AfterDawn: News

MPA calls piracy crackdown a huge 'success'

Thanks to the MPA's 10-week Operation ZoomOut, the average number of illegally recorded camcorded movies coming from Asia dropped significantly, leading the trade group to call the operation a raging success.

During the Operation, the MPA performed over 450 raids in 12 different nations, dropping the average amount of illegally camcorded movies from 2.4 to 1.4 during the time period.



370 alleged pirates were arrested and 4 million optical discs were seized along with 767 DVD and Blu-ray burners.

In China alone, over 74 retail outlets were shut down, and in Hong Kong and the Philippines combined, 3.3 million discs were seized. Most of the arrests came from raids in Thailand and Taiwan.

"All these measures have served to deter criminals from engaging in illegal camcording," added Mike Ellis, MPA prexy and managing director, Asia-Pacific.

Written by: Andre Yoskowitz @ 20 Feb 2009 21:49

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• 13 comments

• ucfmoe

  Ummm yea, way to go?

  20.2.2009 21:58 #1

• varnull

  2.4 to 1.4 .. and considering there were no new cinema releases of any note during the period is that surprising really? 1 less film on cam.. wow.. impressive.. how much did this pointless and completely ineffective operation cost the media buying public.. in millions if $$ that is?
  
  Looks like an excuse to steal perfectly legal devices and blank disks from people to me. team america strikes again.. I'm surprised the "p[irates" aren't being accused of funding terrorism.. hang about.. isn't bullying and frightening people terrorism?.. yeah.. the biggest terrorists in the world.. the USA.. hahahahahaha
  
  download and burn people.. if you are like me you will sell too if given the opportunity.. just to recoup your "fair use" expenses.. after all.. making a profit from films is bad.. isn't it?.... we are legion and the mafiaa are our enemy.. by weight of numbers we will kill them and so what if we don't have any crappy hollywood propaganda films to watch.. vive la revolution!

  20.2.2009 22:08 #2

• dude845

  So let me get this straight. They found people who record cams? You know cams, the recorded videos that have really shitty quality. They also took thousands of burned disks? Hah. Not like a million more pirates will show up. They are idiots.

  20.2.2009 23:11 #3

• Ragnarok8

  Wait, who are they trying to impress again?

  21.2.2009 00:10 #4

• ammad123

  Originally posted by varnull: 2.4 to 1.4 .. and considering there were no new cinema releases of any note during the period is that surprising really? 1 less film on cam.. wow.. impressive.. how much did this pointless and completely ineffective operation cost the media buying public.. in millions if $$ that is?
  
  Looks like an excuse to steal perfectly legal devices and blank disks from people to me. team america strikes again.. I'm surprised the "p[irates" aren't being accused of funding terrorism.. hang about.. isn't bullying and frightening people terrorism?.. yeah.. the biggest terrorists in the world.. the USA.. hahahahahaha
  
  download and burn people.. if you are like me you will sell too if given the opportunity.. just to recoup your "fair use" expenses.. after all.. making a profit from films is bad.. isn't it?.... we are legion and the mafiaa are our enemy.. by weight of numbers we will kill them and so what if we don't have any crappy hollywood propaganda films to watch.. vive la revolution!LOL @ last three words :D

  21.2.2009 07:10 #5

• oappi

  i bet MPA did a favour to most "pirates" by preventing ppl for uploading shitty quality movies.
  
  I for one cant stand cam version. If someone is so desperate to see movie then i would feel kinda sorry for him. Most cams totaly ruin the whole experience.

  21.2.2009 10:41 #6

• DoomLight

  this does nothing to curb Bootlegs. besides. i dont personally look for Cams when im online. the quality is to horrible. better to wait for Dumps from the source dvd or a screener.
  
  havent they heard the ole saying.
  
  stop one. another one pops up.

  21.2.2009 11:49 #7

• NexGen76

  If CAM's is what they want then knock themselves out because i hate them.....

  21.2.2009 15:33 #8

• ikari

  Originally posted by varnull: 2.4 to 1.4 .. and considering there were no new cinema releases of any note during the period is that surprising really? 1 less film on cam.. wow.. impressive.. how much did this pointless and completely ineffective operation cost the media buying public.. in millions if $$ that is?
  
  Looks like an excuse to steal perfectly legal devices and blank disks from people to me. team america strikes again.. I'm surprised the "p[irates" aren't being accused of funding terrorism.. hang about.. isn't bullying and frightening people terrorism?.. yeah.. the biggest terrorists in the world.. the USA.. hahahahahaha
  
  download and burn people.. if you are like me you will sell too if given the opportunity.. just to recoup your "fair use" expenses.. after all.. making a profit from films is bad.. isn't it?.... we are legion and the mafiaa are our enemy.. by weight of numbers we will kill them and so what if we don't have any crappy hollywood propaganda films to watch.. vive la revolution!Wow. The things you say get more and more extreme. I thought the general feeling on Afterdawn was, "Fair Use okay. Copying and selling not okay"? Did things change over the last few months I haven't been on Afterdawn?

  21.2.2009 22:03 #9

• chubbyInc

  Originally posted by oappi: i bet MPA did a favour to most "pirates" by preventing ppl for uploading shitty quality movies.
  
  I for one cant stand cam version. If someone is so desperate to see movie then i would feel kinda sorry for him. Most cams totaly ruin the whole experience.I think this is the best post. Though I haven't downloaded a movie for quite a while, when I did those CAM versions really sucked! Always went for the Screeners myself.

  21.2.2009 22:59 #10

• DXR88

  Quote:team america strikes again..Derk-derk-Allah. Derka derka, Mohammed Jihad. Haka sherpa-sherpa. Abaka-la, Derka Derka Derka

  22.2.2009 12:26 #11

• Ransack

  Whow! 3.3 million DVD's seized. That seems like a lot but when piracy has been known there for years now and 99% of the music and movies are at the world's highest rate. I don't think that does much in a country that has 1.33 billion people only making 0.2% of the population on the DVD movie level. That's just fumes for something that is going to be almost impossible to take back on the control level. most of the small countries seems to just be selling bootleg movies and music most times in a over saturated situation. Most times these people who get charged for distributing illegal bootlegged movies just get a fine for $5000 on the violations for it but profit 500% more than the fine they receive.

  22.2.2009 22:29 #12

• ikillau

  3.3 million dvds is about 16 million dollars selling at 5 each,+ 4 million disks which is probally around 20 million so thats about 16 million dollars thats chum change figuring this is global and there has to be millions more who do this

  23.2.2009 03:31 #13