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"A 58-year-old Abbotsford man faces federal charges after members of the Organized Crime Agency of B.C. raided his home and seized $4.5 million worth of pirated software and computer hardware that included eight CD burners.
He represents the single largest seizure in Canada of software pirated by an individual.
An agency spokeswoman said the man's home was searched after two undercover purchases from the man, including one where $400,000 of pirated software was bought for $2,500.
"Prior to our becoming involved, Microsoft Canada became aware of a Web site that appeared to be selling a lot of pirated software programs," Det. Const. Anne Drennan said Thursday.
The OCABC spokeswoman said a private investigator was hired and that investigator successfully bought five discs of software - with a retail value of $3,000 - for $100.
After that the investigator asked for a catalogue of software the man had for sale and he was e-mailed "an extensive list" that was largely products made by Microsoft, Corel or Adobe.
The organized crime agency was called in and Feb. 27 made the larger of the two undercover purchases - $400,000 worth of software for $2,500.
Drennan said the man was selling pirated software by the disc at $30 per disc or five for $100 and he did a brisk business. Each disc he sold represented software that would normally retail for anywhere from $300 to $7,000. The Abbotsford man brought in - based on seized receipts - between $60,000 and $70,000 in 2001.
"It became obvious the dollar value of programs being counterfeited meant that this was a large-scale operation with international implications," Drennan said.
"We believe there may be other people involved at some level but we don't know for sure yet."
She said the suspect ran ads on the Internet and in the Buy & Sell magazine in B.C. and Alberta and is alleged to have been in operation since 1999. Michael Eisen, director of law and corporate services for Microsoft Canada, said software piracy is a "far-reaching and serious problem" in Canada.
In 2000, he said, the software piracy rate in the country was 38 per cent.
"It's an extremely challenging problem," he said during a press conference Thursday. B.C.'s piracy rate was slightly higher, at 39.7 per cent. He called the Abbotsford case "a very significant seizure by Canadian and probably international standards as well."
In 2000, the Canadian software industry suffered a $450-million loss to piracy, with 11 per cent of that attributable to B.C. The customer profile for pirates, he said, is "just about everybody."
The man, released on a promise to appear in court, is expected to appear in Abbotsford provincial court in June to face charges he manufactured and distributed counterfeit software contrary to the Canadian Copyright Act. "
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He represents the single largest seizure in Canada of software pirated by an individual.
An agency spokeswoman said the man's home was searched after two undercover purchases from the man, including one where $400,000 of pirated software was bought for $2,500.
"Prior to our becoming involved, Microsoft Canada became aware of a Web site that appeared to be selling a lot of pirated software programs," Det. Const. Anne Drennan said Thursday.
The OCABC spokeswoman said a private investigator was hired and that investigator successfully bought five discs of software - with a retail value of $3,000 - for $100.
After that the investigator asked for a catalogue of software the man had for sale and he was e-mailed "an extensive list" that was largely products made by Microsoft, Corel or Adobe.
The organized crime agency was called in and Feb. 27 made the larger of the two undercover purchases - $400,000 worth of software for $2,500.
Drennan said the man was selling pirated software by the disc at $30 per disc or five for $100 and he did a brisk business. Each disc he sold represented software that would normally retail for anywhere from $300 to $7,000. The Abbotsford man brought in - based on seized receipts - between $60,000 and $70,000 in 2001.
"It became obvious the dollar value of programs being counterfeited meant that this was a large-scale operation with international implications," Drennan said.
"We believe there may be other people involved at some level but we don't know for sure yet."
She said the suspect ran ads on the Internet and in the Buy & Sell magazine in B.C. and Alberta and is alleged to have been in operation since 1999. Michael Eisen, director of law and corporate services for Microsoft Canada, said software piracy is a "far-reaching and serious problem" in Canada.
In 2000, he said, the software piracy rate in the country was 38 per cent.
"It's an extremely challenging problem," he said during a press conference Thursday. B.C.'s piracy rate was slightly higher, at 39.7 per cent. He called the Abbotsford case "a very significant seizure by Canadian and probably international standards as well."
In 2000, the Canadian software industry suffered a $450-million loss to piracy, with 11 per cent of that attributable to B.C. The customer profile for pirates, he said, is "just about everybody."
The man, released on a promise to appear in court, is expected to appear in Abbotsford provincial court in June to face charges he manufactured and distributed counterfeit software contrary to the Canadian Copyright Act. "
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