The courts have meted out their toughest sentences so far for selling infringing video discs via the Internet, jailing two men for setting up a website selling illicit Japanese cartoon movies and animation discs.

The website proprietor was convicted at Kwun Tong Magistracy today of possessing infringing copies of copyright works for sale and sentenced to six months jail. A staff member was convicted for the same offence on two charges and sentenced to three months and four months jail respectively, with the sentences to run concurrently.

On November 1, 2004, Customs officers arrested a man who was sending a batch of parcels containing infringing discs in a post office in Mong Kok. Officers subsequently searched the office of a nearby company and seized 3,000 infringing discs and arrested the proprietor.

Since 2000, there have been 45 Internet piracy convictions.