A Derry man has been jailed for internet-based piracy, which could have seen the movie industry lose €165m.

Paul Mahoney made almost €414,000 from advertising revenue on illegal websites showing the latest films and TV shows.
During the six years he operated the sites he also claimed about €16,500 in benefits.

The 29-year-old, who is partially blind, was given a four-year sentence at the Crown Court in Derry, half of which will be spent in prison.

He pleaded guilty to a series of offences, including conspiracy to defraud the film industry, earlier this year.

Mahoney's defence team had argued he was not motivated by money and said he had become a recluse after being bullied at school because of his partial blindness.

"His constant and only companion during that period of time was in fact his computer. In one sense, he essentially lived in a bubble for a period of time," Martin Rodgers QC said.

But prosecution lawyer David Groome QC said Mahoney was involved in a "sophisticated fraud".

The court was told his computers and internet history revealed there had been 1.1 million viewing of illegal movies through his website in one six-month period, according to reports