Reagan T. Fondren Acting United States Attorney for the Western District Of Tennessee | U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee
A former employee of a DVD and Blu-ray manufacturing and distribution company in Tennessee was sentenced to 57 months in prison for stealing pre-release DVDs and Blu-rays of major films and selling them before their official release dates. The sentencing took place today, following an investigation by the FBI.
According to court documents, Steven R. Hale, 38, of Memphis, worked at a multinational company that produced DVDs and Blu-rays for commercial distribution in the United States. From February 2021 to March 2022, Hale stole hundreds of discs intended for future release, including titles such as “F9: The Fast Saga,” “Venom: Let There Be Carnage,” “Godzilla v. Kong,” “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings,” “Dune,” and “Black Widow.” He sold these items through e-commerce platforms.
One stolen Blu-ray, “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” was copied after bypassing its encryption protection and distributed online more than a month before its scheduled release date. This digital copy was downloaded tens of millions of times over the internet, resulting in estimated losses to the copyright owner totaling tens of millions of dollars.
“The defendant profited from the creativity and intellectual property of others by stealing DVDs and Blu-rays of movies that were being prepared for commercial distribution,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Today’s sentencing signals our commitment to protecting American innovation from pirates that would exploit others’ work for a quick profit, which, in this case, cost one copyright owner tens of millions of dollars.”
“The copyright owner lost tens of millions of dollars as a result of Steven Hale stealing DVDs and Blu-rays of blockbuster movies and selling them before their official scheduled release dates,” said Special Agent in Charge Joseph E. Carrico of the FBI Nashville Field Office. “Today’s sentence should send a strong message that willfully stealing another party’s intellectual property is a serious crime and the FBI is committed to holding violators accountable.”
In addition to copyright infringement charges, Hale pleaded guilty to being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm after authorities found him with a loaded pistol despite prior felony convictions for armed robbery and attempted robbery.
Hale agreed to make full restitution to his victims by returning approximately 1,160 stolen discs seized from him back to his employer.
The prosecution was handled by Senior Counsel Matthew A. Lamberti from the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section along with Assistant U.S. Attorney Raney Irwin for the Western District of Tennessee.
The FBI led the investigation into this case.
