The sentencing at Hull Crown Court of criminal Yun Can Meng , for the illegal supply of imported R4 game copier cards in the UK took place today.  On 18th December 2009, he had pled guilty to the charges and was sentenced to 12 months imprisonment.

Michael Rawlinson, Director General of ELSPA, said: “Our crime unit is pleased with the outcome of this trial and pleased to see the Court of Appeal’s copyright judgement is being robustly enforced. Intellectual property (IP) theft is an important issue for the country’s videogames industry - as is protecting it. I would like to thank Hull City Council Trading Standards Department and the Humberside Police for their work in this matter as well, of course, as the ELSPA Crime Unit.  We will continue to work with the authorities to prosecute organised IP theft offenders.”

Between June 2008 and August 2009, Meng imported more than 26,500 illegal R4 game copier cards, which are used in Nintendo DS consoles, through Heathrow and Nottingham East Midlands Airport.  ELSPA’s IP Crime Unit worked with Hull City Council Trading Standards Department and Humberside Police to seize items including 1,280 R4 and similar copier cards.

In November 2009 the Court of Appeal asserted that associated copyrights are even infringed by the playing of a counterfeit game on a chipped console. The Court declared that game characters such as British virtual pin-up Lara Croft are included within the copyright if their image from the playing of a game can be viewed as a result of chipping a console. The full judgment can viewed at: http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Crim/2009/2293.html

That also then probably lends weight to Microsoft’s decision to ban chipped Xbox 360 consoles from the XBLA in that they are doing so to prevent illegal play of games. That means if anyone in the UK is or was planning on suing Microsoft over it, you might take that money and instead buy a non-modified Xbox 360 console.