14 DAY TRIAL // Operators of alternative Android market places Appbucket, Applanet and SnappzMarket were arrested and charged with illegal distribution of millions of copyrighted Android apps, with a total worth of $19.4 / €14.4 million.
The Department of Justice announced that six individuals affiliated with the aforementioned markets have been charged, and two of them, Joshua Ryan Taylor and Scott Walton, both affiliated with SnappzMarket, have been arrested on July 21.
According to the news release, from May 2011 until August 2012 the SnappzMarket group reproduced and distributed more than one million illegal copies of copyrighted Android apps, having a total retail value of over $1.7 / €1.26 million.
In the case of Appbucket, James Blocker and other conspirators carried out the same type of activity between August 2010 and August 2012. The number of apps distributed was more than one million and the damages to the rightful owners were of $700,000 / €520,000.
Applanet appears to have been the most productive in the copyright infringement activity, as the group behind it distributed more than 4 million copies of pirated Android apps, with a retail value of $17 / €12.62 million. The operation lasted from May 2010 until August 2012.
The illegal activities were stopped by the authorities in August 2012, when the domains for the market places were seized.