Digital

IFPI works with City Of London Police to target rogue download sites

By | Published on Thursday 3 March 2011

IFPI

The International Federation Of The Phonographic Industry has agreed a system with the City Of London Police’s Economic Crime Directorate and leading credit card companies to speed up the process for targeting rogue websites that sell digital music illegally.

The system is designed to target unlicensed music websites, usually based in Russia and the Ukraine but often doing business in English, that appear to be legitimate download stores except that they commonly offer latest releases at very cheap prices.

While there is a strong case for suing such websites for copyright infringement, doing so through the Russian courts would be time consuming and risky. Instead the record industry has sought to persuade credit card companies to not take payments for the copyright infringing downloads, making it very hard for such websites to operate.

The most famous Russian site that offered this kind of illegal service, and which was stopped through pressuring credit card firms, was AllofMP3.com, though there are many other similar rogue services.

Under the new system the IFPI’s anti-piracy team will alert the City Of London Police of any site they believe to be illegal. The police will then notify MasterCard and Visa who will then demand that the bank actually providing the credit card payment facility request copies of music licenses from the digital firm. If no such licenses can be provided the credit card firms will request the digital company’s payment facility be stopped.

Welcoming the system that has been put in place with the City Of London Police and the credit card giants, IFPI boss Frances Moore told CMU: “It is extremely positive for the recorded music industry that the world’s largest payment systems are taking steps to prevent their services being abused by illegal websites that infringe the rights of artists, songwriters and producers. Intermediaries, such as MasterCard and Visa, can play a key role in tackling online piracy wherever it originates around the world. We commend the City Of London Police for the key role it is playing in coordinating the programme. This demonstrates that it understands the damage these rogue websites are inflicting on jobs and growth in the UK and around the world”.



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