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[The Faceless Master]

In the latest public relations strike in the war on copyright infringement, the music and film industries are sowing fears that content piracy, like drug trafficking before it, is being taken over by organized crime syndicates.

The problem is that the evidence -- so far, at least -- is lacking.

The mob-piracy meme began spreading in earnest last month, when the Recording Industry Association of America announced in a press release that piracy and organized crime were so intertwined that the entire counterfeit CD production business in the eastern half of the United States "is now dominated by organized criminal syndicates intent on monopolizing the illicit market."

Organized crime's entree into the content business was inevitable given the economics, says Warner Music spokesman Craig Hoffman.

"The markup for a kilo of heroin is 200 percent," Hoffman says. "The markup for pirated CDs and DVDs is 800 percent."

Source: Wired

a very interesting article!

 

[Teknopathetic]

I'm having a hard time believing the mafia would be interested in selling bootleg DVDs. It sounds similar to the ole "If you buy drugs, you're supporting terrorists!" scare tactic.

 

[border]

"The markup for a kilo of heroin is 200 percent," Hoffman says. "The markup for pirated CDs and DVDs is 800 percent."

Except that the customers are less loyal, less addicted, less willing to pay. The distribution is more complex and difficult -- a guy on a street corner can hold $1000 in drugs...how many DVDRs can you fit on a guy, really? How many minimum-wage earners in shitty neighborhoods are really interested in buying pirated movies? The markup on heroin is admittedly smaller, but the selling price is way way higher. Assuming that you pay 50cents for a blank disc, an 800% markup only means a selling price of about $4-5 and a profit of $3.50-4 per sale.

Cost of production might be higher if they are trying to really make good counterfeits that look like the real thing. But the problem is that DVD and CDs are harder to sell, and the profit margin is probably only 5-6 bucks a pop (probably even lower if you try to counterfeit a product to make it look semi-legit). It's sorta like comparing a guy who sells hot dogs to a guy who sells cars. Maybe the hot dog vendor has a larger markup as a percentage, but when the car salesmen makes a single sale he makes a fuck of a lot more money than the hot dog guy does on a single sale. And in this case, the car salesman arguably has the more desired product.

If DJ Demon J were here he would probably tell you that piracy funds Satan and Hitler, but I still don't buy any of that mess. Funny how these groups tried to associate piracy with terrorism, but when they get called out on their bullshit they can't even pin it on organized crime.....much less the Bin Ladens of the world. I guess the rackets that some street gangs set up might qualify as organized crime, but they certainly want you to think it's the mafia rather than some dumbass thugs burning CDs.

 

[Doth Togo]

This article is true. Its more of the Asian organized crime rings (Triads, Big Circle Boys, Canadian Hell's Angels, etc.) than the stereotypical Russians or Italians, though we have seen where the Russians pay off members of the press for pre-release items and couterfeiting of hard goods (like DirecTV cards, mod chips, etc.).

 

[border]

Canadian Hell's Angels is an Asian organized crime ring?

 

[Ignatz Mouse]

I've been hearing about references to mob piracy for a long time now-- at least back to the early nineties. I had no conception that this was a new idea, or was at all in doubt.

 

[gblues]

 

[Doth Togo]

Canadian Hell's Angels is an Asian organized crime ring?

Yea. Some of them. They're not the fat hairy biker motherfuckers who'll beat your ass if you look at them. This branch of the brotherhood is made of accountants, lawyers, bankers, businessmen, etc. Money laundering, embezzlement and the high level governing of various businesses involved in corporate espionage, IP theft and manufacturing are what they're about. Google them as they’re well watched by the RCMP.