Photo: Xinhua

April 26, 2013
Translated by Chi Yi

The website Silu (思路) is a famous name among Chinese movie fans, but now it’s become a warning to those engaged in IP theft.

Established 10 years ago, the site now claims to be the largest high-definition movie portal in China with tens of thousands of titles and over 1.4 million registered users, who pay 50 yuan per month to download films.

However, Silu is also famous as a hub for illegally downloading copyrighted materials. After months of investigation, Beijing Cultural Law Enforcement Agency, in cooperation with Beijing police, arrested eight executives including the company’s CEO Mr. Zhou (周某), along with 30 other employees involved with intellectual property theft.

“I know I have the right to keep silent,” Zhou kept saying when questioned by police. “I want to call my lawyer.” 

Zhou has a master’s degree from Beijing University of Technology. Police have found over 190 hard drives with high-definition moves at his company. It’s estimated there are more than 10,000 TV dramas and movies on the drives - all pirated. 

“Zhou is an intellectual and well educated,” said a police officer involved with the case. “He was very clear about which laws he was breaking and what kind of punishment to expect.” 

YYeTs.com, a separate famous website that offers free downloads of American TV dramas with subtitles, was also found to be offline on April 26. The home page simply said that the site was closed, but gave no further explanation as to why or if the closure was permanent.

Apr 26 is World Intellectual Property Day.  

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