Crimestoppers and the Federation Against Copyright Theft (FACT) report their renewed commitment to fighting crime against copyright thieves in the UK.
FACT is the trade body for the protection of intellectual property. It works with law enforcement to combat all forms of piracy affecting its members, whether film distributors, TV broadcasters or sports rights owners. Now in its eighth year, the partnership has seen 20pc of FACT’s intelligence sourced from information provided via Crimestoppers’ call bureau. Of all the reports received by FACT from Crimestoppers, about one in five go on to form part of an investigation. Reflecting the shift from hard goods to online piracy, over three-quarters of the Crimestoppers’ intelligence that contributes to a FACT case now relates to online or digital piracy in some form.
Rodger Holden, Crimestoppers Director of Business Development, said: “Intellectual Property theft is not a victimless crime. The creative industries actually support 1.68 million jobs in the UK and account for over 5% of the UK economy making their protection vital.”
Yvette Dore, Director of Communications at FACT, added: “The intelligence that we receive from the Crimestoppers’ bureau greatly contributes to our work at FACT – both as the starting point of new investigations and by filling in intelligence gaps or corroborating existing intelligence in on-going investigations. Our relationship with Crimestoppers provides us with an enhanced intelligence picture which enables us to better protect our members’ content, and we are delighted and extremely proud to renew our partnership.”
About Crimestoppers
A charity, it operatesg the 24/7 telephone number 0800 555 111 which people can ring to pass on information about crimes anonymously. They can also use a ‘giving information’ form via the website www.crimestoppers-uk.org.
