“RCMP Raid Shuts Down Massive Alleged Music Counterfeiting Operation in Winnipeg, Following Investigation by Canadian Recording Industry Association”
“Following a year-long investigation by the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA), the RCMP has shut down Audiomaxxx.com Ltd., a major alleged music counterfeiting operation in Winnipeg, and filed criminal charges against four individuals.”
Toronto, Mar 06, 2008
News Article published by the CRIA
The MSM story was picked up here, here, here, but not here (yet) on the RCMP News Releases.
Canadian Press:
“A 31-year-old man from Winnipeg was arrested Wednesday after the Audiomaxxx.com raid. The man’s name was not released by police because he has not been formally charged.”
Now the CRIA has issued a correction here.
TORONTO, March 7 /CNW/ - In the CRIA media release of March 6,it was erroneously reported that RCMP had filed criminal chargesagainst four people in connection with the RCMP investigation intoAudiomaxxx.com Ltd. CRIA has received information that no one hasbeen charged with an offence in respect of this matter.(more with named party in apology)
Ok … I am slow. Leaf fan.
The Canadian Press writes a story that people were arrested but not charged. The CRIA issues a glowing press release of the arrest naming names. Then the CRIA issues a correction that says there were no charges hence no arrests? But still has or had the Press Release that looks like “News Article” published on its own website here (at this moment) naming names.
Who is the “press” here?
There is no retraction yet in the media … and likely we will see some more broken news … This is awkward. Very.
UPDATE 1: 1:29 am
Following up to find what Media outlets pick this up story up the Mounties have not released a word yet on the “story” from their website still (1.29 am EST 7.3.2008)
The Mounties do have a clear message in their FAQ:
6. I have a friend who downloads music from the internet. Is he breaking the law?
Downloading music for personal use is currently not a criminal offence in Canada. However, this legislation is constantly being challenged and it would be wise to check often to ensure that the laws concerning this practice have not changed.
Is it a crime to threaten people of a crime though?
UPDATE 2: 1:32 am
CTV picks it up … no names this time … no charges .. but 1 is arrested … how does that work? They have video 4 people arrested and 31 year old man faces charges.
UPDATE 3: 1:41 am
Four arrested in “Project DVD” Winnipeg, Manitoba
March 6, 2008In the morning of March 5, 2008, the Winnipeg RCMP Federal Enforcement Section executed a search warrant at the business premise of Audiomaxxx.com on Pembina Highway, in Winnipeg.
RCMP Federal Enforcement Section through the Canadian Recording Industry Association received dozens of complaints concerning this local internet business suspected, over the past three years, of operating a sophisticated commercial operation in the manufacturing and distribution of pirated compact discs, DVDs and most recently digital downloads throughout North and Central America, Europe and the Caribbean.
Audiomaxxx.com was suspected of shipping tens of thousands of pirated CDs every month and pirating the work of legitimate artists, music labels, and music associations from around the world for its own financial gain.
The search warrant was executed under the Copyright Act at the business premise where investigators found an elaborate illegal operation. Investigators found and seized three computers and various related computer equipment, five burning towers with a total capacity of copying 11,500 discs a day (if operating 12 hr. a day), two Print Factory to label the discs, postage equipment and envelopes, video surveillance equipment and lastly approximately 100,000 printed and labeled CDs and DVDs were seized with as many or more blanks.
Four individuals were arrested in connection with this investigation. One 31 year-old male from Winnipeg has been released on conditions to appear before Federal Court on May 26, 2008 in Winnipeg. He will be facing numerous charges under the Copyright Act under sections 42(1) (a), (b) and (c). The other three individuals also from Winnipeg were released pending further investigation.
The public is reminded that the manufacturing for sale, distribution and rental or publicly exhibit compact discs, DVDs and digital downloads is illegal under the Copyright Act. Individuals convicted of such activities can face fines up to 1 million dollars or imprisonment to a term up to 5 years.
Contact:
Sgt. Line Karpish
D Division RCMP / Media Liaison
(204)983-8497
In a strange coincidence, the site posting the “press release” of the D Divsion, www.mysteinbach.ca, has that rare connection to the www.familyaction.org site, in sharing the same outfit for some of their services on the internet, a US firm, Internetnamesforbusiness.com, served via US IP addresses.
www.familyaction.org? The Canadian Family Action Coalition. Is that familiar? Oh yes, Bill C-10 and evangelical, non-registered lobbyist (I just checked) Charles McVety …
UPDATE 4: 4:26 am
I am strongly considering canceling my Globe and Mail Subscription: Page A-11, in print reads like its written from the CRIA press release without any independent research. I guess the correction in the next days paper will use the correction from the corrected CRIA press release.
UPDATE 5:
The first CRIA “News Release” published March 6th, 2008 is no longer available from the CRIA’s website. The current correction they publish does not point to the prior publication because I think they are afraid of the private person they named suing them: if the police won’t name him, this has caused a challenge to the CRIA having named him. This is bizarre as Michael Geist picked up on in his blog.
UPDATE 6: 8/3/2008 8:11 pm
The Globe and Mail has published an online correction to its print story, at some time today. I won’t cancel them out but I will tell their publisher what I think. He responds to crap like this.
They post at the moment:
CORRECTIONFour people arrested March 5 by Winnipeg RCMP in connection with an alleged piracy scheme involving DVDs, compact discs and digital downloads have been released without charge. The RCMP says one of the four, freed on an undertaking to reappear May 26, may face “numerous charges” under the Copyright Act for offences that carry a penalty of up to $1-million in fines and five years imprisonment, while the other three remain under investigation. Incorrect information appeared in a story yesterday.
UPDATE 7: 9/3/2008 12:23 am
Minister of Public Safety Stockwell Day releases press release 7/3/2008 at 20:16 ET, to offer his congratulations to the police officers on “arrests and seizures” like this.
He also links “piracy” with “organized crime.”
Minister Day Comments on the Largest Ever Seizure of Alleged Counterfeit CDs and DVDs in Canada
Read it if you care. Will it get pulled and be corrected? Interesting and interesting’r.
Sidenote:
The use of “Alleged” in the title of the Minister’s press release, presents a hint here to the difficulty faced with a seizure of this size, with likely significant amounts of goods seized that were likely too circumstantial before analysis to lay the charges to come, if they do. The documentary requirements here I imagine are significant ($$$,$$$), throwing the wrench in the planned public relations campaign. There are likely the DJ Mixes involved too which are going to be a huge PITA, both for the analysts, alleged property owners, and the lawyers involved (read this very interesting post by Jason K on the DJ /club mixes in general). Add in the Adult industry porn, and the classification of it, by owner, and its pedigree, without the aid of a “CRIA” like organization (maybe) to help, and well you have some delay in the news here to the charges, if any result.
My sense of this is that we are not dealing with “replica’s” hence the charges not being laid. What the police were told and what they found are possibly a rather serious issue at the moment. I have to look for the news story to find out …
UPDATE 8:
The CBC has some interesting video with only 3 or 4 inaccuracies in it. I love the way the host puts a certain visual opprobrium into it. From the scene, that CTV did not get access to, the CBC video feed shows none of the named artists in the audio commentary, that come from the CRIA press release, so far … one more video to watch …
The retracted press release BTW is hosted now by a proxy domain service that put it up at www.audiomaxxx.net with no traceable elements. Unless the CRIA the owner of the original content, puts up a fuss, with the proxy registrar, that is where it will be forever.
Video
- Marisa Dragani reports for CBC-TV (Runs: 1:56)
- Play: Real Media »
- Play: QuickTime »
UPDATE 9:
This one is the best account of it right from the RCMP themselves in a TV interview with some of the video feed of the “international” CBC version at Update 8. The host is referring to a list that only includes the CRIA news release artists. No video evidence of any of those artists named. The “hard core pornography” the CRIA had mentioned, is not mentioned in this interview.
Video
- David Gray interviews RCMP Sgt. Line Karpish (Runs: 5:11)
- Play: QuickTime »
- Play: Real Media »
UPDATE 10: 9/03/2008
There is a very interesting comment here on what is a missing element to this whole sorry tale:
Its from here: http://www.dancehall.mobi/2008/03/07/audiomaxxx-shut-down/
“This is NOT a good thing for reggae as a whole.
Yes he was selling material and not paying anyone…but he was organised and up to date and was beginning to stock a great collection of classics… for a NEW artist AUDIOMAXXX was agreat tool to get known wihtout spending too much money or time…
anyone who is REJOICING over this, doesn’t know how the crooked reggae industry operates…
too many unorganised and half assed labels have been the main reason why reggae is not the biggest ting in the world…artists like BUSY SIGNAL have benfited from Audiomaxxx…”- Gappy Crucial, March 9, 2008
