Gizmodo’s Brian Gardiner checks out the epic-scale market for counterfeit audio gear.
Early on the morning of October 28, 2010 a massive strike force assembled outside the Meipai Electronic Audio Factory and three other storage facilities in and around Southern China’s Enping City. What had started out as a tip from a handful of major audio equipment makers led to a months-long investigation by Guangdong Public Security Department and Jiangmen City police. By day’s end, four people were in jail and 1,200 counterfeit audio items were in police hands, and the so-called “New Dynamics Audio Equipment Factory” was effectively shut down. It was the first salvo in a new war against fake wares, lead by an unlikely coalition of audio companies who, though fierce competitors in stores, are closely allied against a common enemy.
And it’s not just in Asia: a recent raid in the UK netted $500k worth of fakes, the largest ever there. One driving force is the increasing quality of knock-offs and their easy availability online: fakes so good that they sell for only slightly less than real ones.