Two Jailed over Web Music Piracy
Two internet pirates have been jailed behind illegal music internet forum Dancing Jesus, which could have cost the industry more than £240 million.
Site owner and administrator Kane Robinson, 26, of Wyndham Way, North Shields, North Tyneside, was jailed for two years and eight months at Newcastle crown court after he admitted earlier this year illegally distributing music.
Richard Graham, 22, of Station Road, Broughton Astley, Leicestershire, was jailed for 21 months. He illegally distributed thousands of files on Dancing Jesus, including about 8,000 tracks, around two-thirds of which were pre-release.
More than 22,500 links to 250,000 individual titles were made available on Dancing Jesus between 2006 and 2011. The site had more than 70 million user visits. If half of them illegally downloaded a single track, the cost to the industry would be around £35m, but if half of them downloaded a whole album for free, the cost would be £242m.
Graham pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to illegally distributing music. Judge Deborah Sherwin said it would be easy to consider such activities a victimless crime but added that piracy reduced the ability of the industry to promote and fund new artists.
The British Phonographic Industry (BPI) said it linked with other organizations including the US Department of Homeland Security and City of London Police to investigate Dancing Jesus in 2010. The inquiry identified the creator and operator of the site as Robinson and in September 2011 he was arrested.
The director of the BPI’s Copyright Protection Unit, David Wood, said, “This sentencing sends a clear message to the operators and users of illegal music sites that online piracy is a criminal activity that will not be tolerated by law enforcement in the UK or overseas. Piracy – particularly pre-release – can make or break an artist’s career, and can determine whether a record label is able to invest in that crucial second or third album. In this day and age with so many quality digital music services available offering access to millions of tracks through free and premium tiers, there is no good reason to use pirate sites that give nothing back to artists and offer a sub-standard experience for consumers.”
Facebook Comments