No Hollywood Ending for Melrose Avenue Game Pirates

A Hollywood game shop that played host to the stars has been busted for alleged piracy.

United Press International is reporting that three Los Angeles men were charged yesterday for selling Xbox systems chipped to play pirated games.

Feds allege that the suspects conspired to violate the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). Among the trio are the partners in the ACME Game Store on fashionable Melrose Avenue, as well as a third individual who performed the chipping and added larger hard drives to the Xbox consoles. The modifications allowed users to copy rented or borrowed games onto the Xbox hard drive.

According to the U.S. Attorney's office a private investigator purchased one of the modified Xboxes from ACME in May. Customs agents subsequently paid $265 to have an Xbox chipped and loaded with 77 pirated games.

An October, 2004 G4TV feature showed actor and gamer David Arquette checking out football sim ESPN NFL2K5 at ACME. Arquette is seen in the ACME Game Store in the photo at left.

LA.com notes that ACME has an "artsy" atmosphere and "often hosts events and art shows."

Red Herring names the suspects as store owners Jason Jones, 34, and Jonathan Bryant, 44, and Pei 'Patrick' Cai, 32, who allegedly performed the modifications. Bryant declined comment but told Red Herring that ACME is open for business as usual.

UPDATE: The ESA has issued a press release on the ACME case, including a comment by the organization's president, Doug Lowenstein, who said, "We thank these government agencies for their commitment to combating intellectual property theft, and we will do whatever we can to support a successful prosecution of those charged in this pirate ring. Our industry will continue to support all government efforts to fight game piracy in its many different forms."