International raids target music piracy site
Tue Oct 23, 2007 11:23am BST
LONDON (Reuters) - British and Dutch police shut down one of the world's largest sources of illegal pre-release music on Tuesday and arrested a 24-year-old man.
The raids, in Amsterdam and Middlesbrough, followed a two-year investigation into a members-only Web site, www.OiNK.cd, which allowed users to upload and download albums before their release.
An estimated 180,000 members of the site paid "donations" via debit or credit cards, ensuring that they could continue to access the site and its catalogue of music and other media.
The site provided access to more than 60 albums before their release this year, according to industry experts.
"OiNK was central to the illegal distribution of pre-release music online," said Jeremy Banks, head of the anti-piracy unit at the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), which helped in the investigation.
"This was not a case of friends sharing music for pleasure. This was a worldwide network that got hold of music they did not own the rights to and posted it online."
Pre-release leaks have become one of the most damaging forms of piracy for the music industry which is struggling with falling sales worldwide -- recorded music sales have fallen by more than a third in the last six years, the industry says.
As opposed to illegal sharing of music after its release, pre-release piracy is seen as particularly damaging because it leads to unauthorised mixes or unfinished versions of artists' recordings appearing on line.
Often it is those in the industry, who get promotional or demonstration copies of albums before their release, who are involved in leaking them to Web sites such as OiNK.
British police said they arrested the 24-year-old on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud and infringement of copyright law. He was the only person arrested in the raids. Dutch police seized servers and other computer equipment.
The shutting down of OiNK comes at a time when artists are themselves experimenting with new ways of distributing their music, sometimes for free over the Internet.
Radiohead released its latest album on the Internet and invited fans to pay a donation to download it.
Such techniques have frustrated the music industry which is struggling to come up with ways to regenerate revenue.
I see the large record companies like Sony-BMG as criminal fukcers. Ppl with no talent (other then banking) cashing in on other peoples talent and/or pumping the market full of Britney Spears' like ppl and taking money away from unsuspecting kids.
Also they stand in the way of technology, trying to push their shit like it was still the 80's. Who in their right mind wants to go thru the trouble of actually going out to buy music and spending some 20 bucks on some stuff you will propably hate in say 2 years time. (i'm talking new music) Specially when you can download the same shit before it's released, and never leave the house.
I do get that the artists must live and feed their kids too, but come on. The record companies/distributors time is over. Useless 80's oldie middle men who have no use in todays music business (in the perfect world)
Not to mention artist like that drummer guy from metallica, human carbage. How much is enough? This guy has like 4 houses around the world and still whines about kids downloading their music.
Big up to people like Radiohead and Chuck D of Public Enemy for trying new things out like sharing for free and asking for donations.
Taking it back to the days when musicians would play the streets and you toss a coin in their hat if you liked the stuff they play. :smile:
The point of this post? I know i had one, but all this useless ranting made me forgot it. But i'ma go with fuk the music industry bankers, yer time is up son.
Long live P2P networks. If the cops think it's over now. Mwahhahahahaha..
Think again.
Sorry about ranting and raving. Figured some of yas might have been oink users and didn't know about this.
BadTee out like Biggie Smalls