PARIS HILTON - HILTON SEX TAPE OWNERS SUE THE FIRST OF THE PIRATES

The owners of PARIS HILTON's sex tape 1 NIGHT IN PARIS have filed their first copyright infringement lawsuit in a bid to show pirates they're serious about legal action over stolen images.

World Wide Red Light District boss DAVID JOSEPH filed his suit against California photo shop employee MORDECHI KATTAN in Los Angeles' Federal District Court this morning (04APR05), claiming he allegedly illegally counterfeited, manufactured, sold and distributed the video.

Joseph is seeking a permanent injunction and more than $3 million (GBP1.6 million) in damages. He says, "Because of its intense interest and popularity, 1 Night in Paris has been widely counterfeited. Red Light District has put an aggressive copyright and anti-counterfeit campaign in place in an effort to pursue these infringers."

The company has also asked Hilton's fans to come forward with other possible counterfeiters, and have posted a reward for information leading to the prosecution of other pirates on its website. It is not known at this stage if Hilton herself will have any involvement in the proceedings.