Piracy Victories for Hollywood & Premier League Spark Progress Concerns

Years before it happened, the MPA predicted that improved internet connectivity in Vietnam would likely lead to piracy problems down the line.

The MPA’s prediction was fairly detailed and turned out to be extremely accurate. That the country would quickly become one of the safest places in the world to run a pirate site, led to real-world examples of how quickly sites can grow in an environment lacking credible enforcement.

Yet, in 2024, after tens of billions of visits across many sites linked to the infamous Fmovies, everything changed. At least as far as official reporting was concerned, this marked the end of an era and the start of something far better, something that Vietnam as a country could and should celebrate together.

While ostensibly much smaller in scale, the Premier League’s good news arrived in April 2024. A person alleged to be the operator of BestBuyIPTV appeared in a local court to face allegations of infringing the Premier League’s rights on a massive scale. Not only was a simple appearance in court previously considered unlikely, the fact that the Premier League came out on top was nothing short of remarkable, at least in theory.

Premier League Submission to the USTR

The Premier League and MPA/ACE have described the conviction in the BestBuyIPTV case as an important start, since it represents the “first ever criminal conviction in Vietnam for online copyright infringement.” In a submission to the USTR’s latest Special 301 Report, the Premier League mentions the case again, describing it as “positive progress” alongside steps to introduce an administrative site-blocking scheme to Vietnam.

“These are both significant steps forward. However, due to a lack of sufficient protection and enforcement measures historically, Vietnam remains a key center for pirate operators targeting both domestic and international markets.”

“In order to change this, authorities will need to build on the foundations laid by recent successes by continuing to work with stakeholders to improve site blocking, and by demonstrating that successes like the BestBuy decision are not a one-off,” the Premier League notes.

Signs May Indicate a One-Off

According to the most successful club league in Europe, regular and quicker enforcement results are essential if Vietnam is to build confidence in its ability to protect intellectual property. In the absence of both, reality on the ground right now sounds frustrating, to say the least.

“Unfortunately, the Premier League’s experience since the BestBuy decision has not been positive,” the Premier League informs the USTR.

“Rather than building on the result and precedent provided by the BestBuy case, law enforcement agencies have reverted back to querying previously addressed concerns, such as whether copyright has been registered, resulting in severe administrative delays in the processing of cases.”

A Conviction Should Hold Value

Details of the BestBuyIPTV case reveal what appears to be a case taken seriously. Official documents reviewed by TorrentFreak show that through various actions, three people were directly or indirectly involved, with two deemed unsuitable for prosecution on various grounds, from limited involvement and alleged lack of knowledge, to matters related to health.

Previously described as the operator of BestBuyTV, the man did indeed do business from a website with that name. Documents referencing the investigation claim that .M3U playlists were purchased from a forum and restreamed to customers paying $9 per month.

Illegal benefit for the defendant reached 615,188,237 VND ($24,431.62) but filled with remorse and regret, he “voluntarily returned the entire amount.” One payment was made in September 2023 and another in March 2024, just before his court appearance in April. The court viewed full repayment as a clear sign that lessons had been learned, especially for a defendant with no criminal record.

Not Legal For Payments, Not Illegal to Invest – or Lose

Bitcoin trades worth over 19 billion VND ($757,000) were also linked to the same defendant, raising concerns over potential tax evasion. In the field of currency and banking law, virtual currency is “not a legal means of payment” and as such is prohibited, the court noted. Under investment- and business law, however, use of virtual currency isn’t prohibited at all.

As a result, the court found “no basis to conclude that defendants…business [was] an act of tax evasion.” According to the court, one transaction saw 15.6 billion VND transferred from PayPal into a bank account. The defendant “withdrew this amount for business and lost all of it,” the court observed. And that was that.

“The defendant confessed to his crime. The defendant was aware of his illegal behavior and was extremely remorseful and repentant,” the court added, before handing down a suspended sentence, confiscating an MSI laptop, and ordering payment of a fine: 100 million VND, or just under $4,000.

Court records note that if a person serving a suspended sentence “intentionally violates” the obligations prescribed by relevant law “two or more times,” the court may require a suspended sentence to be served. As deterrent messages go, there have been better ones.

With local law enforcement now reportedly hindering cases on the basics, the Premier League may find progress in similar case more difficult. At the start of a process that may offer very little even in the event of a win, it’s no surprise that the Premier League recommends that Vietnam remains on the Watch List.

Hollywood Not Exactly Enthusiastic Either

In a submission to the USTR under the banner of the IIPA (International Intellectual Property Alliance), non-deterrent sentences are just part of the overall mix, drawing criticism on behalf of the movie and music industries, otherwise represented by the MPA and IFPI.

“Notwithstanding a few notable enforcement achievements in 2024, greater clarity and predictability in the criminal process regarding monetary and evidential thresholds and enforcement timelines are necessary for the criminal process to be relied upon. Penalties that are low and non-deterrent in the criminal process do not effectively combat the worsening piracy in Vietnam,” the submission reads.

All Fmovies Operators Should be Held Accountable

Those “few notable enforcement efforts” include the BestBuy case, the apparent dismantling of the Fmovies empire, and the arrest of two people said to be the sites’ operators.

Confirmation that MPA/ACE collaborated with the authorities in Vietnam was confirmed in a wave of reports at the end of August 2024. News that the alleged mastermind had reportedly confessed and would now face prosecution, wasn’t announced by local authorities until mid-November 2024. That announcement contained various undated film clips, one of which included a fleeting glimpse of a document.

After being restored to a readable state, a very basic translation (below, right) indicates a decision to prosecute dated August 14, 2024. That’s two weeks before the initial shutdown announcement and a full three months before local authorities announced that a decision had been made to prosecute.

The IIPA submission suggests that others were involved in the Fmovies operation and all should face a criminal prosecution. Whether promises were made but not honored, or whether this is a brand new request isn’t clear.

“While the takedown of the sites is a positive development, it is now important that the case against the Fmovies operators moves through the criminal process without delay and that a suitably deterrent sentence — one that reflects the unprecedented scale of the criminal activity involved in this case — is imposed on all operators,” the submission reads.

In common with the Premier League, IIPA also recommends that Vietnam remains on the Watch List.

Much more could’ve been said in these submissions but given the complexity of the Fmovies case, now may not be the right time. With politics rarely out of the picture, the right time may not even exist. When balancing halfway across a tightrope, the only viable option lies straight ahead. Just don’t look down; things are not always as they seem.

The IIPA submission is available here (pdf), and the Premier League’s here.

From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.