The landmark trial of a Norwegian teenager over Hollywood charges of DVD piracy ended Monday with prosecutors urging a suspended 90-day jail term.
Jon Johansen, known in Norway as "DVD Jon," is charged with having unlocked a copyright-protection code and distributed a computer program enabling unauthorized copying of DVD movies, angering U.S. movie studios who fear mass piracy and loss of revenue.
Following five days of hearings in a Norwegian court, prosecutor Inger Marie Sunde spent much of the closing argument saying that Johansen was a key player in developing DeCSS. "I think this case is about gang crime. It is beyond any doubt that there was a rivalry" in developing the program, she said. Sunde called for a suspended 90-day sentence for Johansen. The charges he faces could bring a maximum sentence of two years in prison.
Manshaus did not dispute the fact that his client had helped develop and distribute DeCSS. However, he said there was no basis in Norwegian law for a conviction, saying DVDs were technically, but not legally, protected from copying.
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