A report in The Sunday Post alleges that up to 90% of DS owners in the US are playing pirated software according to John Hillier, Manager of ELSPA's Intellectual Property Crime Unit.

The article suggests that a flash-based memory cartridge manufactured in China is the main culprit. Purchased up and down the country from the web or car-boot sales, the cartridge is used to store illegally downloaded games and bypasses the security measures in place on the Nintendo DS.

Hiller claims, "The implications are massive. In America it's thought 90 per cent of Nintendo DS users are playing pirated games."

"Takings from Nintendo DS games in the US are lower than any other console and no doubt it will have a similar impact here.

Whether the facts and figures are clear and correct remains uncertain at this stage, certainly why a UK governing board is talking about the American market seems a little strange to us. We'd also suggest that revenue from DS sales would be lower than other consoles due to the lower retail price for games.