Intellectual Property Law

A Brooklyn man was convicted of criminal copyright infringement Thursday for his role as part of the "Apocalypse Production Crew" -- a piracy group that specialized in releasing yet-to-be-published music, movies, software and video games to downloaders.

Barry Gitarts, 25, is the first accused internet music pirate to take his case to a criminal jury, according to the RIAA. He was convicted by an Alexandria, Virginia jury following a trial that lasted less than three days. 

"Music piracy is stealing and, unless you want to end up in a federal prison, don't do it," said U.S. Attorney Chuck Rosenberg in a statement trumpeting the verdict.

The case was part of the Justice Department's "Operation Fastlink" -- an international effort that's seen more that 200 search warrants executed in 15 countries.

Not withstanding the tough talk, the operation did not target casual downloaders. Gitarts was convicted of conspiracy to violate the NET Act (.pdf), which makes it a crime to infringe a copyright "for purposes of commercial advantage or private financial gain"; to pirate $1,000 or more in music within 180 day period; or to distribute any pirated content before its release date.

Under that law, Gitarts faces a maximum of five years in prison when he's sentenced August 8th. But Mark Shumaker, a co-conspirator who pleaded guilty to the same crime in 2003, was sentenced to two years probation and a $100 fine.

"The crimes committed here -- as well as the harm to the music community -- are severe,"  said Brad Buckles, an executive vice president at the RIAA, in a statement. "And so are the consequences."