On Friday, 11th May, a federal jury in Chicago returned a guilty
verdict in the first trial under the No Electronic Theft Act, a
1997 law enacted in the US to combat internet piracy. A member of
Pirates With Attitude was convicted.
Christian Morley, 28, of Salem, Massachusetts, was found guilty
of conspiracy to infringe software copyrights for his role in the
high profile group, “Pirates with Attitudes.” Thirteen of Morley's
co-defendants had already entered guilty pleas.
A total of 17 individuals from across the US and Europe were
charged in May last year with conspiring to infringe the copyright
of more than 5,000 computer software programs that were available
through a hidden internet site located at a university in Quebec,
Canada.
The indictment named 12 of the defendants as members of the
underground group, “Pirates with Attitudes” (PWA), reputed to be
one of the oldest and most sophisticated networks of software
pirates on the internet. PWA disseminated unauthorised copies of
software on-line, often known as “warez,” including programs that
were not yet commercially available.
The NET Act was enacted in 1997 to deal with prosecution of
internet copyright piracy. It makes it illegal to reproduce or
distribute such copyrighted works as software programs, even if the
defendant acts without commercial purpose or for private financial
gain. Conspiracy to infringe a copyright carries a maximum penalty
of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Restitution is
mandatory.
