Piracy has plagued the entertainment industry for over way too long. To tackle the issue, in the early 2000s, an anti piracy campaign made waves for its powerful message and intense metal soundtrack. The iconic campaign tells the viewer that you wouldn’t steal a car, a handbag, a television or a DVD, and then goes on to declare that, “downloading pirated movies is stealing,” followed by “stealing is against the law” and concludes with a reminder that “piracy is a crime.” While many remember the impactful music, few are unaware that the agency behind the ad was slapped with a hefty 164,974 euros (approximately Rs 1 Crore) fine for using the music without permission.
The ad recently surfaced on the internet and stirred nostalgia, with many playfully suggesting it made stealing seem cool. However, a few social media users pointed out the irony that the music used in the ad was stolen itself.
https://x.com/NostalgiaFolder/status/1707170088099696910?s=20
According to Torrentfreak, the story behind this anti-piracy ad’s music is quite intriguing. In 2006, Dutch musician Melchior Rietveldt composed the music exclusively for an anti-piracy advert to be used at a local film festival. However, in the following year, when he purchased a Harry Potter DVD, he was shocked to discover that his music was being used in the anti-piracy ad without his consent. To make matters worse, the agency featured his music on numerous DVDs all around the world. To seek the compensation he deserved, Rietveldt arrived at the local music royalty collection agency Buma/Stemra, who had represented him since 1988 but they failed to pay him.
Eventually, the agency provided Rietveldt with an advance payment of 15,000 euros (approximately Rs 13 Lakh). However, by January 2009, Rietveldt claimed that the payment wasn’t enough to cover the royalties owed to him. Later in 2011, the musician received an additional payment of only 10,000 euros (approximately Rs 8 Lakh).
Arnoud Engelfriet, a lawyer specializing in Internet law revealed, “This dispute lingered on for some years, but in 2012 Stemra arranged a settlement with BREIN legal parent NVPI for the unpaid royalties. Under the settlement Stemra would receive 60,000 euros. Rietveldt sued because he had calculated he was due at least 164,974 euros.”
The legal battle continued and in June, Stemra released another payment of 31,000 (approximately Rs 27 Lakh) to Rietveldt, However, when the case reached the Amsterdam District Court, they were quick to impose a fine of 20,000 euros (approximately Rs 17 Lakh) against Buma/Stemra. The court even ordered the agency to fully compensate the musician with the entire amount which was 164,974 euros (approximately Rs 1 Crore).