Vast counterfeit enterprise rumbled by cops.

German police have discovered what they reckon to be one of the largest illegal pressing plants in Europe.

Officials seized “significant” numbers of CDs, DVDs and vinyl records from several properties in Aschaffenburg and the federal state of Hessen last week in a raid that followed a two-year investigation.

If you’re thinking, “wow, who buys CDs anymore?”, you’re not the only one – but it turns out German people still love their shiny discs.

“With a market share of about 70%, there is still a high demand for CDs in Germany – this is evident not only in the legitimate business, but unfortunately also on the illegal market,” said Dr. Florian Drücke, boss of the German Federal Music Industry Association.

Commenting on the investigation, which was conducted on behalf of his organisation, he added: “The equipment found here demonstrates once again that this is not the work of petty criminals, but of professional organisations whose criminal activities inflict massive damage on artists and the recording industry.” [via Billboard, Music Week]