Seizures last week include a huge operation across 16 states in the US which seized thousands of electronic chips that allow pirated video games to play on game consoles including Wiis, etc … Pirated music and movies were seized in the UK, India, Malaysia and the US…A large seizure of counterfeit pharmaceuticals also took place in India.

Cases and Outcomes last week include the ContiTech company which makes drive belts, winning a significant victory at a court in Taiwan. A Taiwanese trader and general importer have been told to pay damages after counterfeit ContiTech products were seized… A Japanese court fined three pirates a total of $376,500 for distributing pirated copies of Hollywood pictures via mobile phone sites... A couple in the UK has had £150,000 of assets seized after being found guilty of defrauding the film and music industry with a DVD and CD copying factory run from their house… Seventeen members of a gang involved in the production of a fake rabies vaccine have been detained in China.

Policy developments last week include a bill being introduced in the US which will expand the penalties and scope of copyright infringement and strengthen the protection of intellectual property… Microsoft has slashed the price of its Windows Vista operating system by more than half in China, in a move designed to wean buyers off pirated copies of the software.

Studies reported last week include the Fourth annual Digital Music Survey by Entertainment Media Research, which finds that Illegal music downloading is at an all-time high and set to rise further. Although social networking sites are boosting interest in music, which translates into sales, a growing band of consumers are unconcerned about being prosecuted for illegal downloads.