Rachel Smith dragged her bulging luggage to the check-in counter at Bali airport, worried she would have to pay excess for the hundreds of pirate DVDs she was taking back to Australia.
But the airline staff did not raise an eyebrow: just another tourist taking advantage of Hollywood hits selling for less than a bag of popcorn. 'They're a bargain and some are still showing at cinemas,' Ms Smith raved, justifying piracy as a 'victimless crime'.
Back in Kuta, the glass-fronted air-conditioned shops where Ms Smith bought the illegal copies were doing a roaring trade, blatantly operating on the main shopping strips.
'Business is good, but it used to be better,' complained one pirate DVD store manager, Ketut.
Two years ago, DVDs produced by massive illegal factories in Jakarta sold in Bali for 20,000 rupiah (HK$16.65) each. Today they sell for less than half that due to escalating competition.
Anti-piracy activists and copyright lawyers argue the trade in fakes hurts not only original rights owners but denies this third-world country much-needed taxation and licensing revenues.
What's more, the very public pirate industry smells of something far more sinister and troubling.