedly becoming the first person in the world to illegally upload The Simpsons Movie to the internet.
The 21-year-old Prairiewood man allegedly uploaded a copy of the film to a US global streaming website hours before the film had screened there.
The youth allegedly saw the eagerly awaited film at a Western Sydney cinema on July 26, the first day of the film's global screenings.
He allegedly used a video phone to secretly record the animated movie before uploading it to the US-based website, where it was quickly viewed or downloaded more than 3000 times.
The Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft (AFACT) said piracy investigators found the footage and had it removed within two hours.
However, it had already been transferred to other sites and within 72 hours of its posting had been downloaded 110,000 times.
It is unknown if the accused man was charging for downloads.
Australian Federal Police yesterday confirmed they raided the man's home yesterday morning "in relation to allegations of criminal breaches of intellectual property law".
Officers would not confirm what was seized but it is understood computer equipment was taken away.
The man was issued with a court attendance notice to face Downing Centre Local Court in October.
He faced charges related to distributing and infringing copyright material and possessing a device for doing so.
AFACT executive director Adrianne Pecotic said AFACT investigators found that the movie had been re-edited with an unauthorised French language version, reformatted and distributed on numerous sites.
She said the material had probably been copied and sold as pirate DVDs throughout the world.
"The speed and spread of illegal copies across the global internet as a result of this camcord copy being made from a mobile phone in a Sydney cinema is staggering," she said.
Daily Telegraph