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      SUMMARY OF STATEMENT OF KEVIN V. DI GREGORY
      DEPUTY ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL
      UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
      BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON
      COURTS AND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
      COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY
      _ UNITED STATES HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
      _
      SEPTEMBER 11, 1997

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    The increasing prevalence of copyright theft through electronic
    means is creating new challenges for law enforcement. Computer
    pirates organized in gangs illegally distribute copyrighted software
    and other works at rapid speed, causing untold harm to the producers
    of such works.

    The Department of Justice has responded to this challenge by
    creating a new Section in its Criminal Division devoted to
    protecting against computer crime and intellectual property theft.
    That Section is training federal and state prosecutors and agents on
    the techniques of combating this type of crime, and training foreign
    officials to help ensure that copyright is protected world-wide. The
    Department and the law enforcement agencies that protect copyright
    the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Customs Service are
    placing increasing emphasis on investigating and prosecuting thefts
    of intellectual property, whether by physical or electronic means.

    The Department is highly supportive of the goals of H.R. 2265. The
    bill would allow the Department to prosecute large-scale theft of
    copyright, even when the perpetrator was not acting out of a profit
    motive. The bill would also accomplish a number of other important
    objectives, including establishing a recidivist provision; extending
    the statute of limitations; clarifying that "financial gain"
    includes the receipt of other copyright works; clarifying that
    "reproduction or distribution" includes electronic as well as
    tangible means; extending victims' rights by permitting victim
    impact statements in intellectual property cases; and directing the
    Sentencing Commission to reflect more accurately the harms caused by
    copyright piracy by imposing sentence based on the retail value of
    the good infringed upon, rather than the value of the infringing
    product.

    We look forward to working with the Committee on this important
    piece of legislation.

    Go to . . . CCIPS <./> || Justice Department Home Pages </>

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    Updated page March 6, 1998
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