Nearly 90 percent of Americans use the Internet on an everyday basis. Some rely on the World Wide Web (WWW) to learn new things and educate themselves, while others go on the Internet to read the news. However, there are also many of those who use the Internet for entertainment purposes, which mostly consists of listening to music and watching movies.
Music and movies on the Internet are a tricky subject because there are millions of petabytes of pirated songs, movies, and adult content all over the Internet and especially on torrent-based websites. “Yes, piracy is a huge problem in our country and elsewhere in the world, and the U.S. government takes illegal downloading, piracy, and copyright infringement very seriously, which is why piracy is a federal crime in the U.S.,” explains our Pittsburgh illegal downloading and piracy attorney at SMT Legal.
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Unfortunately, since catching “pirates” and those who download, steal, copy, share, and bootleg content on the Internet illegally is rather difficult, thousands of Americans are falsely accused of piracy every year. In some cases, illegally downloading a song or movie without paying for it can land you in prison.
Since piracy cases are treated seriously in Pennsylvania courts, the importance of being represented by an experienced copyright infringement attorney in Pittsburgh cannot be overstated.
In Pennsylvania, it is illegal to steal or share movies, music, software, adult content, video games, and other types of content and files if you have never paid for it. However, in order to convict you of illegal downloading, the prosecutor will have to establish the following two elements of a piracy case:
Piracy is arguably the most common type of cybercrime in Pennsylvania and all across the United States. Illegally downloading music and digitally bootlegging movies are the most common forms of piracy in the U.S. that cause billions of dollars in lost revenue for both the music and movie industries each year.
Penalties for piracy can be rather harsh, because piracy is a federal crime in our country. That’s why it is very important to seek legal advice from a Pittsburgh internet crime lawyer if you are being accused of or investigated for piracy-related crimes such as downloading music, videotaping or bootlegging movies, sharing pirated video games and software, watching pornography, and many other types of piracy-related cybercrimes.
In addition to a prison sentence, you are facing hefty financial fines if convicted or charged with a crime related to piracy or copyright infringement. Speaking to a skilled criminal defense lawyer is paramount no matter how ridiculous those charges against you seem.
You may be surprised how far the investigation against you can go and what acts of piracy from your past can be discovered in the course of that investigation. Let our criminal defense lawyers at SMT Legal review your particular case and determine the best legal strategy to reduce the severity of your penalty or avoid charges altogether. Call our offices at 412-765-3345 for a free case evaluation.
