The UK Cinema Association has welcomed the conviction of a man accused of attempting to record a film in a Glasgow cinema last year.

Ryan Finnigan was convicted of an offence under the Copyright Designs Patent Act 1988. The 41-year-old, from Craigend, pled guilty at Glasgow Sheriff Court, admitting he attempted to record T2: Trainspotting at Vue cinema at the Fort in Glasgow in February 2017.

Following a multi-agency operation involving Police Scotland, the Film Content Protection Agency and staff from The Vue cinema at the Fort Glasgow, Finnigan was arrested and charged. This is only the second time someone in Scotland has been convicted of such a crime, and the first since 2011.

Detective Inspector Ricky Hutton, Police Scotland Specialist Crime Division, said:

“This conviction shows that Police Scotland continually works with our partners to protect our creative industries from the threats from intellectual property crime.

The copying of films in the cinemas and subsequent release of pirate copies online have significant financial implications for the UK Film industry and the ability to invest in jobs and future filming.

Although people may think that this will have little impact on major film studios, make no mistake, the amount of money being lost is on a large scale. People working illegally are impacting on the creative industry as a whole and our international reputation as a leading location for creative arts.

Copies of illegally recorded films are also acquired by organised crime networks – typically operating for profit across multiple illegal activities and therefore it is vital that we are able to crack down on those recording the material.”

Simon Brown, Director of the Film Content Protection Agency, added:

“This has been a significant criminal case involving the illegal recording of a film in a Scottish cinema, which was successfully spotted and disrupted by the staff there.

Over 90 per cent of pirated films originate from a copy recorded during a public performance in cinemas worldwide, so it’s vital that offenders like Mr Finnigan are disrupted promptly to prevent further damage to the film industry.”