USTR: Piracy, counterfeiting abroad is thriving

With the House Judiciary debate over online piracy legislation now expected to extend into the new year, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative provided copyright and trademark holders with fresh evidence Tuesday to demonstrate the scope of online infringement they face from pirates and counterfeiters based offshore.

USTR released a new report outlining the most notorious infringers based outside the United States.

"Globally copyright piracy on a commercial scale and trademark counterfeiting continue to thrive, in part because of the presence of marketplaces that deal in goods and services that infringe intellectual property rights," according to the USTR report.

The report includes a list of sites offering pirated music, links to pirated content, sites that provide illegal streaming of live events such as professional sports, cyber lockers where pirated content can be stored and accessed, and social networking sites such as Russia's vKontakte, where users can provide access to infringing materials.

"The notorious overseas markets highlighted in today's report are a direct threat to the millions of hard-working Americans and the tens of thousands of businesses that rely on [intellectual property] for their livelihoods," Michael O'Leary, senior executive vice president of the Motion Picture Association of America, said in a statement. "The list also demonstrates the need for Congress to take action against rogue websites that are causing so much damage to American workers and businesses."