Photo Credit: City of London Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit
London police seized nearly 6,500 records in a raid of a counterfeit vinyl operation that caused an estimated $350,000 loss for the music industry.
The vinyl boom that has swept the music industry for the last 20 years amid the rise of streaming has made plenty of headlines for its positive impact on artists with tons of devoted fans. But there’s always a darker underbelly when there’s money to be made, and that’s no less true in the vinyl business than for the digital music side.
The City of London Police’s Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) just announced the results of an operation focused on disrupting a counterfeit vinyl scheme. The operation culminated in a raid on Wednesday (April 22), in which authorities seized 6,498 records with an estimated loss for artists and the broader music industry of just under £260,000 (or just over $350,000).
“Counterfeit vinyl harms legitimate businesses and causes real losses for artists and the wider music industry. In this case, the estimated retail loss is £259,920,” said Jamie Kirk, Detective Sergeant at PIPCU. “This operation sends a clear message that the sale of counterfeit goods will not be tolerated and highlights the impact that strong partnership working can have in tackling intellectual property crime.”
“The vinyl revival means that there are sadly criminals trying to take advantage and cash in through counterfeiting. Like all illegal markets, this doesn’t just damage our UK music industry; it potentially impacts every one of us as citizens, as these ill-gotten gains often fund other forms of criminal activity,” added Peter Ratcliffe, Director of Content Protection at the BPI (British Phonographic Industry), representing UK record labels.
“But we continue to take the fight back to the criminals, and the BPI’s Content Protection Unit is delighted to have worked hand in hand with City of London Police’s PIPCU to help successfully disrupt what is clearly a major illegal counterfeiting operation.”
