Amazon filed a lawsuit against seven online stores selling pirated DVDs of Amazon Original series The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power and The Peripheral, according to a report from Torrent Freak. The vendors in question include sites like dvdshelf.com.au, dvds.trade and dvd.wholesale.co.uk. The pirated DVDs look authentic, but Amazon doesn’t sell DVDs for these Prime shows — and if it did, it’s highly unlikely that The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power box set would cost $12.95 — the price listed on the DVD Wholesale site.
It’s been about 20 years since the iconic anti-copyright infringement public service announcement equating piracy to stealing a car, but streaming hasn’t eliminated illegitimate entertainment markets. If anything, the cost and sheer number of streaming services makes finding a free version of a show or movie online as appealing as ever.
“Defendants’ scheme to exploit the worldwide recognition of the Amazon Series is straightforward and blatant — through their Piracy Websites, Defendants openly sell pirated and infringing DVDs containing unauthorized copies of the Amazon Series,” The lawsuit, filed in a California federal court, states.
According to the lawsuit, the scam infringes other aspects of Amazon’s intellectual property like the e-commerce giant’s registered trademarks and artwork, as well as entailing widespread piracy. Amazon hopes to recover damages and shut down the bogus websites.
Cord Cutters News reached out to Amazon and we’ll update when we hear back.