CanadianMetalMan
October 3rd, 2001, 06:28 PM
El Segundo, CA, Oct 03, 2001 -- Two defendants, who were targets of a civil suit filed by DIRECTV, Inc. following the impoundment of several truckloads of signal theft equipment, have agreed to pay DIRECTV more than $1.1 million to settle the case against them.
DIRECTV announced today that the proprietors of White Viper Technologies in Anaheim, Calif., and Kentucky-based Vector Technologies, agreed to pay $600,000 and $563,000 respectively in restitution to DIRECTV. As part of the settlement, a permanent injunction was entered against the defendants, stipulating that if they were to engage in signal theft activities again, they would be subject to additional legal action and damages.
White Viper and Vector Technologies were among several businesses in three states that were the subject of civil litigation and impoundment orders executed this summer under the provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), a new weapon in the fight against signal piracy.
Two of the seizures were conducted in Anaheim, Calif., against White Viper and a second suspect, as well as a warehouse in nearby Santa Ana, used to store and distribute signal theft devices. The seizures, including some carried out against related businesses in Florida and Texas, recovered an estimated $4.6 million in contraband and resulted in the shutting down of 35 web sites. The defendants advertised and sold signal theft devices over the Internet and provided and listed programs for illegally modifying DIRECTV access cards.
"The settlements were proportional to the signal theft claims that we had against these defendants and we expect more settlements based on the strength of the cases we've developed against other businesses as a result of these raids," said Larry Rissler, vice president, Office of Signal Integrity for DIRECTV, Inc. "The impoundment orders under the DMCA have proven to be a very powerful tool in our fight against signal piracy. Not only have we been able to impound large quantities of signal theft devices, but we've also been successful in obtaining defendants' business records that enable us to identify the purchasers of these devices for further action by DIRECTV."
Based on information gathered in raids over the past several months, DIRECTV has commenced legal action against a number of individuals who purchased signal theft devices. Individuals who are identified in business records seized by DIRECTV as having purchased signal theft devices are asked to turn over the illegal device to DIRECTV and pay damages, or face legal action in federal court. The purchase, possession or use of signal theft equipment to gain access to DIRECTV® programming is subject to statutory damages of up to $10,000 per violation. Federal statutes allow DIRECTV to recover compensatory and punitive damages as well as attorneys' fees and other expenses.
Law enforcement agencies on the local, state and federal levels have also increased their efforts to combat DIRECTV signal theft, which is a felony under federal and most state laws. Over 55 raids have been carried out by multiple law enforcement agencies across the United States in this year alone, and DIRECTV expects more raids based on its cooperation with various law enforcement agencies. Criminal defendants could face large fines and up to five years in jail.
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DIRECTV announced today that the proprietors of White Viper Technologies in Anaheim, Calif., and Kentucky-based Vector Technologies, agreed to pay $600,000 and $563,000 respectively in restitution to DIRECTV. As part of the settlement, a permanent injunction was entered against the defendants, stipulating that if they were to engage in signal theft activities again, they would be subject to additional legal action and damages.
White Viper and Vector Technologies were among several businesses in three states that were the subject of civil litigation and impoundment orders executed this summer under the provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), a new weapon in the fight against signal piracy.
Two of the seizures were conducted in Anaheim, Calif., against White Viper and a second suspect, as well as a warehouse in nearby Santa Ana, used to store and distribute signal theft devices. The seizures, including some carried out against related businesses in Florida and Texas, recovered an estimated $4.6 million in contraband and resulted in the shutting down of 35 web sites. The defendants advertised and sold signal theft devices over the Internet and provided and listed programs for illegally modifying DIRECTV access cards.
"The settlements were proportional to the signal theft claims that we had against these defendants and we expect more settlements based on the strength of the cases we've developed against other businesses as a result of these raids," said Larry Rissler, vice president, Office of Signal Integrity for DIRECTV, Inc. "The impoundment orders under the DMCA have proven to be a very powerful tool in our fight against signal piracy. Not only have we been able to impound large quantities of signal theft devices, but we've also been successful in obtaining defendants' business records that enable us to identify the purchasers of these devices for further action by DIRECTV."
Based on information gathered in raids over the past several months, DIRECTV has commenced legal action against a number of individuals who purchased signal theft devices. Individuals who are identified in business records seized by DIRECTV as having purchased signal theft devices are asked to turn over the illegal device to DIRECTV and pay damages, or face legal action in federal court. The purchase, possession or use of signal theft equipment to gain access to DIRECTV® programming is subject to statutory damages of up to $10,000 per violation. Federal statutes allow DIRECTV to recover compensatory and punitive damages as well as attorneys' fees and other expenses.
Law enforcement agencies on the local, state and federal levels have also increased their efforts to combat DIRECTV signal theft, which is a felony under federal and most state laws. Over 55 raids have been carried out by multiple law enforcement agencies across the United States in this year alone, and DIRECTV expects more raids based on its cooperation with various law enforcement agencies. Criminal defendants could face large fines and up to five years in jail.
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