Hong Kong Customs yesterday (August 1) conducted an operation to combat the sale of infringing karaoke players and seized 20 sets of karaoke players loaded with suspected infringing songs with an estimated market value of about $130,000.
Customs earlier received information from copyright owners alleging that there were shops in Sham Shui Po selling karaoke players at a high price which were susepcted to be loaded with suspected infringing songs without the authorisation of copyright owners. They also highlighted high resolution, quality sound and huge memory size when promoting the players.
After an in-depth investigation with the assistance of copyright owners, Customs officers took enforcement action yesterday and raided three retail shops and one storage facility in Sham Shui Po. A total of 20 sets of karaoke players loaded with 10 000 to 50 000 suspected infringing songs were seized. The selling prices of these karaoke players ranged from $3,800 to $19,000.
During the operation, one male shop owner and two male salespersons aged between 39 and 57 were arrested. Investigation is ongoing.
Under the Copyright Ordinance, the maximum penalty for any person who sells or possesses an infringing copy of a copyright work with a view to selling it is a fine of $50,000 per infringing copy and imprisonment for four years upon conviction.
Members of the public may report any suspected infringing activities to Customs' 24-hour hotline 2545 6182 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk).
Ends/Friday, August 2, 2019
