Manchester has been named the piracy capital of the UK, according to a new study seen exclusively by the BBC.

BBC: A glimpse at piracy in the UK and beyond

That assessment was reinforced by a 2009 Northrop Grumman study that found seven Littoral Combat Ships could perform anti-piracy patrols in the Western Indian Ocean more efficiently than 20 conventional warships for a quarter of the cost.

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The site's disappearance provides a dividing line for a before-and-after study, but that study can't comment on the effect of other digital-piracy sources or on the impact of DVD piracy, and it is silent on piracy in countries where sales data weren't available or Megaupload wasn't popular.

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The nature of illegal downloading makes it extremely difficult to track its full extent, but the study's findings are fully conclusive in at least one regard: piracy remains a massive issue.

BBC: A glimpse at piracy in the UK and beyond