The Hanoi People’s Procuracy has officially indicted Phan Thanh Cong (born 1990) and Nguyen Tuan Anh (born 1990), both residents of Ha Dong District, for "Infringement of Copyright and Related Rights" after operating the illegal movie-streaming website Fmovies.

Massive copyright infringement operation uncovered

The case began when the Hanoi Police received a complaint from Rouse Vietnam Law Firm, the authorized representative of the Motion Picture Association (MPA) in Vietnam. The complaint accused Fmovies of illegally copying and distributing 30 copyrighted films owned by MPA member studios.

Investigations revealed that Cong and Tuan Anh, who met while studying at Aptech vocational school in 2008, collaborated to create the Fmovies website system in September 2015. Their platform offered free streaming of foreign films to attract global viewers while embedding advertisements from international ad agencies.

A lucrative illegal operation

Users accessing Fmovies were required to watch advertisements from MGID, a foreign advertising company, before streaming content. MGID then paid Cong and Tuan Anh for ad placements on the website.

Cong played the leading role in programming, managing, and operating the Fmovies system. He was responsible for liaising with MGID, handling financial transactions, purchasing Google Drive accounts for storing movies, and managing employee accounts. Using the website’s admin dashboard, he tracked uploaded content, viewer statistics, and film availability.

Meanwhile, Tuan Anh was in charge of locating, copying, and uploading pirated movies to Fmovies.

The two agreed on a revenue split, with Cong taking 90% of the ad earnings and Tuan Anh receiving 10%.

Illegal profits and legal consequences

Despite being fully aware of the legal violations, Cong and Tuan Anh continued their activities for nearly seven years, from September 2015 to May 2022, illegally copying and distributing 30 MPA-protected films.

Since August 2016, Fmovies received over $400,000 in advertising revenue from MGID. Cong personally pocketed $364,500, while Tuan Anh earned $40,500. Both have since returned the illicit earnings to authorities.

Among the 30 pirated films, investigators confirmed that 17 were illegally copied and distributed to Galaxy Play, Vietnam Satellite Digital Television (VSTV), and ITB TV LTD, causing financial damages of over 920 million VND ($37,000).

For the remaining 13 films, authorities have requested MPA to provide data on licensing fees in Vietnam to determine further damages. However, as MPA has yet to supply this information, no additional legal action has been taken for those works.

As of July 2024, the entire Fmovies network has been shut down.

T. Nhung