Talking of P2P, Finnish police this week launched a major crackdown on the operators of so called DirectConnect hubs, which enable users of the so called DirectConnect P2P network (lots of so calling there) to find and download music files. The hubs were seized from premises in various Finnish cities, and police are now considering pressing charges against those who operated them on the grounds of mass copyright infringement, charges which could lead to two years in prison under Finnish laws.
The raids followed a complaint to authorities by the Copyright Information And Anti-Piracy Centre. Antti Kotilainen, a Director of the Centre, told reporters this week: "These actions shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone. All of these hubs have had several thousand members and their operators were facilitating mass infringement of copyright, involving hundreds of thousands of music files and tens of thousands of movie files. The operators of DC hubs should be aware that we will be filing more complaints in the near future".
International Federation Of The Phonographic Industry chief John Kennedy added: "We welcome the action taken today by the Finnish police against the operators of illegal P2P hubs. These operators were facilitating mass infringement of copyrighted music, draining investment in the Finnish creative industries and in particular hurting local Finnish acts who represent well over half the music market. The actions announced today, and those that will follow, are a message to illegal DC hub operators - they have no hiding place and their activities will not be tolerated".