James Delahunty
10 Mar 2005 8:39
In Australia, anti-piracy operatives have raided an ISP suspected of using BitTorrent technology to allow the pirating of hundreds of thousands of songs and video clips. MIPI investigators used an "Anton Piller" search warrant to search the premises of Swiftel Communications in Perth and seized digital evidence relating to Internet transactions of illegal songs and video clips. MIPI General Manager Michael Speck declared the operation "a new and important development in our fight against internet music piracy"
MIPI alleges that Swiftel used BitTorrent "to link infringers to music clips and sound recordings" and also believes that hundreds of thousands of downloads have been conducted within the past year. "The record industry will continue to take legal action to protect its copyright whether it's on the internet or elsewhere. We will continue to act against ISPs who we believe are set up as vehicles for piracy." Speck said.
The Australian Record Industry Association (ARIA) has an on-going court battle with Sharman Networks, owners of Kazaa in Australia. The ARIA alleges that Sharman operate the worlds largest music piracy service and make no effort to filter the trading of copyrighted material, which the ARIA believes is possible to implement into the network. That trial is set to conclude later on this month.
Source:
The Register