Pirates take shelter in Canada, says ESA

You know you want that Canadian booty

It seems that Sweden isn’t the only country notorious for protecting swashbucklers. Today, the ESA applauds the fact that Canada has been added to the United States Trade Representative’s watchlist for failing to enforce IP rights and tightening laws.

Canada has been added to the list next to countries such as China, Russia, Thailand and India, among others, for allowing game piracy to flourish north of the 49. Crackdowns in the country started last year to curb the amount of movie piracy leaking from Canada’s borders and it looks like the new U.S. administration isn’t overlooking other forms of entertainment either.

“Putting Canada on the ‘Priority Watch List’ is a signal of the Obama Administration’s commitment to strengthening global intellectual property protection, and its intent to address this issue firmly with the Canadian government,” said Michael D. Gallagher, CEO of the ESA. “Canada’s weak laws and enforcement practices foster game piracy in the Canadian market and pave the way for unlawful imports into the U.S.”

So now, feel free to include mod chip-selling and illegal games-ripping into your typical maple-syrup, hockey-mask-wearing, beer-swilling Canadian stereotype of choice.

[Via Kotaku]