China arrests more than 40 for copyright infringement

China has arrested more than 40 suspects for their alleged involvement in eight online piracy cases, the National Copyright Administration (NCA) said in a statement Wednesday.

The suspects gained profits by offering movies, TV programs, and music products to Internet users without authorization. Some of them provided free download service for Microsoft's Windows system, sold pirated books or standards of the International Organization for Standardization.

The suspects are located in the municipalities of Beijing and Shanghai, the provinces of Anhui, Jiangsu and Shandong, as well as Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

In one case, operators of a website that provided free download service of pirated Windows software raked in nearly half a million yuan (about $810,000) by charging membership fees. The Anhui-based website, with a registered membership of more than 3.6 million, also earned other income via advertisements and bundled programs.

Wednesday's statement came nearly one month after four government organs jointly launched a half-year campaign against online piracy. The four government organs are the NCA, the State Internet Information Office, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, and the Ministry of Public Security.
Sources: Xinhua - globaltimes.cn
9/7/14
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