The International Division of the UK Publishers Association has released a series of startling reports about worldwide book piracy–uncovering thousands of pirated print and digital books in China, India, Pakistan, and Turkey.
In India, the group’s efforts led to the investigation of 936 businesses, 312 raids, and the seizure of 710,170 books and 1,800 pirated CD-roms. In 2008, the group oversaw the confiscation of over 185,000 pirated books and 1,600 printing plates. Most recently, a raid in India turned up 3,289 pirated copies of bestsellers.
Here’s a story from Pakistan: “The PA has run a campaign of raids and seizures in Pakistan for the last five years. A campaign has also been been run through Oxford University Press Pakistan. In total some 300,000 books and covers have been seized over the past 15 months. The most significant seizure this year was a massive haul that consisted mainly of OUP schoolbooks. This amounted to 150,000 finished books and 90,000 loose covers. This is certainly the largest single seizure of pirated books in Pakistan, if not the world. From this seizures of titles, it does seem as though some are heading overseas.” (Via.)