You can change your choices at any time by visiting Your Privacy Controls. The men, who have been charged with copyright infringement conspiracy, were accused of being members of the Sparks Group, a sophisticated piracy outfit spanning several continents. “What it does is protect the profits of a small handful of large Hollywood institutions, and strengthen the monopoly power of companies like Apple, Netflix, Amazon and Google,” she said. The huge network stretched across 18 countries wherein, the hackers were allegedly involved in publishing digital content that was yet to be released. The U.S. Attorney’s Office in New York said Wednesday that an American and a British man had been arrested and that a third person, a Norwegian, was being sought. Two members of movie piracy group 'Sparks' arrested in Cyprus and the US. According to the statement from the authorities, members of the Sparks Group fraudulently obtained DVDs and Blu-ray discs from wholesale distributors in New York and New Jersey, at times misrepresenting why they were obtaining the discs before the retail release date. Information about your device and internet connection, including your IP address, Browsing and search activity while using Verizon Media websites and apps. Sparks had been active since 2011, by ripping “virtually every available movie” from physical media such as DVDs … To get ahead, members of the Sparks Group made several material misrepresentations and omissions to wholesale distributors. On August 26, 2020, the Acting United States Attorney for the SDNY announced a major new enforcement action in the ongoing international fight against copyright piracy. One of the men, George Bridi, 50, of the United Kingdom, was arrested in Cyprus on Sunday. About 80% of online piracy is associated with streaming services, television content, and video on demand. The US Justice Department on Wednesday announced the arrest of two members of the “Sparks Group,” which has been conspiring to spread pirated content since at least 2011. “I think it’s spooked a lot of people, because generally speaking, these people are very private and well versed in hiding their identities.”. Empire Copyright Case Shouldn’t Impact on Shake It Off litigation, Say Swift’s Song-Theft Accusers. SPARKS Piracy Busts: Facts, Rumors & Fear Point to Something Huge Home > Piracy > The raids and arrests this week targeting piracy release group SPARKS … In an attempt to take down the elite global piracy ring Sparks Group, US officials have charged three men with copyright infringement. It added that the Sparks Group had cost film production studios tens of millions of dollars. An American, Jonatan Correa, 36, was arrested in Olathe, Kan., on Tuesday. All … The men, who have been charged with copyright infringement conspiracy, were accused of being members of the Sparks Group, a sophisticated piracy outfit spanning several continents. Though some masses try hard to pirate, subscription pull is the primary cause of this evil. “The movies and TV shows allegedly stolen by these defendants not only represent a body of work ripped off from those who spent years developing their craft and working their way to stardom, but deprives the studios and actors of the fruits of their labor,” Philip R. Bartlett, the inspector-in-charge of the New York office of the United States Postal Inspection Service, said in the statement. The SPARKS Piracy Busts is a major reason why we’ve seen a wipeout of a lot of infrastructure pieces and websites from the scene, many of which suffered targeted attacks. U.S. officials said members of the Sparks Group, an elite piracy network, fraudulently obtained and distributed movies ahead of release dates. U.S. officials said members of the Sparks Group, an elite piracy network, fraudulently obtained and distributed movies ahead of release dates. Two of those men … “The only reason that’s not true on the internet is because Hollywood and big record labels have lobbied fiercely to make it illegal, instead of adapting their business models to the reality that the internet is here to stay.”. The ‘Sparks Group’, allegedly one of the biggest online piracy networks in the world, has been taken down in a coordinated action between US authorities and their counterparts in 18 countries around the world, with Europol and Eurojust support. The Sparks Group has caused tens of millions of US dollars in losses to film production studios, mainly to the US movie, television, and supporting industries, from the copyright infringement. The men, Jonatan Correa, Umar Ahmad and George Bridi, were reportedly members of a piracy group known as “The Sparks Group,” which was responsible for the piracy of … Dozens of servers controlled by the Sparks Group were taken offline. The Sparks Release group is one of a number of TV and movie release groups that have been targeted by the US Government. Engadget is part of Verizon Media. The Sparks Group is … The government unsealed indictments charging three alleged members of a sophisticated international piracy ring known as the "Sparks Group" with conspiring to illegally reproduce and distribute large numbers of … Two of those men have been arrested, and law agencies in 18 other countries helped shut down servers used by the piracy group. “In public libraries we can share books, movies and music freely and without restriction,” she added. Investigators said the group posed as real-world DVD/Blu-Ray retailers to obtain and leak unreleased movies and TV … Evan Greer, a deputy director with Fight for the Future, a nonprofit digital rights organization, said she understood the importance of copyright laws but questioned this type of enforcement. TorrentFreak reported that shortly before the indictments were unsealed, news of the arrests had seemed to be spreading among elite members of the international piracy scene, and some of their servers — even those not directly affiliated with the Sparks Group — appeared to have been shut down out of caution. “The Sparks Group also uploaded photographs of the discs in their original packaging to its servers to demonstrate that the reproductions originated from authentic DVDs and Blu-Ray discs,” prosecutors said. In the statement on Wednesday, U.S. officials said they had worked with Europol and law agencies in 18 other countries to shut down servers that the piracy groups had used to share content. The group’s name may not be well-known outside piracy circles, but the group is linked to various other groups going by the names of Geckos, Drones, Rovers and Sprinter. The copyright infringement charges, which carry a maximum penalty of five years in prison, were filed in January and unsealed in New York on Tuesday. “This is pretty high up,” he said. Three men are facing federal charges of participating in an international piracy ring that distributed popular movies and television shows online before their release dates, prosecutors announced Wednesday. Two of those men … It’s estimated that the Sparks Group cost film production studios tens of millions of dollars. Other members of the Sparks Group “further reproduced and disseminated” the movies from servers the crew controlled, prosecutors said. Two of those men have been arrested, and law agencies in 18 other countries helped shut down servers used by the piracy group. It is estimated by the US Chamber of Commerce that in 2019, a loss of about $29.2 billion has been resulted due to this digital piracy. Three members of the Sparks Group, a sophisticated global piracy ring, were arrested on federal charges of international piracy of movies and TV shows distributed online prior to their release dates, said acting U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York Audrey Strauss. Some members of 3DM have previously been part of NETSHOW (now known as ALI213), a group which released Chinese language copies of games using stolen cracks directly to warez scene FTP sites. These charges are significant, said Ernesto van der Sar, the founder of TorrentFreak, an outlet that has covered the piracy scene for years. This is after a report was released a week ago stating that certain members of the group had been targeted through legal action. The extent of the allegations is wide-reaching: the report suggests that almost every major film in recent years could have been pirated by the group. Mr. Bridi was also charged with wire fraud, which carries a maximum prison sentence of 20 years, and conspiracy to transport stolen property interstate, which carries a maximum sentence of five years. The broader target of the raids was the Sparks Group, an international piracy ring accused of illegally distributing movies and television shows on the Internet since at least 2011. The three suspects are allegedly members of the Sparks Group, a criminal organization that disseminated movies and television shows online prior to their retail release date. Unusual for piracy groups, 3DM's members have public profiles on the social network Sina Weibo, and use a blog to inform the public about their activities. We and our partners will store and/or access information on your device through the use of cookies and similar technologies, to display personalised ads and content, for ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. … A joint operation between the US Department of Justice and authorities in 7 other countries has brought down one of the world’s biggest piracy groups. Find out more about how we use your information in our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy. And about 230,000-560,000 American citizens lost their jobs. An American, Jonatan Correa, 36, was arrested in Olathe, Kan., on Tuesday. Three members of the Spark Group are facing federal charges for nearly ten years of illegal activity. Sponsor ad - 728w x 90h (at 72 dpi) The US Department of Justice and other US federal agencies, together with Europol and Eurojust, announced the dismantling of The Sparks Group, a worldwide video piracy operation with servers located in North America, Europe and Asia. It was not immediately clear whether the two men arrested had lawyers. The men were also accused of using software to circumvent copyright protections in order to distribute movies or television shows online. Three Charged With Leaking Movies as Part of Global Piracy Ring. But many of them have to do with connections to the Scene and SPARKS operations. One of the alleged key members of piracy group SPARKS has pleaded not guilty to US Government charges that he was involved in a conspiracy that … From 2011 to 2020, Mr. Ahmad and Mr. Bridi arranged for discs to be mailed or delivered to other members of the group, including Mr. Correa, prosecutors said. In an attempt to take down the elite global piracy ring Sparks Group, US officials have charged three men with copyright infringement. Acting U.S. Attorney Announces Federal Charges And International Operation To Dismantle Online Piracy Group The Sparks Group is Alleged to Have Caused Tens of Millions of Dollars in Losses to Film Production Studios The U.S. Attorney’s Office in … “The group allegedly circumvented copyright protections on nearly every movie released by major production studios, as well as television shows, and distributed them by way of a worldwide network of servers,” Audrey Strauss, the acting United States attorney for the Southern District of New York, said in a statement. To enable Verizon Media and our partners to process your personal data select 'I agree', or select 'Manage settings' for more information and to manage your choices. Apparently, there’s a complex list of reasons why this happened. One of the men, George Bridi, 50, of the United Kingdom, was arrested in Cyprus on Sunday. False claims for free films. The authorities were still searching for the third man, Umar Ahmad, 39, of Norway. US Indictments and Raids of Piracy Group Members in ‘The Scene’ Throw Top-Tier Piracy World Into Chaos 2020-08-29 Yesterday morning, TorrentFreak began receiving reports from multiple sources that something big was happening in the shadowy world of top-tier piracy known as ‘The Scene’. In an attempt to take down the elite global piracy ring Sparks Group, US officials have charged three men with copyright infringement. A criminal network of copyright and infringing hackers called the Sparks Group has been dismantled by US authorities, Europol and Eurojust. The Piracy Pyramid, often referred to as The Scene, is said to have been compromised. Shake it Off litigation, Say Swift ’ s estimated that the Sparks Group, US have! 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