NEW YORK, Nov. 29 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA), the principal trade association for the digital content and software industry, filed suit today on behalf of member company Kaplan, Inc., against three California residents and their business "USMLEPRO" for unauthorized copying and distribution of Kaplan test preparation materials.

The copyright infringement suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, accuses the defendants of illegally selling or assisting in the sale of Kaplan medical books and DVDs on websites and in eBay auctions. The copyrighted materials are parts of test preparation courses offered by Kaplan to individuals preparing to take the U.S. Medical Licensing Exam. The defendants include Benny Y. Chang, Jason Hanson and Hamid Torshizy, as well as unnamed "Doe" defendants to be determined during the case.

The lawsuit is part of SIIA's Internet Enforcement Program, which aims to curb infringement in online auctions and illegal web sites. "SIIA works vigorously to protect our members' content and software from illegal sale on the Internet," said Scott Bain, SIIA Litigation Counsel. "We pursue infringers to the full extent of the law."

Kaplan has requested damages, attorney's fees, and an injunction among other remedies. The Copyright Act allows plaintiffs to recover actual damages (including the defendants' profits) or "statutory damages" for infringement. Statutory damages can reach $150,000 for each infringed work. While the precise number of infringed works is yet to be determined in this case, the complaint alleges that multiple registered works were infringed.

"Protection of our intellectual property and enforcement of our copyrights are priorities for us," said Johan de Muinck Keizer, General Counsel, Kaplan, Inc. "We anticipate more to come as we continue to monitor and enforce against illegal use and sale of Kaplan products."

The U.S. Medical Licensing Exam is a multi-part professional exam that physicians are required to pass before being permitted to practice medicine in the U.S. Kaplan provides test preparation courses for the USMLE at centers nationwide, including both printed materials and also DVDs that are restricted to the test prep sites.

Over the past year, SIIA - historically known as the enforcement arm of the software industry - has expanded its anti-piracy activities to include its content companies. In August, SIIA settled its first-ever corporate content piracy case against Knowledge Networks, a consulting group that had been distributing "press packets" internally to employees on a regular basis. And in recent years, SIIA has been especially vigilant against eBay piracy, settling various cases against individual eBay sellers who were auctioning counterfeit, unauthorized OEM or academic, or other infringing software.

About SIIA

The Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA) is the principal trade association for the software and digital content industry. SIIA provides global services in government relations, business development, corporate education and intellectual property protection to more than 800 leading software and information companies. For further information, visit http://www.siia.net/.

CONTACT: Scott Bain of SIIA, +1-202-789-4492, sbain@siia.net; or Carina
Wong of Kaplan, +1-212-453-7571, carina.wong@kaplan.com

Web Site: http://www.siia.net/