A Winnie-the-Pooh-style laptop of a 9-year-old girl was taken away from her by an official organization in Finland after she and her father apparently tried to download music by a popular Finnish singer.
Her father was forced to pay a $390 fine to a Finnish anti-piracy group. The father refused to pay a higher fine and the young girl, now 10-years-old, will get the laptop back.
The father, identified as Aki Nylund, told TorrentFreak, “I got the feeling that there had been people from the Mafia demanding money at the door.”
Image via Shutterstock
The anti-piracy group, TTVK, also known as the Copyright Information and Anti-Piracy Center (CIAPC), contacted the father once they found his account was used to reach “The Pirate Bay” site. The girl allegedly searched the site for music by Chisu of Finland.
The father said they never downloaded the music via the BitTorrent (News - Alert) site, but acquired it legally later.
"We have now reached a settlement in the matter. The police investigation has stopped and the rights holders have been compensated. All parties involved are satisfied with the settlement," an official spokesperson told The BBC.
“We reversed the call for an investigation because we reached an agreement with the girl’s father,” CIAPC head Antti Kotilainen added in a statement reported by the media.
The girl's father said the events showed "the pinnacle of absurdity, TorrentFreak reported. Meanwhile, Chisu urged that fans listen to her music for free on Spotify (News - Alert).
"I hope that the matter will be resolved soon and sorry to my nine-year-old girls," she said.
CIAPC includes among its members several Finnish film and music groups, such as the Finnish Musicians' Union and the Finnish Film Distributors Association.
The series of events caused an outcry by much of the public in Finland. One reader of TorrentFreak remarked online, “Yeah, the new strategy, holding your children hostage until you pay.”
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Edited by Brooke Neuman
