British and Dutch police recently shut down one the world's largest websites distributing illegally downloaded music as well as arrested its operator. The invitation-only OiNK website distributed albums leaked before their official street date. The website's 180,000 members paid "donations" to upload or download the albums, often weeks before their release, posting the albums to public forums and blogs within hours.
The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry said that more than 60 major album releases had already been leaked on OiNK this year, making it the primary source worldwide for illegal prerelease music. The website had a fundamental role in illegally distributing prerelease music online, said Jeremy Banks, the head of the IFPI's Internet Anti-Piracy Unit.
Dutch and British Police arrested the 24-year-old IT worker at a house in Middlesbrough, northeast England, after its two-year investigation and raids coordinated by Interpol. Police in Cleveland, northeast England, said the man was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud and infringement of copyright law. Meanwhile, Dutch police shut down OiNK's servers based in Amsterdam, Netherlands, the IFPI said.
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