Five men, Kristopher Dallmann, Douglas Courson, Felipe Garcia, Jared Jaurequi, and Peter Huber, were convicted by a federal jury in Las Vegas for operating an illegal streaming service called Jetflicks since 2007. The group reproduced and distributed hundreds of thousands of copyrighted television episodes without authorization, amassing a catalog larger than the combined offerings of Netflix, Hulu, Vudu, and Amazon Prime. Dallmann was also convicted of three counts of misdemeanor criminal copyright infringement and two counts of money laundering by concealment.
Jetflicks charged customers $9.99 per month for access to the illegal streaming service, generating millions of dollars in subscription revenue. The men used sophisticated computer scripts and software to scour pirate websites for illegal copies of television episodes, which they then downloaded and hosted on Jetflicks servers.
The FBI investigated the case with assistance from the FBI's Las Vegas field office. Dallmann faces a maximum sentence of 48 years in prison if found guilty, while Courson, Garcia, Jaurequi and Huber could face up to five years each.
It is important to note that digital piracy is not a victimless crime. Copyright infringement harms creators and producers of content by depriving them of revenue. The FBI will continue to investigate those who illegally profit from the creative works of others.
Sources: FBI, U.S. Department of Justice
