Downloading torrents is one thing, but attacking merchant ships with guns at the ready and stealing their goods is quite another. I'm talking real maritime pirates here.

Attacks from pirates off Somalia have been increasing recently, plundering ships off the Horn of Africa, with attacks being as frequent to four in a single day. Not only that, but their area of piracy is getting broader, threatening to block off the Suez Canal.

This is forcing firms to consider going around South Africa's Cape of Good Hope instead, practically doubling the distance ships have to travel.

This could potentially cause shipments of various goods, including video game hardware and software, to get seriously messed up for the West. The problem is getting dire, says Sam Dawson of the International Transport Works' Federation:

Despite all the publicity over piracy it will really hit home when consumers in the West find they haven't got their Nintendo gifts this Christmas. If there isn't a let up and active intervention by navies in the region, the impact on trade will come within weeks or months.

[...] This is not just guys in little fishing boats anymore. We know there are three probably ex-Soviet trawlers acting as mother ships.

Coupled with the current state of the economy, this could end up a critical problem, and not just for video games mind you.

---

Related Articles:

• Says dev, World of Goo has 90% piracy rate
• New PRO-IP anti-piracy law in US approved, ESA ecstatic