SYDNEY, Australia - Lawyers for the Adult Industry Copyright Organisation (AICO) have released details of a $1.35 million settlement following raids that uncovered a massive Australian pirating operation.
Applicants in the case were Vivid Entertainment, Evil Angel, Digital Playground, Club Jenna, Bang Productions, Titan Media, Falcon Studios, Mustang Studios, Jocks Studios, Belladonna Entertainment, Clark Euro Angel, Calvista Australia, Wicked Pictures and AICO.
Two teams of AICO lawyers, two independent solicitors and two computer forensic experts carried out the raids Oct. 10 at the Sydney retail location and Botany warehouse of DVDirectshop Pty Ltd, or MAXXX Video.
The on-site evidence included masters for approximately 11,000 adult titles, a large-scale VHS duplication facility, digital printing equipment that had produced over 2.2 million prints, business records, customer lists and thousands of bootleg DVDs.
"The sheer weight of unavoidable evidence was astounding," said AICO director and Calvista Australia general manager David Newnham. "Uncovered was a treasure trove of damning information which left the respondents with no option other than to admit culpability and to quickly reach a settlement. And they did!"
Those respondents were Rick Vermunt and Stephen Burn, and their operation was supplying adult retail stores throughout Australia.
Said AICO executive officer Graeme Dunne, "This is yet another example of AICO's continuing investigations and enforcement of the now long stated and unambiguous mandate to rigorously attack piracy wherever it is found. All adult industry retailers need to be cognizant of the consequences. As this case illustrates, trading in infringing product results in direct action from AICO, the outcomes of which are well proven and very costly."
