American court sentenced a resident of Memphis to four and a half years in prison for selling digital copies of films before their official release. The 37-year-old Stephen R. Hale, who worked at a DVD and Blu-Ray production and distribution enterprise, stole discs prepared for release and resold them on the network. The crimes occurred between February 2021 and March 2022, and in May 2025, Hale pleaded guilty to copyright violations. As part of the plea deal, he agreed to compensate for the damage by returning about 1160 DVDs and Blu-rays seized by investigators. Additionally, he faced charges of illegal weapons possession due to a prior conviction for armed robbery. The Ministry of Justice stated that Hale distributed pirated copies of discs on trading platforms and file-sharing resources.
Some of the stolen films included “Godzilla VS. Kong,” “Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings,” “Dune,” “Venom 2,” and “Black Widow.” Of particular concern was Hale’s distribution of the film “Spider-Man: No Way Home” before its official release by bypassing the Blu-Ray protection system. This early release resulted in tens of millions of dollars in losses, with millions of downloads of the film reported.
The investigation revealed that Hale’s actions caused tens of millions of dollars in losses to film distributors. An FBI representative emphasized that the distribution of blockbusters before their theatrical and home release undermined the studios’ revenues.
Hale’s case is part of a broader trend of digital content theft. In March of this year, the New York prosecutor’s office charged two employees of a STUBHUB contractor, 20-year-old Tyron Rose and 31-year-old Shamar Simmons, with the theft of thousands of tickets for events featuring artists like Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran, as well as sports events like the US Open and NBA matches. The profits from these schemes exceeded $635,000, and the accused individuals now face up to 15 years in prison.
These cases, including Hale’s, indicate a crackdown on crimes related to intellectual property and the illegal distribution of digital content.