Two Toronto area men have been convicted of criminal copyright infringement in a case involving over $550,000 worth of seized infringing sound recordings, movies and manufacturing equipment.

On May 21, 2004, Clive Brown and Owen Brown entered a guilty plea to one count each of expose or offer for sale infringing copies under Section 42(1)(b) of the Copyright Act. The individuals received a monetary fine and were ordered to forfeit copies of the infringing goods and manufacturing equipment, valued at over $550,000.

The conviction followed a lengthy investigation by the Toronto police, with the assistance of the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). CRIA assisted Toronto Police Service 52 Division Major Crime Unit over the course of several months in early 2003 in an investigation into the availability of illegal copies of popular urban music sound recordings. Retail stores operated by the convicted infringers were believed to be manufacturing and offering for sale unauthorized copies of CD-Recordable (“CD-R”) format sound recordings and supplying these infringing discs to flea market booths. Execution of warrants at these retail outlets helped dismantle a distribution network across the Greater Toronto Area.

"The Canadian recording industry applauds the diligence and professionalism of the members of the 52 Division Major Crime Unit," said CRIA President Brian Robertson. "CD-R piracy is a serious threat to the recording industry. Low cost, ease of duplication and the anonymity of setting up this type of duplicating facility have made CD-R the format of choice for many pirates."

CRIA has a mandate to investigate infringement of copyright in its members’ sound recordings and to seek enforcement of its members’ rights.

The Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA) is a non-profit trade association representing the interests of Canadian companies that create, manufacture and market sound recordings. In all they represent 95 per cent of the sound recordings that are manufactured and sold in Canada.