Big blow for disc pirates

　　AUTHORITIES in 50 cities around China yesterday destroyed more than 27 million pirated discs in a renewed bid to root out rampant piracy.In yesterday’s concerted campaign in Nanjing, Haikou, Guangzhou, Taiyuan, Chongqing and other cities, 27.5 million pirated CDs, VCDs, DVDs and cassette tapes, seized from illegal vendors and producers, were destroyed in public.In Shenzhen, 3 million illegal discs were destroyed in an environmentally friendly manner: the toxic coatings and data on the discs were wiped off with a chemical solution before the discs were put into mincing machines and recycled (See Page 2 for picture).Officials said yesterday’s campaign was just part of a broader effort to crack down on the resurgence of piracy, which was dealt a heavy blow last year but appeared to have picked up since the beginning of the year.More than 43.44 million illegal video and audio products were seized from January to July this year. Officials in the country have also closed more than 10,600 unlicensed vendors found selling pirated discs.Zhang Jianxin, vice director of the Market Department of the Ministry of Culture, said yesterday’s action showed how determined authorities were to stamp out product piracy.The ministry would target massive smuggling of pirated products through cooperation with other government departments, Zhang said.Officials also disclosed that the government would offer incentives to producers and sellers of legal products as part of the ongoing reform of the distribution system. (SD News)