These are always worth a read
http://www.riaa.com/news/newsletter/071305.aspThe RIAA reported a 58 percent increase in seizures of counterfeit CDs, the authentic CD look-alikes with high-quality artwork and packaging that make the product appear legitimate. Working together, local law enforcement agencies and RIAA investigators seized 1.2 million counterfeit discs in 2004. This pirate product is increasingly traced back to smaller CD copying plants. The growing number of these smaller-sized facilities over the past few years has created excess production capacity, and some unethical businesses have diverted this excess capacity to the production of high-quality pirate product.
While the manufacture of authentic-looking CDs has exploded due to the proliferation of smaller-sized copying plants, CD-R (blank CD) burning operations experienced a consolidation in 2004. CD-R reproduction in the eastern half of the United States is now dominated by organized criminal syndicates intent on monopolizing the illicit market share by operating on high volume and very low profit margins. As a result, the price of pirated CD-Rs on both the wholesale and retail level has dramatically declined.
All the seizures listed are a small drop in the ocean and targetting one genre of music like this could be seen as racially motivated, all piracy should be treated the same.
