Associated Press
MINNEAPOLIS — Federal prosecutors announced Monday what they called the first-ever conviction for copyright infringement in karaoke music.
Tracy Ann Brock, of Burnsville, 43, pleaded guilty Monday to a single count of felony conspiracy to commit criminal copyright infringement, according to a news release.
Brock’s attorney, Joe Friedberg, had no comment. She faces up to five years in prison, a fine of $250,000 and three years of supervised release.
Prosecutors claimed that Brock, as president and co-owner of Star Music Inc., distributed hundreds of thousands of illegal copies of karaoke recordings that were loaded into computer hard drives and then sold on eBay and other online auction sites.
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Prosecutors alleged that Brock conspired to sell the infringing copies of the music from April 2004 to July 2006 — when the FBI searched her house in Burnsville.
Special agents seized large numbers of compact discs, computers and other equipment to copy, store and distribute the pirated music.
The case was part of the Department of Justice’s broader initiative to prevent online computer piracy, the U.S. attorney’s office in Minnesota said in a news release.
