Law on Copied Music Is Signed by Governor

California, home of the U.S. entertainment industry, has a new law that makes it a crime to sell as few as 100 illegally copied albums. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a measure Wednesday that reduces the threshold for criminal sales of pirated music from 1,000 copies.

“Intellectual property rights and creativity are bedrocks of the California economy,” Schwarzenegger said after signing the bill. “This bill makes it easier for authorities to crack down on the rip-off artists who illegally copy and sell music CDs.”

Retail sales of music worldwide have dropped over the last five years, according to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, in part because of unauthorized copies.