July 22, 2010 | The Biz

Michael Lucas vs the pirates

Lucas Entertainment announced this week that it was launching an anti-piracy campaign. The company's first lawsuit was filed in U.S. Federal Court targeting 65 defendants accused of the illegal download and distribution of its recent release, 'Missing.'

“You only have to conduct a quick Google search to see the rampant piracy all over the internet,” said CEO Michael Lucas. “I am always surprised that users would deal with torrent sites and all the hassle that requires instead of streaming through LucasEntertainment.com, but I guess there are many people out there who have endless patience. We appreciate our fans wherever they are but business is business and we have to make some money off our content.

“While many sites are responsive and take down content once notified of a copyright violation, some are not and we have decided to take a more forceful approach with the more difficult sites and their users,” added Lucas. “Too many people assume the Internet provides them with unlimited access to our content at no cost. Instead, it gives us exactly the tools and information we need for lawsuits like this one. I will be ruthless with those who are stealing my films.”

This is Lucas Entertainment’s first legal action against Internet piracy. We're sure it won't be its last.