At a European-wide raid raids have been carried out because of the suspicion of the unlawful spreading by features today in Germany, Spain, France and the Netherlands in numerous living rooms and offices of the website Kino.to.
All together 13 culprits were arrested as the general public prosecutor’s office informed in German Dresden. For an other person it is still searched.
The Domain was confiscated.
Behind the concerted action the film right industry, puts specifically the society to the pursuit of copyright infringements inc. (GVU) which had made a penal application at the end of April. Kino.to stands under the „suspicion of the education of criminal union to the commercial celebration of copyright infringements“, according to the GVU.
7-figure profits
About Kino.to pirated copies are spread according to the investigators by features and series illegally. According to GVU the main entrance generates „considerable income“ about repeated advertising insertions as well as about the sales of premium accesses. Therefore, the damage for the film economy as well as the profits of the main culprit would lie in the 7-figure euro-area.
The website has about four million users daily. The site was not to be reached after the seizure any more. Instead, a tip appeared on the screen to the running inquiries of the criminal investigation department, specifically: „The Internet users who have produced illegally pirated copies of film works or have expelled must count on a criminal pursuit“. Only at the end of May the association had reached for anti-piracy (VAP) with a temporary possession that the Internet provider UPC must close the access Kino.to in Vienna.
The VAP gave as grounds that the operators of the website which becomes hosting in Russia are not noticeable, which is why Vienna UPC has been complained on behalf for the other Internet providers in a pattern process.
- kino to raid