Andre Yoskowitz
20 Feb 2009 21:49
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.