Amazon tries to take over pirate sites that sold DVD copies of Rings of Power

Enlarge (credit: Amazon)

Amazon yesterday sued the alleged operators of websites that sell pirated DVD copies of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power and other Amazon-made streaming series that haven’t been officially released on discs. People who bought the show on DVD ended up receiving low-quality pirated copies, Amazon said.

The lawsuit filed in US District Court for the Central District of California named the China-based individual Yangchun Zhang as a defendant. Other defendants include DVDShelf and Media Wholesale UK, which are referred to as “unknown business entities,” and seven websites connected to the DVD sales.

“Defendants openly sell pirated and infringing DVDs containing unauthorized copies of the Amazon Series,” the lawsuit said. “To date, Amazon has not released for sale or distribution the Amazon Series on DVD, and instead exclusively distributes such content via… Amazon Prime Video. In addition to illegally reproducing and distributing Amazon’s copyrighted content, Defendants’ scheme infringes numerous other aspects of Amazon’s intellectual property, including the use of Amazon’s registered trademarks and artwork on their pirated DVDs.”