More news for you fans of music piracy. Central Scotland Police have just announced the successful completion of the most successful anti-piracy raid ever conducted in Scotland. In a five day operation officers from the Computer Crime Unit of Central Scotland Police working with the BPI and FACT have seized £10 million worth of counterfeit CDs, DVDs and computer games and made 28 arrests. Authorities reckon that the amount of pirated goods seized is so high that Scottish retailers selling legit product may well see a tangible increase in sales in the run up to Christmas.
Congratulating the Scottish police for their role in the successful operation, David Martin of the BPI's Anti-Piracy Unit told CMU: "If this haul was recovered anywhere in the UK it would be impressive - but it's nothing short of remarkable considering that this operation was completed by one of the smallest police forces in the UK. This is a perfect demonstration of how working hand in hand with industry can have a massive impact."
Commenting on the impact the operation should have on legist music and DVD sales HMV's Gennaro Castaldo told reporters: "Christmas represents a key trading period for any business, but it's particularly crucial for music and home entertainment retailers, so we are very grateful to the police for carrying out such an operation at this time of year. We do our best to offer excellent value to our customers but it can be very difficult competing with pirates when they flood local markets with cheap, low grade counterfeits. It's certainly good to see the authorities cracking down on this problem."