A judge has ruled today that Matthew Miller of Delaware must pay $210,000 in damages and court costs for selling hundreds of counterfeit copies of popular software on the auction site iOffer.
The Business Software Alliance (BSA) adds that the software includes Photoshop, Office and software from Autodesk. Miller would pirate copies of the software, burn them to DVDs, and sell them to customers for about $10 USD.
Miller was caught after he agreed to sell $11,900 worth of software to an undercover agent for $45 USD.
The fine is $195,000 in damages and another $15,000 in court costs and lawyer fess. Miller must also delete all “infringing” copies of the software in “his posession.”
Jenny Blank, the BSA’s senior director of legal affairs, added: “In the course of our efforts to stop software piracy, BSA and its member companies rarely take action against individuals. We prefer to educate and inform the public about the risks and consequences of using illegal software. But there are instances when the activities of individuals are both reprehensible and blatant, requiring the BSA and its members to act swiftly and definitively.”
“This kind of piracy is arguably one of the most devious types of Internet-based piracy because it involves actual sales of unlicensed software to consumers,” says Blank. “Consumers should be aware that the majority of these ‘too-good-to-be-true’ offers originate from unscrupulous vendors. Not only are the products and services offered by these individuals often shoddy, counterfeit or downright fraudulent, but the consumer may be tricked into giving away sensitive financial and identifying information. You may think you’re saving money, but in the end, it could be far more costly.”
Result for: counterfeit software
Yesterday, two brothers accused of software piracy were sentenced to multi-year prison sentences, said the US Department of Justice.
Maurice Robberson and his brother Thomas Robberson were sentenced to 36 and 30 month sentences respectively and ordered to pay $1 million USD in restitution. In November both men plead guilty to felony copyright infringement.
Both men sold counterfeit software through their websites Bestvalueshoppe.com, TheDealDepot.net, CDsalesUSA.com, and AmericanSoftwareSales.com. Both men agreed to pay back all revenue made by the sites which equaled the $1 million USD restitution.
“People who steal the intellectual property of others for their personal financial gain, while defrauding consumers who think they are buying legitimate products, will be punished for their crimes, as today’s sentences prove,” said Assistant Attorney General Alice S. Fisher.
Both men received complaints from software copyright holders but denied wrong doing. Undercover FBI agents then purchased items from one of their sites and found a network of other sites selling pirated software.
Result for: counterfeit software
Yesterday, two brothers accused of software piracy were sentenced to multi-year prison sentences, said the US Department of Justice.
Maurice Robberson and his brother Thomas Robberson were sentenced to 36 and 30 month sentences respectively and ordered to pay $1 million USD in restitution. In November both men plead guilty to felony copyright infringement.
Both men sold counterfeit software through their websites Bestvalueshoppe.com, TheDealDepot.net, CDsalesUSA.com, and AmericanSoftwareSales.com. Both men agreed to pay back all revenue made by the sites which equaled the $1 million USD restitution.
“People who steal the intellectual property of others for their personal financial gain, while defrauding consumers who think they are buying legitimate products, will be punished for their crimes, as today’s sentences prove,” said Assistant Attorney General Alice S. Fisher.
Both men received complaints from software copyright holders but denied wrong doing. Undercover FBI agents then purchased items from one of their sites and found a network of other sites selling pirated software.
