China Piracy Cost Industry $2.7 Billion in 2005

SHANGHAI, June 19: Film piracy in China cost the worldwide
movie industry $2.7 billion last year, according to data from the Motion
Picture Association (MPA).

The Chinese film industry shouldered the bulk of the burden,
losing about $1.5 billion, compared to the $565 million lost by the U.S.
studios. About 93 percent of all movie sales in China were of pirated versions
of films, according to the research.

"In terms of who's losing the most here in China, it's
not the MPAA’s member companies, it's the local industry," Mike Ellis, who
heads the MPA's Asia-Pacific division, is quoted as saying.

The report further notes that Internet piracy is becoming a
greater threat, with $1.04 billion in lost revenues. Pirated discs accounted
for $1.63 billion in lost revenues.

The MPA has organized a host of anti-piracy initiatives
across the region. Last year, the MPA’s operations in the Asia-Pacific investigated
more than 34,000 cases of piracy and assisted law enforcement officials in
conducting more than 10,500 raids. These activities resulted in the seizure of
more than 34 million illegal optical discs, 55 factory optical disc production
lines and 3,362 optical disc burners, as well as the initiation of more than
8,000 legal actions. Most
recently, the MPA worked with Jakarta police on a raid that led to the arrest
of two men and the seizure of 140 DVD-R burners and 53,400 pirated optical
discs.