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On the heels of major counterfeiting busts in Flushing and Bayside, State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, with support from State Sen. Frank Padavan (R-Bellerose) announced legislation that would stiffen penalties for the distribution and sale of illegally recorded media in New York State.

The legislative initiative has already been met with bipartisan support in Albany and is expected to be acted upon in the State Legislature in the near future.
At the start of May, cops raided six Flushing locations in Queens and arrested 10 people, charging them with criminal possession of forgery device, second-degree trademark counterfeiting and failure to disclose the origins of a recording. If convicted, they face up to seven years in prison.

Six of the defendants have also been charged with first-degree trademark counterfeiting, a felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

Published reports estimate police busted the counterfeit ring containing $1.4 million in pirated DVDs after months of surveillance.

The legislation and announcement by Cuomo and Padavan would strengthen penalties for illegal media piracy, obviously prevalent in pockets of Queens.

Padavan spoke out strongly on the issue and vowed to work towards the goal of reducing the criminal activity. He feels piracy reduces revenue streams for media companies, which in turn harms the entertainment industry and robs the City’s tax base.

“Film and music piracy has quickly become a major part of the growing criminal counterfeit epidemic,” Padavan said at the announcement.

Padavan also sees the activity as harmful to New York’s economy.

“Year after year, multimedia piracy has had an adverse impact on New York’s economy. This wave of criminal activity has cost the entertainment sector billions in income while leaving New York State with a significant loss in tax revenue.”

He continued by reinforcing his view of the need for legislation.

“In order to effectively and proactively combat the emergence of multimedia piracy, we must enact legislation on the state level that will increase criminal penalties for these crimes and send a clear message that counterfeiting and piracy will no longer be tolerated in New York.”
State Attorney General Cuomo is equally passionate.
“New York has become the hub for a criminal network dedicated to film piracy,” Cuomo said.

He also agrees the issue is partly an economic one.
The legislation, called the Piracy Protection Act, would increase the criminal penalty for illegally recording a film or a live performance or using an illegal recording for commercial purposes to a Class ‘A’ misdemeanor. First time offenders could face up to year in prison and a $1,000 fine. Multiple repeat film piracy offenders will be charged with a felony with higher criminal penalties.

Cuomo also announced that, in conjunction with this legislation, the Attorney General’s Office is creating a new Special Assistant Attorney General to coordinate local and state law enforcement efforts against film piracy. The Special Assistant Attorney General will work with the Attorney General’s Organized Crime Task Force, which investigates and prosecutes criminal networks that operate across the country to coordinate efforts. This official will also work with local police and district attorneys to aggressively pursue emerging and existing organized crime enterprises that peddle pirated films across New York and the entire nation.

The problem is particularly acute in New York City. According to recent industry reports, over 50 percent of all illegally recorded movies are filmed here. Once films are recorded, they are then often distributed nationwide by organized crime syndicates. Despite this fact, New York State currently only charges illegal film recording as a violation, merely imposing a small fee on offenders.