10/8/2004 - Cumbria posted in UK's largest ever DVD anti-piracy campaign

Carlisle is a key location for the DVD anti-piracy message as enforcement agencies reinforce their pledge to work together to combat this crime. Tomorrow sees the launch of a new billboard poster at the junction of Currock Road and Crown Street, Carlisle, CA2 5AG 

At 2.00pm Nick Mildon, Cumbria county council's Assistant County Trading Standards Officer will be at the site. The campaign posters have been designed by the Industry Trust for IP Awareness as part of a major UK industry-wide anti-piracy campaign backed by Cumbria Council. Links between DVD piracy and organised crime were recently highlighted with the publication of new evidence, compiled by the Industry Trust for IP Awareness Limited..

The £1.5 million national campaign aims to shatter the illusion of DVD pirates as harmless "Del Boy" characters by highlighting the involvement of serious criminals, people traffickers and terrorist groups in the distribution of pirate DVDs. 

The consumer campaign, which includes a new anti-piracy cinema trailer, kicked off on the same day as the UK premier of Spider-Man 2, as this is the kind of blockbuster movie that is an immediate target for pirates. The Trust aims to make consumers aware that pirated copies of movies sold on the black market before the legal DVD release, are invariably a rip-off. 90% of all pirate pre-release DVDs seized by FACT this year are copies of movies filmed with a camcorder from the back of the cinema. 

Cumbria county council's Trading Standards unit hope the campaign will deter consumers from buying counterfeit DVDs and videos. Nick Mildon, Assistant County Trading Standards Officer says: 

" The industry trust paper clearly shows strong links between piracy and organised crime, we have seen first hand in Cumbria how the pirate suppliers threaten the livelihood of bona fide retailers.

It is also a false economy, which deceives consumers, as these poor copies are usually a rip-off - giving a dreadful viewing experience, with fuzzy pictures and poor sound. Cumbria County Council condemns any form of piracy and is dedicated to stamping it out in our area."

The commitment of Trading Standards in Cumbria in combating the problem of DVD piracy was highlighted recently with a national award for all their efforts at the campaign launch.

The campaign is backed by BBC TV’s Film 2004 presenter, Jonathan Ross who says:

"Think of pirate DVDs as the worst sort of home cinema experience. Not the home cinema experience where you get Dolby surround sound and crystal clear images. No, the home cinema experience where someone gets up to go to the toilet halfway through and blocks out the screen. Where you can hear someone eating crisps. These things are terrible and what really bugs me is that people are duped into paying good money for these blatant rip-offs - and have you ever tried getting your money back from a dodgy geezer in a pub? Don’t even think about it."

Anyone who is aware of the DVD pirate activity can report it anonymously by calling the campaign hotline on 0845 6034567, their local trading standards office or via the campaign website at www.piracyisacrime.com.