# articles

feed_id: http://torrentfreak.com/?p=170285
title: US Court Orders 27 Pirate Site Operators to Pay $1 Million Each in Damages
uri: US-Court-Orders-27-Pirate-Site-Operators-to-Pay-1-Million-Each-in-Dam
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/O0Css3zIBjk/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-170290" src="media/1aa98c1b.dollars.jpg" data-original-source="http://torrentfreak.com/images/dollars.jpg" alt="" width="280" height="206"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ABS-CBN_(TV_network)">ABS-CBN</a>, the largest media and entertainment company in the Philippines, has scored yet another legal victory in the United States.</p>
<p>This week, a Florida district court issued a default judgment against 27 defendants who operate websites that offer links to copyright-infringing streams of ABS-CBN content.</p>
<p>The lawsuit, filed last December,&nbsp;targets more than three dozen domain names, including dramaofw.ch, vidco.su, pinoyflixtv.com, pinoytvlovershd.com, and tambayand.com.</p>
<p>The domains are connected to streaming portals that specialize in Philippine content. These sites attract visitors from all over the world, including the United States, where they target people of Philippine origin.</p>
<p>“Defendants’ websites operating under the Subject Domain Names are classic examples of pirate operations, having no regard whatsoever for the rights of ABS-CBN and willfully infringing ABS-CBN’s intellectual property,” the company wrote in its original complaint.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/2cf7debb.pinoyofw-e1553867415358.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/pinoyofw-e1553867415358.png" alt="" class="wp-image-170347"/><figcaption> <br>One of the sites </figcaption></figure></div>


<p>Despite facing hefty damages, none of the site operators turned up in court. This prompted ABS-CBN to file for a default judgment which was granted by US District Judge William Dimitrouleas this week.</p>
<p>In his verdict, the Judge orders the 27 defendants to each pay $1 million in damages, for willfully violating ABS-CBN’s trademark. In addition, four of the defendants received an additional $30,000 in copyright infringement damages on top, as requested.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/325f5e9f.abdorder1.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/abdorder1.png" alt="" class="wp-image-170349"/><figcaption>The order</figcaption></figure></div>


<p>ABS-CBN’s most recent win follows a pattern of similar verdicts in recent years. With these lawsuits, the company has managed to score dozens of millions in damages from a wide variety of streaming sites with relative ease.</p>
<p>While this sounds like a success story, it is unknown whether the Philippine media company has managed to recoup any damages from the defendants, who are generally not known by name.</p>
<p>In order to get at least some money from the defendants, ABS-CBN also obtained an injunction against the advertisers of the pirate sites. These services, including Google Adsense, RevenueHits, and Popads, will have to hand over the outstanding revenue of these sites to the media giant within a week.</p>
<p>The permanent injunction further requires the domain name registrars and registries of the sites to transfer the domain names to ABS-CBN.</p>
<p>At the time of writing, many of the domain names, including the .net and .com ones, redirect to a &#8220;<a href="http://servingnotice.com/BF1SS/index.html">serving notice</a>&#8221; page with the case details. Websites with the former Sovjet Union&#8217;s .SU extension, remain accessible for now.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Whether the $1 million in damages and the injunction will deter all defendants from continuing remains to be seen.</p>
<p>Some of the names of the websites in this lawsuit are similar to ones ABS-CBN targeted previously. If the operators remain unknown, they may simply continue their business with a new domain.</p>
<p><em>—</em></p>
<p><em>A copy of the default judgment is<a href="media/ff8c15b6.absdefaultc.pdf" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/absdefaultc.pdf"> available here (pdf)</a>. A list of all the affected domain names, with the associated defendant number, is available below.</em></p>
<p><em>1 </em>cinesilip<em>.su</em><br><em>1 pariwikitv.su</em><br><em>1 </em>pinoyhd<em>.su</em><br><em>2 dilsediltakdrama.net</em><br><em>3 </em>dramaofw<em>.su</em><br><em>3 dramaofw.ch</em><br><em>4 filikulamo.tk</em><br><em>5 </em>filipinoshows<em>.su</em><br><em>5 </em>filipinotvshows<em>.su</em><br><em>5 </em>ofwpinoytambayan<em>.su</em><br><em>6 fullpinoymovies.net</em><br><em>7 lambingansu.net</em><br><em>8 </em>pariwiki<em>.su</em><br><em>8 </em>vidco<em>.su</em><br><em>9 pinoy1tvhd.su</em><br><em>10 pinoyako.co</em><br><em>11 </em>pinoychannelflix<em>.su</em><br><em>12 </em>pinoychannelofw<em>.su</em><br><em>13 pinoyflixtv.com</em><br><em>14 pinoylambingan.info</em><br><em>15 </em>pinoymovies<em>.site</em><br><em>16 pinoytambayanchannel.com</em><br><em>17 pinoytambayanlambingans.com</em><br><em>18 </em>pinoytambayanlive<em>.su</em><br><em>18 cinesilipsu.net</em><br><em>19 pinoytvb.com</em><br><em>20 pinoytvlovershd.com</em><br><em>21 pinoytvplus.com</em><br><em>22 </em>pinoytvreplay<em>.su</em><br><em>23 pinoytvreplays.co</em><br><em>24 sunjerhd.com</em><br><em>25 tambayand.com</em><br><em>25 lqnabc.info</em><br><em>25 tambayane.com</em><br><em>26 telebesyon.com</em><br><em>27 yztv.online</em><br><em>27 yztv.pw</em></p><p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: http://torrentfreak.com/?p=170476
title: Game of Thrones Most Popular TV Show to Push ‘Pirate’ Malware
uri: Game-of-Thrones-Most-Popular-TV-Show-to-Push-Pirate-Malware
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/D-R2x-RrtIM/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-170486" src="media/32f8c261.thrones1.jpg" data-original-source="http://torrentfreak.com/images/thrones1.jpg" alt="" width="270" height="151"></p>
<p>In recent years copyright holders have been rather concerned with the health of pirates’ computers.</p>
<p>They regularly highlight reports which show that pirate sites are rife with malware and even alert potential pirates-to-be about the dangers of these sites.</p>
<p>While some of these claims <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/no-pirate-sites-are-not-the-1-online-source-for-malware-180728/">are exaggerated</a>, there is no denying that malware is spread through pirate sites. On torrent sites, this is usually done in the form of fake releases uploaded by malware peddlers, who disguise themselves as legitimate uploaders. </p>
<p>While the .torrent files and the sites are not the problem, the actual downloads can include all sorts of nastiness.</p>
<p>This problem isn&#8217;t new. We have highlighted it repeatedly over the years, going back <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/domplayer-rips-off-axxo-bittorrent-fans-071017/">more than a decade</a> in some cases. Although it&#8217;s been hard to quantify the problem, a new report from Kaspersky Lab adds some intriguing context to the phenomenon.</p>
<p>The cybersecurity company and anti-virus provider decided to take a closer look at how scammers use popular TV shows to lure victims. Are some shows more frequently used than others, for example, and which ones are most successful in delivering their payload?</p>
<p>&#8220;Our goal was to see which TV series were the most popular with the malware pushers and to take a closer look at what kind of threats are distributed that way,&#8221; Kaspersky <a href="https://securelist.com/game-of-threats/90116/">writes</a>.</p>
<p>The research provides a snapshot of how malware spreads through downloads of 31 popular TV shows. Kaspersky ran these titles against its in-house database of malware encounters, to see how often the TV-shows were linked to malware.</p>
<p>The results show that last year, 126,340 users were attacked by malicious payloads that could be linked to (fake) pirated copies of popular TV-shows. The total number of recorded attacks among all users was 451,636. That translates to little under 1,000 malware attacks per day.</p>
<p>The 2018 numbers are a significant decrease compared to the year before when 188,769 users were attacked.  According to Kaspersky, this drop is in line with a decrease in the overall prevalence of malware attacks in other areas. Torrent sites are losing traffic slowly as well, which may play a role too. </p>
<p>While the number of malware attacks linked to popular TV-shows is sizable, it&#8217;s worth keeping in mind that these originate from uploads by scammers. These uploads are usually swiftly removed from well-moderated torrent sites but can clearly survive longer on other indexes.</p>
<p>Looking at the individual show titles, Kaspersky found that Game of Thrones accounted for 17% of all user attacks in the sample. This is quite an achievement since there were no new episodes released in 2018. The number of total attacks and unique malware samples were also the highest for Game of Thrones. </p>
<p>&#8220;Of all the TV series analyzed, Game of Thrones had the greatest number of users attacked by malware of the same name – 20,934. It tried to infect users 129,819 times, and the total number of Game of Thrones-themed malware files in our threat collection is 9,986.</p>
<p>&#8220;This makes the show an unmatched leader in popularity not just among users but also among cybercriminals looking for the most effective way to distribute malware,&#8221; Kaspersky adds. </p>


<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="media/262b35b0.kasattackshows.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/kasattackshows.png" alt="" class="wp-image-170499"/><figcaption> <br>Top 10 TV shows used as a disguise for malware in 2018 (credit Kaspersky)</figcaption></figure>


<p>The list of top 10 most popular &#8216;malware&#8217; TV shows is completed by other popular titles such as The Walking Dead, Arrow, and Suits. These are familiar names in our yearly list of most pirated TV-shows, which makes sense, as scammers seek out the most sought after releases.</p>
<p>A more detailed look at the episodes within a season further shows that the premiere and season finale are the most likely to be infected. As such, they also target the most users. </p>
<p>&#8220;The common theme we were able to spot was that the first and last episodes were used as a disguise for malware each season. Also, the titles of the opening and closing episodes of each season were used the most actively to hide malware compared to other episodes,&#8221; Kaspersky writes.</p>
<p> </p>


<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="media/9cf9da28.kasinfect.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/kasinfect.png" alt="" class="wp-image-170500"/><figcaption>GoT: number of infected files and unique users attacked in seasons 1, 6 and 7  <br> (credit Kaspersky) </figcaption></figure>


<p>While Game of Thrones is the uncrowned king of torrent related malware, American Horror Story also deserves a mention. Of all the researched TV-shows, this show was the most effective, as it hit an average of three users per infected release.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Finally, Kaspersky reports that &#8220;Not-a-virus:Downloader&#8221; and &#8220;Not-a-virus:AdWare&#8221; are the most common threats which are shared TV show content. The most popular &#8216;dangerous&#8217; malware was the Trojan category.&nbsp;</p>
<p>With the final season of Game of Thrones coming up later this month, Kaspersky&#8217;s findings should serve as a &#8220;stark&#8221; warning to pirates.</p>
<p>The anti-virus vendor notes that using legitimate sites is the best option to avoid trouble.&nbsp;Other tips include checking the extension of a downloaded file, avoiding suspicious links that promise early releases, and checking the comments before downloading a torrent.</p>
<p>Kaspersky&#8217;s full report is <a href="https://securelist.com/game-of-threats/90116/">available here</a>.&nbsp;</p><p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: http://torrentfreak.com/?p=170518
title: Anti-Piracy Firm MUSO Argues Against DRM, In Favor of Takedowns
uri: Anti-Piracy-Firm-MUSO-Argues-Against-DRM-In-Favor-of-Takedowns
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/9qUNsWwRgN8/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/532b37a8.security-breach-lock.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/security-breach-lock.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-115796"/></figure></div>



<p>According to a December 2018 <a href="https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2018-12-18-global-games-market-value-rose-to-usd134-9bn-in-2018">report</a>, the video games industry was set to generate around $135 billion last year.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s undoubtedly a huge market, and a growing one too. The 2018 forecasts outperform 2017&#8217;s figures by almost 11%.</p>



<p>Of the three major sectors &#8211; mobile, PC, and console &#8211; the latter enjoyed the largest growth, with revenues increasing around 15% on the previous year. Perhaps coincidentally, perhaps not, the latter is the least affected by piracy, with most major consoles <em>relatively</em> secure against pirate players.</p>



<p>The same cannot be said about PC titles, however. This sector accounts for 25% of the global market, according to market analysts Newzoo, but still managed growth in 2018, increasing revenues by 3.2% to $33.4 billion. Nevertheless, PC games piracy is widespread, largely due to the relatively open nature of its native platform.</p>



<p>To combat this issue, games companies often deploy (to a greater or lesser extent) some kind of Digital Rights Management (DRM) solution. These software-based systems are designed to defeat attempts to &#8216;crack&#8217; gaming titles, but evidence shows that effectiveness can vary greatly.</p>



<p>One of the most formidable and notorious systems is Denuvo. Countless <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/?s=denuvo">articles</a> have been written about the DRM solution, with many arguing it harms the gaming experience and only has a negative effect on genuine buyers.</p>



<p>Many publishers, however, see it as the last line of defense against pirates determined to download free games whenever they can. The big question, of course, is whether it achieves that goal<g class="gr_ gr_550 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="550" data-gr-id="550">.</g></p>



<p>While Denuvo is undoubtedly fiendish and impossible for Joe Public to defeat, dedicated cracking teams see it as a mountain to be climbed and time and again they&#8217;ve shown that it can be scaled &#8211; <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/hitman-2s-denuvo-protection-cracked-three-days-before-launch-181112/">quickly too</a>. On the other hand, Denuvo claims that AAA games not using its technology <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/denuvo-cites-huge-losses-for-aaa-game-not-using-its-anti-piracy-tech-181108/">face huge losses</a>.</p>



<p>Interestingly, anti-piracy company MUSO published a <a href="https://www.muso.com/magazine/drm-the-cracks-are-starting-to-show/">piece</a> today that suggests that there may be a more consumer-friendly alternative to DRM.</p>



<p>Titled &#8220;DRM, The Cracks Are Starting to Show&#8221; and written by Adam Hitchen, Technical Services Executive at MUSO, the piece questions whether DRM is the right approach to PC game piracy, especially given both the apparent ease it&#8217;s now being cracked and the restrictions it places on genuine players &#8211; such as having to remain online for a game to play.</p>



<p>Highlighting the leak of what would&#8217;ve been a Denuvo-protected Devil May Cry 5 recently, which fell to pirates on the very first day of its release (while revealing a <a href="https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2019-devil-may-cry-5-pc-denuvo-protection-tested">performance advantage</a> without the protection), Hitchen asks: </p>



<p>&#8220;With this precedent set, combined with the frustration it induces in players, is DRM really worth it?</p>



<p>&#8220;Games studios and distributors need to protect their content online, and take a stand against piracy, but the chosen strategy should not undermine the core product or hijack the conversation around a release,&#8221; Hitchen adds.</p>



<p>&#8220;Gaming creates huge and passionate fan bases which need to be nurtured; fans should not be left feeling as though their gameplay is being hindered.&#8221;</p>



<p>Given that Denuvo is arguably the most successful DRM around today, the fact that it&#8217;s regularly being cracked close to &#8216;Day One&#8217; for major AAA gaming titles must be a concern for those who believe that DRM is the only way to protect their investment. MUSO, however, believes there is another way.</p>



<p>&#8220;With immediate availability of cracks to work-around DRM, and hackers choosing to proactively target releases using DRM, it’s time to change the conversation,&#8221; the company says.</p>



<p>&#8220;Content protection strategies should be non-invasive and data-driven. Rather than embedding mechanisms within the games themselves, studios can effectively remove illegal content as it appears by crawling for copies.</p>



<p>&#8220;Taking this approach keeps fans onboard, doesn’t impact gameplay and still ensures that piracy is stamped out – the things that really matter,&#8221;  <br>Hitchen concludes.</p>



<p>There&#8217;s no doubt that this is a highly controversial topic that has no simple solutions or indeed any perfect ones. One way or another it appears that PC content is going to be pirated. But MUSO&#8217;s piece definitely raises some good points.</p>



<p>If DRM, like Denuvo, is going to regularly fall very close to a game&#8217;s release date moving forward, it becomes somewhat useless. While some titles will remain protected, it currently seems like the cracking groups are the ones with the power<g class="gr_ gr_448 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep gr-progress" id="448" data-gr-id="448">.</g></p>



<p>They increasingly appear to be the arbiters of whether time gets put into cracking games &#8211; or not. This is not the balance of power games publishers relish when investing millions into their new creation.</p>



<p>However, will they be prepared to take MUSO&#8217;s advice by releasing DRM-free content into the market to keep paying customers happy, in the hope of rendering pirate copies inaccessible with takedowns?</p>



<p>MUSO clearly hopes so &#8211; but then it would because this is one of the company&#8217;s <a href="https://www.muso.com/products/overview/">areas of expertise</a>. The company is right that this problem for the gaming industry perhaps needs a fresh set of eyes but in the meantime, many <a href="https://www.gamespot.com/articles/google-stadia-first-impressions-hands-on-with-the-/1100-6465694/">eyes will be turning</a> to Google&#8217;s Stadia.</p>



<p>This cloud-based gaming system seems to have the potential &#8211; one day in the distant future &#8211; to deal with the piracy problem once and for all. Until then it&#8217;s takedowns or DRM or both &#8211; and pirates don&#8217;t like either of them.  </p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: http://torrentfreak.com/?p=170548
title: Aussie Music Industry in Court to Demand Stream-Ripping Site Blocks
uri: Aussie-Music-Industry-in-Court-to-Demand-Stream-Ripping-Site-Blocks
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/DPhnGeUtR1Y/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/e49204f7.deniedblocked.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/deniedblocked.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-143825"/></figure></div>



<p>With the rise of sites of YouTube, anyone can stream videos and songs directly to their browser. It&#8217;s convenient, quick, and should generate revenue for the site and copyright holders.</p>



<p>However, many people prefer to have content saved on their local machines, so millions turn to so-called &#8216;stream-ripping&#8217; sites.</p>



<p>In basic terms, these platforms allow users to download or &#8216;rip&#8217; content for offline use, something which negates the need to return to YouTube for repeat plays.</p>



<p>While this helps with bandwidth costs and might even be good for the environment, copyright holders &#8211; music labels in particular &#8211; tend to lose revenue as a result. Furthermore, users having a library of offline songs can reduce the need for services such as Spotify, for example.</p>



<p>This has led to the practice of stream-ripping being labeled not only as piracy, but one of the most serious forms of piracy facing the music industry today. As a result, platforms that offer stream-ripping services are now seen in the same light as torrent sites once were.</p>



<p>In an effort to prevent stream-ripping by Australian citizens, Music Rights Australia, backed by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA), Sony Music, Universal Music, and Warner Music, are requesting a block of several stream-ripping services.</p>



<p>The application first <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/new-aussie-blocking-applications-targets-79-pirate-sites-plus-4-stream-ripping-platforms-190110/">became public</a> in January and the parties were in Federal Court again today, arguing for ISP blocks against four sites &#8211; 2conv, Flv2mp3, FLV.to, Convert2mp3. All are based overseas, one of the requirements for blocking under Australian Copyright Law.</p>



<p>Convert2mp3 is Germany-based and was previously declared illegal and blocked in a <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/in-world-first-danish-court-rules-stream-ripping-site-illegal-180710/">first-of-its-kind case</a> in Denmark. The other three are all based in Russia and have recently been embroiled in <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/major-labels-sue-more-youtube-ripper-sites-180806/">legal action</a> with labels in the United States. Thus far, they have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/youtube-ripper-wins-dismissal-of-record-labels-us-piracy-lawsuit-190123/">emerged on top</a>, but not without controversy (<a href="https://torrentfreak.com/stream-ripper-verdict-gives-carte-blanche-to-internet-pirates-record-labels-say-190314/">1</a>,<a href="https://torrentfreak.com/hollywood-fears-that-stream-ripper-verdict-will-serve-as-roadmap-for-foreign-pirates-190322/">2</a>).</p>



<p>According to barrister Rob Clarke, licenses are not available from APRA for anyone in Australia to download music content for free from YouTube, neither have the owners of YouTube been granted licenses to facilitate that.</p>



<p><a href="https://www.computerworld.com.au/article/659624/music-industry-seeks-block-stream-ripping-services-part-piracy-fight/">ComputerWorld</a> reports that in Court, Clark read from 2conv&#8217;s description of its own service, declaring that the service &#8220;converts your videos to mp3 and other formats from YouTube in just a couple of clicks.&#8221;</p>



<p>&#8220;They&#8217;re not your videos!&#8221; he said.</p>



<p>While some people may indeed download videos they own from YouTube, the music groups contend that the vast majority of people are doing so in order to amass offline libraries of music. This is particularly assisted by desktop apps published by the Russian sites that allow people to process downloads from YouTube in batches, Clark added. </p>



<p>The barrister also noted that the terms of service on 2conv (and indeed Flv2mp3 and FLV.to) require users to have &#8220;necessary licenses&#8221; to download content but according to ComputerWorld, Clarke poured cold water on the statement.</p>



<p>&#8220;We say that that’s a meaningless warranty,” he said. &#8220;The owners of this website know very well that, given they’re telling people to copy URLs from the YouTube website, those people don’t have any licenses, permissions and so on to go about downloading those videos.&#8221;</p>



<p>Before recent amendments to the Copyright Act, &#8220;online locations&#8221; outside Australia with a strict “primary purpose of infringing” could be blocked by ISPs. That definition was <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/australian-parliament-passes-tough-new-anti-piracy-law-181128/">expanded</a> last November so that sites &#8220;with the primary effect&#8221; of infringing or facilitating infringement could also be blocked.</p>



<p>The labels clearly hope that the Federal Court will find in their favor in this stream-ripping application and there is no doubt that the chances of that will have been increased following the recent changes to the law.</p>



<p><em>The domains requested to be blocked by ISPs in the original application are as follows:</em></p>



<p><em>2conv.com<br>Flv2mp3.by<br>Flv2mp3.com<br>Flv2mp3.org<br>Convert2mp3.net<br>Flvto.biz<br>Flvto.com</em></p>



<p> </p>



<p><br><br></p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: http://torrentfreak.com/?p=170565
title: ‘YouTube’s Copyright Mess Is Stifling Music Education’
uri: YouTube-s-Copyright-Mess-Is-Stifling-Music-Education
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/pL94Nbza-nM/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-117196" src="media/34e023fb.sadyoutube.jpg" data-original-source="http://torrentfreak.com/images/sadyoutube.jpg" alt="" width="275" height="196">Millions of people use YouTube to share their creations with the world, as commentary, entertainment, education, or for any other purpose they see fit.</p>
<p>In most cases, these videos remain online without any issues. However, for some creators, YouTube&#8217;s copyright enforcement is causing a mess, one that severely affects their day-to-day activities.</p>
<p>We&#8217;ve repeatedly covered problems with YouTube’s Content-ID system dating as far back as <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/youtubes-content-id-piracy-filter-wreaks-havoc-110908/">seven years ago</a>. Most of these are the result of overbroad filters, where YouTube finds a copyright match where it shouldn’t.</p>
<p>However, the problems go much deeper than random &#8216;bot&#8217; mistakes. Outside the Content-ID system, YouTube&#8217;s regular takedown notices are causing trouble as well. They are being used by <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/youtube-strikes-now-being-used-as-scammers-extortion-tool/">scammers to extort people</a>, for example, and legitimate rightsholders make <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/youtubes-copyright-protection-system-is-a-total-mess-can-it-be-fixed-181222/">plenty of mistakes too</a>.</p>
<p>The stream of examples is endless and the frustration among creators is growing. This was highlighted once again this week by guitarist <a href="https://pauldavidsguitar.com/">Paul Davids</a>, who shares educational and informative videos to an audience of over a million subscribers.</p>
<p>As a guitarist, Davids likes to demonstrate his skills, explain the finer details of certain techniques, and help others in the process. In some cases, this means playing a riff or chords from popular tracks. This is how guitar teachers have operated for many decades.</p>
<p>While it&#8217;s totally understandable that not all copyright holders want people to cover their full songs, playing a short riff or some chords in an educational context seems harmless.&nbsp;</p>
<p>That&#8217;s what Davids assumed as well. Increasingly, however, his work is being claimed by major music distribution companies such as Universal Music Group.</p>
<p>In a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwG0bQ7WC3c">video highlighting the problem</a>, Davids provides several examples. Last month he had a new record with 15 new claims in an hour, apparently from &#8220;someone&#8221; who manually flagged his video.</p>
<p>The guitarist lists several examples of videos that were claimed after he played riffs as brief as two seconds. This includes a video about a riff from the track Neon by John Mayer, which is now demonetized, despite being a fairly obvious case of fair use.</p>
<p>&#8220;I never played one note from an original recording it&#8217;s just me talking about a little riff and not even the entire song. It&#8217;s just a five-second riff. I&#8217;m talking about researching it, dissecting it, explaining how it works, why it is difficult,&#8221; Davids notes.</p>
<p>&#8220;So we can&#8217;t analyze a song anymore on YouTube. Even if you look at the notes from the song your shit is getting claimed. Let alone try to play it for a little bit,&#8221; he adds.</p>
<p>
<style>.embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; }</style>
</p>
<div class="embed-container"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JwG0bQ7WC3c/watch?v=QILiHiTD3uc" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></div>
<p>Davids notes that all of his most popular videos, some with several million views, have now been &#8216;claimed.&#8217; The music companies targeting them are happily taking his money, but meanwhile, educating future generations on the art of playing guitar has become harder and harder.</p>
<p>&#8220;There goes an age-old tradition of learning guitar&nbsp;because when I&#8217;m trying to teach you a song, Universal Music Group deserves all the ***king credit and money for it. All of it,&#8221; Davids says.</p>
<p>In the video, Davids talks to fellow musician and teacher Adam Neely, who has experienced the stifling effect of YouTube copyright claims as well. Apparently, Universal Music Group <a href="https://twitter.com/adamneelybass/status/1111644331709030400">took offense</a> to his MIDI recording of Beyonce&#8217;s &#8220;Single Ladies.&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;I can&#8217;t show any aspect of the composition of Single Ladies. Basically what that means is, I can&#8217;t show any sheet music, I can&#8217;t do any sort of MIDI recreation of the song, because in their eyes that&#8217;s a cover of the song, which is absolutely ridiculous,&#8221; Neely says.</p>
<p>Like Davids, Neely was not playing a cover. He used a MIDI recreation of a part of the song, to explain what the interesting aspects are. The video is part of a larger Q&amp;A which is clearly labeled as &#8220;educational.&#8221;</p>
<p>Neely believes that artists should be compensated for real covers, but the examples referenced here are far from that.</p>
<p>&#8220;Somebody literally just clicked my video, saw that I was talking about Single Ladies, and said no, we own all of your money. That&#8217;s how easy it is, which is crazy,&#8221; Neely notes.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/9c2ae0d1.neely.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/neely.png" alt="" class="wp-image-170580"/><figcaption>Takedown?</figcaption></figure></div>


<p>Whatever the claimants&#8217; precise reasons, it is clear that a fair use defense is pretty reasonable here. The problem, however, is that YouTube generally doesn&#8217;t take that into account.</p>
<p>Yes, copyright claims can be appealed. And if channel owners appeal long enough their video is eventually restored. However, that process is not without risk.</p>
<p>First off, a takedown notice will result in a YouTube strike which, after three warnings, may cause the owner of a channel to lose his account. Similarly, if they keep appealing they risk being sued, which isn&#8217;t a very welcome outlook either.</p>
<p>In the video, Davids mentions that there is &#8220;nothing you can do&#8221; against these claims. While he realizes that there are options now, he tells TorrentFreak that he&#8217;s not interested in taking the matter to court.</p>
<p>&#8220;The last thing I want is to get wound up in a legal process that takes up all my time,&#8221; Davids says.</p>
<p>In other words, on paper YouTubers can ensure that their video is reinstated, but the risk is seen as too high, so they tend to avoid the process.</p>
<p>The alternative, which is what many YouTubers opt for, is to avoid triggering any copyright claims. This obviously has an impact on their creativity and how they educate the public, which doesn&#8217;t seem fair.</p>
<p>What&#8217;s also unfair is the fact that Davids received a claim on a video of a backing track he created himself years ago. Apparently, someone copied that from him and passed it on to someone else as an original recording.&nbsp; This led to a pretty bizarre confrontation, illustrated in detail in the video.</p>
<p>The question that remains is, how can this all be fixed? Davids suggests that YouTube could create a whitelist for channels with good standing, something we&#8217;ve also <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/youtubes-copyright-protection-system-is-a-total-mess-can-it-be-fixed-181222/">mentioned in the past</a>. At the very least, the company could take a good look at its policies and systems to see if clear abuse can be addressed and prevented.</p><p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: http://torrentfreak.com/?p=170607
title: German Court: If Parents Cover For Their Kid’s Piracy, They Become Liable
uri: German-Court-If-Parents-Cover-For-Their-Kid-s-Piracy-They-Become-L
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/jxohWGxcndc/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright is-resized"><img src="media/877a07ee.sadpirate.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/sadpirate.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-47490" width="189" height="221"/></figure></div>



<p>Hundreds of thousands of German citizens (and quite possibly more) have been hit with settlement notices over the past 15 years. </p>



<p>The country is one of the most risky places in the world to share files without the permission of copyright holders, as plenty of Internet users have found to their detriment.</p>



<p>One such case, dating back to 2011, saw Universal Music send a letter to a family whose Internet connection was used to share the Rihanna album &#8216;Loud&#8217;. However, the case wasn&#8217;t straightforward.</p>



<p>The parents, to whom the letter was addressed, stated that they had no interest whatsoever in the R&amp;B star. However, one of their three children did, and the parents actually knew which one had committed the infringement.</p>



<p>Relying on a local law that protects family members from having to testify against each other, the parents refused to hand over the identity of their infringing offspring. However, after the case was heard by the Munich Court of First Instance, they were themselves held liable and ordered to pay almost 3,900 euros.</p>



<p>The case then headed to the Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof – BGH) which resulted in another win for Universal.</p>



<p>The BGH <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/parents-must-identify-pirate-kids-or-pay-their-fines-court-rules-170331/">upheld</a> the decision of the Munich Court in 2017 and held the parents liable for infringement, reasoning if the parents knew who had committed the offense but refused to identify them, they should pay the fine themselves. But the show wasn&#8217;t over just yet.</p>



<p>The case then progressed to the Federal Constitutional Court (Bundesverfassungsgerichts &#8211; BVerfG ) which handed down its decision Wednesday<g class="gr_ gr_351 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="351" data-gr-id="351">.</g></p>



<p><g class="gr_ gr_351 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="351" data-gr-id="351">Siding</g> with the judgments of the lower courts, the BVerfG said that if the parents don&#8217;t want to identify which of their children committed the offense, then it is they who must be held liable and face the consequences.</p>



<p>&#8220;The fundamental right to respect for family life under <a href="media/466ae38b.80201000.pdf" data-original-source="https://www.btg-bestellservice.de/pdf/80201000.pdf">Article 6 (1)</a> of the Basic Law does not preclude a civil-procedural obligation on Internet access holders to disclose which family member used the connection if copyright infringement was committed via the connection,&#8221; the decision reads.</p>



<p>&#8220;On the basis of this ruling, the 2nd Chamber of the First Senate, with a decision released today, did not accept the constitutional complaint of a parent against a conviction for damages and reimbursement of charges, who knew which of their children had made copyrighted music available to the public, but in a civil case had not revealed that.</p>



<p>&#8220;Family protection is not intended to escape tactical considerations of personal liability for infringement of intellectual property rights,&#8221; the Court added. &#8220;The mere fact of living with other family members does not automatically lead to a disclaimer for the subscriber.&#8221;</p>



<p>While this sounds very much like a defeat for the parents in question, the ruling also clarifies points of law which may prove of importance to others who might find themselves in a similar position in the future.</p>



<p>Knowing who committed an infringement and refusing to hand over their information leads to liability, but not knowing who did so may produce a more favorable outcome, <a href="https://www.wbs-law.de/abmahnung-filesharing/bgh-zu-tauschboersen-eltern-muessen-ihre-kinder-verraten-72384/">says</a> Cologne-based lawyer Christian Solmecke.</p>



<p>&#8220;The Internet subscriber is not obliged to make any specific inquiries within the family. However, if he himself determines who the perpetrator is, then he must also name them &#8211; even if they come from his family environment,&#8221; Solmecke notes.</p>



<p>&#8220;The ruling leads to the conclusion that parents are now better off if they theoretically entertain the possibility that their children have committed the crime, but at the same time declare that they do not know the true culprit.</p>



<p>&#8220;If the parents know the culprit, they must betray him or they are liable themselves. If they do not know the culprit, the parents are released from liability,&#8221; the lawyer concludes.</p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: http://torrentfreak.com/?p=170429
title: Canadian ‘Pirate’ Set-Top Box Seller Must Pay CAD$5 million
uri: Canadian-Pirate-Set-Top-Box-Seller-Must-Pay-CAD-5-million
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/8V0E08wK_ZI/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-83641" src="media/af081baa.canada-pirate.png" data-original-source="http://torrentfreak.com/images/canada-pirate.png" alt="" width="225" height="113"></p>
<p>The increasing popularity of specialized &#8220;pirate boxes&#8221; has become one of the main anti-piracy priorities in recent years.</p>
<p>These devices often ship with the popular Kodi media player installed. While Kodi itself is a neutral platform, the devices can turn into a powerful pirate tool when they&#8217;re &#8220;fully-loaded&#8221; with third-party add-ons&nbsp;</p>
<p>During the spring of 2016, a group of prominent Canadian rightsholders decided to take action to stop the sale of these devices. Bell Canada, Rogers Communications, Videotron and others, took several retailers of such &#8220;fully-loaded&#8221; set-top boxes to court.</p>
<p>It didn&#8217;t take long before the Federal Court in Canada issued an interlocutory injunction against several companies, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/canada-federal-court-restrains-sale-of-pirate-boxes-160610/">prohibiting</a> them from selling &#8220;fully-loaded&#8221; boxes with pirate addons. A subsequent attempt by several vendors to have this ban lifted <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/pirate-kodi-box-sellers-fail-overturn-sales-ban-canada-170321/">failed</a>.</p>
<p>In its initial order, the court allowed the rightsholders to add similar vendors to the lawsuit, an opportunity they gladly seized. The list of defendants has since grown to more than 125, including ITVbox.net, MTLFreeTV, WaveTVBox, SOLO IPTV, and Infinity TV.&nbsp;</p>
<p>A few days ago, the Ontario-based company Infinity TV agreed to settle the case with the rightsholders. The company admits its wrongdoing in a consent judgment signed by Federal Court Judge Denis Gascon.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Infinity TV operated from <a href="https://www.infinitytv.ca/">infinitytv.ca</a>, which no longer lists any products. It previously sold a pre-loaded streaming box called the &#8220;ITV Unit&#8221; through which it offered access to &#8220;over 300,000+ MOVIES &#8211; 20,000+ TV SHOWS &#8211; LIVE SPORTS&#8221; for a one-time price.&nbsp;</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/263453a6.infinitytv.jpg" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/infinitytv.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-170458"/><figcaption>Infinity TV</figcaption></figure></div>


<p>According to the consent judgment, the vendor &#8220;induced and authorized users of Pre-loaded Set-top boxes to infringe the Plaintiffs’ right to reproduce the Plaintiffs Programs,&#8221; which is in violation of the Copyright Act.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The order also states that Infinity TV sold and distributed equipment that was used to receive &#8220;encrypted subscription programming&#8221; after it was decoded, which is contrary to Canada&#8217;s Radiocommunication Act.</p>
<p>What stands out the most in the mutually agreed judgment is a &#8216;settlement&#8217; fee of CAD$5 million, which Infinity TV must now pay to the copyright holders to cover various damages and costs.&nbsp;</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/744f0376.5million-1.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/5million-1.png" alt="" class="wp-image-170456"/><figcaption>CAD$5 million&#8230;</figcaption></figure></div>


<p>This is the first consent judgment in the case according to the <a href="https://thewirereport.ca/">Wire Report</a>, which picked up the story late last week. There may have been other monetary settlements in the past, but these are not public.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>
<p>In addition to the CAD$5 million Infinity TV now owes, the consent order also includes a permanent injunction. This prohibits the company from selling any infringing fully-loaded set-top boxes, infringing IPTV subscriptions, including its <span class="fontstyle0">“ITV Unit.”</span></p>
<p>Just a few months ago, Infinity TV&#8217;s website promised that something would be &#8220;coming soon,&#8221;&nbsp; but this message has since disappeared.</p>
<p>&#8212;</p>
<p><em>Copies of the consent <a href="media/387c5ddc.T-759-16_20190320_J_E_O_OTT_20190320110631_GSC.pdf" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/T-759-16_20190320_J_E_O_OTT_20190320110631_GSC.pdf">judgment (pdf)</a> and the amended Statement of Claim (<a href="media/949016de.T-759-16-amdended-statement-of-claim.pdf" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/T-759-16-amdended-statement-of-claim.pdf">pdf</a>) were obtained by TorrentFreak with help from attorney <a href="http://www.plaideurs.ca/en/the-firm/james-plotkin/">James Plotkin </a>and stagiaire Fabienne Lajoie.</em></p><p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: http://torrentfreak.com/?p=170355
title: Greek Pirate Site Blocks to Expand with RARBG, Torrentz2, and Others
uri: Greek-Pirate-Site-Blocks-to-Expand-with-RARBG-Torrentz2-and-Others
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/j79sxI6FZWA/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-124850" src="media/2759597c.blocked-censor.jpg" data-original-source="http://torrentfreak.com/images/blocked-censor.jpg" alt="" width="250" height="170"></p>
<p>ISP blocking has become a prime measure for the entertainment industry to target pirate sites on the Internet.</p>
<p>The practice has been around for over a decade and has gradually expanded to <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/nearly-4000-pirate-sites-are-blocked-by-isps-around-the-world-190210/">more than 30 countries</a> around the world.</p>
<p>Last year Greece stepped in. Following a request from EPOE, a local anti-piracy group which represents the interests of major Greek copyright holders, more than <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/greek-isps-ordered-to-block-38-domains-including-the-pirate-bay-181109/">three dozen sites were blocked</a>, including The Pirate Bay.</p>
<p>That was only the start, it appears, as Greek music rights organization <a href="http://grammo.gr/">Grammo</a> has now joined in as well. The group filed a blocking application with the Hellenic Copyright Organization (OPI), a special commission that falls under the Greek Ministry of Culture and Sports.</p>
<p>The targeted sites include the popular torrent sites RARBG.to, Torrentz2.eu, LimeTorrents, and TorrentDownloads. The list is further made up of various pirate linking sites, such as Ellinomania.eu, Warez‐bb.org, Newalbumreleases.net, Boerse.to, Greekddl.net, and Music‐bazaar.com.</p>
<p>Hellenic Copyright Organization reviewed the request and concluded that it meets all requirements.</p>
<p>Grammo, for example, said that it contacted the sites in question, but only received a response from Torrentz2. The torrent site did indeed remove the links, as requested, however, new links pointing to similar content appeared soon after.</p>
<p>According to the Government-affiliated commission, the music group has made it clear that the targeted sites are involved in copyright infringement. This means that ISPs will soon be asked to expand their blocklists with the new domain names.</p>
<p>Before the blockades go live, the respective site owners were informed about the decision. There were given the opportunity to obtain proper licenses within ten days, or alternatively, appeal the decision.</p>
<p>&#8220;You may voluntarily comply with the applicant’s request or obtain from the applicant a relevant license within ten (10) working days from the date of receipt of the notification,&#8221; Hellenic Copyright Organization writes.</p>
<p>&#8220;Alternatively, you may raise your objections to the Committee within five (5) working days from the date of receipt of the notification, sending, at the same time, all the evidence showing, in particular, that there is no infringement,&#8221; the letter adds.</p>
<p>The Greek system is different from that of many other countries because it doesn&#8217;t involve a court.  It&#8217;s an administrative procedure which allows copyright holders to swiftly request pirate site blockades, without the need for lengthy and costly legal proceedings.</p>
<p>Whether the current blockades will help to deter piracy in a meaningful way has yet to be seen. As usual, there are several options to bypass ISP blockades, and the targeted sites themselves often offer alternative domains.</p>
<p>Following the previous blocking request, several popular Greece pirate sites, including Xrysoi, Gamatotv, Tenies-Online, Oipeirates, and Tainio-mania, swiftly moved to new domain names. These remain available today and are among the most-visited sites in the country.</p>
<p><em>&#8212;</em></p>
<p><em>A copy of the blocking notification sent to the respective site operators is available <a href="media/eb3e47a3.Notification-art.-66E-Law-2121-1993-1.pdf" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/Notification-art.-66E-Law-2121-1993-1.pdf">here (pdf)</a>.</em></p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: http://torrentfreak.com/?p=170480
title: Freeloading Kodi Add-On Users Are Undermining RapidVideo
uri: Freeloading-Kodi-Add-On-Users-Are-Undermining-RapidVideo
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/VM4lWf5V-dQ/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/8f66467b.rapidvideo.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/rapidvideo.png" alt="" class="wp-image-162983"/></figure></div>



<p>According to <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/mpaa-almost-70-of-38-million-kodi-users-are-pirates-171104/">statistics</a> provided by the MPAA late 2017, around 70% of 38 million Kodi users were using the platform to pirate content.</p>



<p>Newer figures haven&#8217;t yet been provided but at the time, around 26 million were said to be using the platform with &#8216;pirate&#8217; add-ons installed. Many of these will be accessing movies and TV shows, without permission.</p>



<p>For Kodi add-on users to access content, it has to be stored somewhere online. That is usually one of the dozens of online storage providers available today, which are often called cyberlockers or simply file-hosting sites.</p>



<p>While the appearance of links to content in Kodi add-ons seems to suggest a level of cooperation between the platforms, file-hosting platforms are generally unhappy with their links appearing in this manner.</p>



<p>As <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/streaming-cyberlockers-hate-pirate-kodi-add-ons-161126/">reported</a> back in 2016, cyberlockers often generate revenue via advertising. However, many third-party Kodi add-ons prevent these from appearing in front of the viewer, which means that the hosting sites themselves aren&#8217;t able to generate revenue from them.</p>



<p>One of the affected sites is <a href="https://www.rapidvideo.com/">RapidVideo</a>, a popular file-hosting site that officially markets itself as a &#8220;CDN Video Hosting Service&#8221;. The platform has been suffering the effects of &#8216;freeloading&#8217; Kodi add-on users and other related market challenges for some time. Now the problem appears to have come to a head.</p>



<p>In a posting to webmaster forum <a href="https://www.wjunction.com">WJunction</a>, RapidVideo revealed that it will be changing its business model.</p>



<p>&#8220;We can&#8217;t finance ourselves from internet ads any longer,&#8221; the company wrote.</p>



<p>Over the past three years, RapidVideo says it has suffered from abuse of its service, much of it at the hands of Kodi add-ons and similar tools that are able to bypass the displaying of ads. In fact, these appear to be sucking up around half of the company&#8217;s bandwidth.</p>



<p>&#8220;We have around 650 Gbit/s of bandwidth in use, while 320 Gbit/s is for KODI, download tools, etc and for that we don&#8217;t get paid by the ads,&#8221; the site said.</p>



<p>Other problems exist too, including advertising scams and the unauthorized hotlinking of files, but RapidVideo feels it can bring things under control by taking several measures, including implementing a $5 per month subscription.</p>



<p>&#8220;With <g class="gr_ gr_44 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="44" data-gr-id="44">help</g> of Premium accounts, it will <g class="gr_ gr_13 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="13" data-gr-id="13">efficiently</g> stop all these scams and we can run ad-free like uploaded.net, uptobox.com <g class="gr_ gr_11 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="11" data-gr-id="11">and</g> others,&#8221; the company added.</p>



<p>The company says it is <a href="https://www.wjunction.com/threads/rapidvideo-com-1080p-hd-multiquality-fast-encodings-40-10k-rewards-subtitles.213943/page-195#post-2321476">also</a> bringing its pay-per-view rewards program to an end, meaning that people hoping to earn commissions when people view their uploaded content will no longer get paid. While users of the service won&#8217;t be delighted by the news, it does address a complaint raised by Hollywood last year.</p>



<p>In 2018, the MPAA, together with several other trade groups, submitted its annual list of ‘<a href="https://torrentfreak.com/mpaa-reports-notorious-piracy-threats-to-the-us-government-181003/">notorious markets</a>’ to the US Trade Representative (USTR). Among them was RapidVideo, which among other things was called out over its affiliate program.</p>



<p>&#8220;The site incentivizes users to upload content with an affiliate program. The site pays from $7.50 to $60 USD per 10,000 views depending on the country in which the viewer is located,&#8221; the MPAA wrote.</p>



<p>The MPAA had other criticisms too but RapidVideo later <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/rapidvideo-responds-to-mpaas-piracy-claims-were-totally-legal-181019/">fought back</a>, claiming that it processes takedown requests, has a designated DMCA agent, a repeat infringer policy, and even has a filter system to ensure that removed files are not re-uploaded.</p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: http://torrentfreak.com/?p=170597
title: Wrongfully Accused ‘Pirate’ Wants Copyright Holder to Pay Her Bills
uri: Wrongfully-Accused-Pirate-Wants-Copyright-Holder-to-Pay-Her-Bill
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/rSqUruhEUMg/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-108977" src="media/17a592c8.trollsign.jpg" data-original-source="http://torrentfreak.com/images/trollsign.jpg" alt="" width="250" height="167">Every year, thousands of people are sued in the United States for allegedly sharing pirated video, mostly through BitTorrent.</p>
<p>These efforts, often characterized as “copyright trolling,” share a familiar pattern. After the film companies acquire a subpoena to obtain the personal details of an alleged pirate, they contact this person with a settlement request.</p>
<p>The cases are not intended to go to trial, however. Instead, the copyright holders often drop their complaint like a hot potato when the accused person lawyers up to fight back.</p>
<p>To an outsider, this may sound positive. If the complaint is dropped the legal threat is gone. However, hiring a lawyer is not cheap and without a case, the accused Internet subscriber has to pay the bills out of his or her own pocket.</p>
<p>This scenario has played out many times in the past but a woman from Illinois now has a chance to make the rightsholder pay her bills.</p>
<p>The case in question was filed by Malibu Media, a company best known for its &#8216;X-Art&#8217; adult films. Malibu accused Najia Khan of pirating eight of these films using her IP-address as evidence. However, the woman fiercely denied the allegations.</p>
<p>With help from <a href="https://russellfirmip.com/">attorney Erin Russell</a>, Khan fought back. She denied the claims and submitted two counterclaims. First, she accused Malibu Media of &#8216;abuse of process&#8217; for suing her without proper evidence. In addition, Khan also requested a Declaratory Judgment of non-infringement.</p>
<p>In the past, such requests haven&#8217;t been very successful, but in Khan&#8217;s case, the trend was bucked.</p>
<p>In an order issued last week, US District Court Judge Harry Leinenweber dismissed the counterclaim for abuse of process. However, he ruled that the counterclaim for a Declaratory Judgment can proceed.</p>
<p>The Judge sided with the defense and ruled that the accused woman can pursue a final judgment. This gives Khan a chance to argue her case, clear her name, and ask for an award of costs and fees.</p>
<p>&#8220;There is tremendous pressure for a defendant to settle, even if the case is meritless. Khan’s counterclaim will offer protection should she choose to challenge Malibu Media’s case on the merits instead of submitting to settlement. As she points out, it also affords an opportunity for her to clear her name,&#8221; the Judge wrote.</p>
<p>TorrentFreak spoke to Khan&#8217;s attorney Erin Russell who sees this as a big win. If the entire case was simply dismissed, which is what usually happens, her client could only request sanctions, which would be much harder to do.</p>
<p>&#8220;Every time I file counterclaims I end up arguing to the judge that this is Malibu&#8217;s way of having its cake and eating it, too,&#8221; Russell says.</p>
<p>&#8220;They want to drag these defendants in on an IP address, then root around, force the person to defend themselves, and then when it starts to look like the defendant is innocent, they want to run off and not pay the defendant their fees.&#8221;</p>
<p>While most judges have dismissed such counterclaims, Judge Leinenweber deviated from this common pattern by allowing Khan to prove her innocence. Although she still has to succeed at that, her attorney is confident that she will. If that&#8217;s the case, Malibu will have to pay her legal bills.</p>
<p>This is obviously bad news for Malibu, and it certainly isn&#8217;t the only recent setback for the adult entertainment company.</p>
<p>Over at the US District Court of New York, a similar piracy case was <a href="media/efff7a0b.gov.uscourts.nysd.505301.30.0.pdf" data-original-source="https://www.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.505301/gov.uscourts.nysd.505301.30.0.pdf">thrown out</a> before it got properly underway because Malibu filed the original complaint before the copyright registrations of the videos were approved. This is not allowed, as the US Supreme Court recently clarified.</p>
<p>Making matters worse, the court &#8216;<a href="https://twitter.com/Raul15340965/status/1113581704126529542">slapped</a>&#8216; Malibu&#8217;s attorney on the wrist for confusing the court by listing the application dates as registration dates. This is &#8220;troubling,&#8221; Judge Jesse Furman noted, adding that it&#8217;s hard to avoid the conclusion that Malibu&#8217;s use of the term was &#8220;deliberately misleading.&#8221;</p>
<p>In Khan&#8217;s case, all efforts will now go into proving that she is indeed innocent. This will obviously increase the legal bills, but if Malibu has to pick those up eventually, that&#8217;s not her problem.</p>
<p><em>&#8212;</em><br>
<em>A copy of US District Court Judge Harry Leinenweber&#8217;s order on Najia Khan’s counterclaims is <a href="media/0cbaa1e9.gov.uscourts.ilnd.351916.28.0.pdf" data-original-source="https://www.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.ilnd.351916/gov.uscourts.ilnd.351916.28.0.pdf">available here (pdf)</a>.</em></p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=170703
title: Senators Aim to Help Students, Might Even Reduce Textbook Piracy Too
uri: Senators-Aim-to-Help-Students-Might-Even-Reduce-Textbook-Piracy-Too
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/bgPyZB_7E9o/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/45292d50.books1.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/books1.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-38808"/></figure></div>



<p>Free access to information is a very hot topic, particularly in the academic field where many believe that putting studies behind a paywall is unethical.</p>



<p>This has led to the rise of &#8216;pirate&#8217; sites like Sci-Hub, that <g class="gr_ gr_11 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="11" data-gr-id="11">aim</g> to provide free access to information and education, for the betterment of the world.</p>



<p>But, when one considers how these sites operate, even this noble aim can prove controversial.</p>



<p>Much of the content offered by these types of platforms infringes copyright. That&#8217;s often publishing giants such as Elsevier, who in return have waged war on Sci-Hub in particular. Just this week, yet another blocking order against the site was <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/court-orders-french-isps-to-block-sci-hub-and-libgen-190331/">handed down</a> in France, with operator Alexandra Elbakyan pledging to continue as usual.</p>



<p>But what if there was another way to access academic content, studies, and textbooks without having to resort to piracy?</p>



<p>In 2018, several prestigious European research councils <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/the-sci-hub-effect-prominent-research-councils-push-open-access-180909/">announced</a> a major push for Open Access publishing, with a plan to limit the power of major copyright holders and &#8216;tear down academia&#8217;s paywalls.&#8217;</p>



<p>And, just this week, there was more news for academics and students to become cautiously excited about &#8211; the reintroduction of the <em>Affordable College Textbook Act.</em></p>



<p>On Thursday, U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Angus King (I-ME), Tina Smith (D-MN), and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), along with U.S. Representative Joe Neguse (D-CO-02), introduced bicameral legislation with the aim of making high-quality textbooks available to students, professors, and the public, for free.</p>



<p>“One of the most basic higher education costs to students is often overlooked: textbooks,” Durbin said, citing figures from The College Board estimating costs of $1,240 per student, per year.</p>



<p>&#8220;In Illinois, we know federal support for open textbooks can be successful. Expanding this program to more states will mean lower costs for students to incur. This bill will help prevent the high cost of textbooks from putting students’ academic success at risk.&#8221;</p>



<p>Senator Smith said that when meeting with college students, they often talk about the cost of textbooks and how difficult it is to afford them.</p>



<p>&#8220;Sometimes textbooks are so expensive that students take the chance and don’t purchase them at all, and try to make it work without the needed material,” she said. According to <a href="https://uspirg.org/">U.S. PRIG</a>, 65% of students choose to go without <g class="gr_ gr_16 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="16" data-gr-id="16">textb</g>ooks.<br></p>



<p>Of course, others resort to piracy too. Over the years we&#8217;ve reported on several initiatives to provide free or cheap textbooks to students, but many have either <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/student-attacks-publishing-cartels-to-make-textbooks-open-source-130923/">faded away</a> or ended in <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/court-hands-internet-textbook-pirates-suspended-sentences-170624/">criminal convictions</a> for their operators. </p>



<p>There are even <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/anti-piracy-patent-prevents-students-from-sharing-books-120610/">patents out there</a> that attempt to prevent students from sharing their own books with others. Clearly, open alternatives are preferable to all of the above.</p>



<p>As per information released Thursday, the <em><a href="https://www.durbin.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/durbin-king-smith-sinema-neguse-introduce-bicameral-legislation-to-help-make-college-textbooks-more-affordable">Affordable College Textbook Act</a>, </em> among other things, has these ambitions, should it eventually pass: </p>



<ul><li><em>Authorizes a grant program, similar to the </em><a href="https://sparcopen.org/our-work/open-textbooks-fy18/"><em>Open Textbooks Pilot</em></a><em>, to support projects at colleges and universities to create and expand the use of open textbooks with priority for projects that will achieve the highest savings for students;</em></li><li><em>Ensures that any open textbooks or educational materials created using grant funds will be freely and easily accessible to the public, including individuals with disabilities;</em></li><li><em>Strengthens existing price transparency so students can easily identify classes that use open textbooks when they register; </em></li></ul>



<p>While the passing of the Act certainly won&#8217;t end piracy overnight, giving students options that don&#8217;t involve compromising their already limited finances or forcing them towards popular search engines such as Library Genesis has to be considered a step forward. </p>



<p><em>More information <a href="https://sparcopen.org/our-work/affordable-college-textbook-act/">here</a></em> <em>and <a href="https://uspirg.org/news/usp/affordable-college-textbook-act-could-save-students-millions-pricey-books">her</a></em><a href="https://uspirg.org/news/usp/affordable-college-textbook-act-could-save-students-millions-pricey-books">e</a></p>



<p> </p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: http://torrentfreak.com/?p=170629
title: ‘Pirate Sites and Copyright Holders Can Both Profit From Advertising’
uri: Pirate-Sites-and-Copyright-Holders-Can-Both-Profit-From-Advertising
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/Km8PJpia9y8/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-170290" src="media/1aa98c1b.dollars.jpg" data-original-source="http://torrentfreak.com/images/dollars.jpg" alt="" width="280" height="206">A few weeks ago, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/anti-piracy-company-offers-advertising-deal-to-pirate-sites/">we reported</a> that anti-piracy company DMCAForce offered a rather unique partnership to torrent and streaming sites.</p>
<p>Where many companies in the advertising industry do their best to avoid sites that are linked to piracy, the San Diego-based company takes the opposite approach.</p>
<p>In an email, the company promised the sites a revenue-sharing opportunity. Instead of removing a link or file, they can remain up, if the site owner agrees to share part of its advertising space.</p>
<p>“DMCAForce recently launched a new way for File Sharing sites to work with content creators. Where you as the file sharing site can distribute their content for free, but in exchange provide the advertising space around the product,” the email read.</p>
<p>It&#8217;s a rather intriguing proposal which we were eager to hear more about. <a href="https://dmcaforce.com/">DMCAForce</a> had clearly seen our article, as the company used it in its communication to prospective clients, which prompted us to reach out.</p>
<p>We spoke to Mark Bauman, the CEO of DMCAForce. He explained that the company sought a solution to keep both copyright holders and website operators happy.</p>
<p>&#8220;We chose this approach as corporations, large to small, constantly pay DMCAForce and our other companies like DigiRegs, for services to remove content all day every day,&#8221; Bauman said.</p>
<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s a loss on the content creators books to pay us, but a necessary job that needs to be done. To further that, it&#8217;s a loss on the books of the place it&#8217;s taken from, as it is technically ad space for users who are looking for their product.&#8221;</p>
<p>When copyright holders have to pay to remove content and site owners lose appealing content and advertising space, nobody wins.</p>
<p>This provided an opportunity for Bauman, who also has a strong footprint in the advertising business. Combining classic anti-piracy tools with advertising expertise, was a logical next step.</p>
<p>&#8220;Since I&#8217;m also the owner of an Ad Platform; <a href="https://www.traffichaus.com/">TrafficHaus</a>, which provides advertising and revenue to sites, including torrent sites, I decided it&#8217;s time to bridge that gap,&#8221; Bauman told us.</p>
<p>So, instead of removing content through takedown notices, the company now offers to show ads around it, with the websites and rightsholders sharing the revenue.</p>
<p>It&#8217;s a noteworthy move in a time where more and more advertisers are taking measures to avoid sites with a pirate stigma. The advertising and entertainment industry has been rather <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/project-brand-integrity-aims-to-purge-ads-from-pirate-sites-190212/">active on this front</a>, with help from the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit and Europol, among others.</p>
<p>Bauman says that his advertising company prefers not to ban or block any sites. It doesn&#8217;t want to reward piracy either but sees cooperation between site operators and copyright holders as a win-win.</p>
<p>&#8220;We don&#8217;t want to reward torrent sites for stealing, and we don&#8217;t want to deter their sites from operating,&#8221; Bauman said.</p>
<p>This works well, Bauman said. With the adult-oriented site Spankbang.com they were able to bring in $15,000 a month, which is nothing to sneeze at. And with that kind of extra income, copyright holders are happy too.</p>
<p>&#8220;Rightsholders liked it, they got a fair rate because we were able to drive solid revenues for their content that they invested in and worked so hard to create,&#8221; Bauman said.</p>
<p>With the revenue share model, copyright holders retain full control. If they don&#8217;t believe that they are generating enough revenue, they can still remove the content. Also, they can choose to exclude certain works, such as new releases.</p>
<p>This filtering can even be done automatically, through a fingerprinting API, which recognizes infringing content. This can then be removed, replaced, or monetized with ads. This technology can also come in handy when Article 13 (now 17) is implemented, Bauman adds.</p>
<p>The initial tests were conducted with adult-themed content, but DMCAForce is expanding its reach. While Bauman prefers not to name any clients, some music industry companies have shown an interest in the model.</p>
<p>The ultimate goal is to make sure that the system works for everyone involved.</p>
<p>Bauman believes that cooperation is key as pirates will always find a way to upload and share content somewhere. That&#8217;s not going to change anytime soon. So instead of fighting it, bringing both sides together may prove to be more fruitful.</p>
<div>&#8220;Users are going to steal and share and need somewhere to upload content. They&#8217;re just going to do it and there&#8217;s no way to stop it. So our stance is to protect content, but leverage it as well,&#8221; he said.</div>
<div></div>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=170673
title: GTA V’s Take-Two Settles Lawsuit with Popular Cheat Maker
uri: GTA-V-s-Take-Two-Settles-Lawsuit-with-Popular-Cheat-Maker
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/-ZVChBzyiQM/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-104438" src="media/5bd45f7c.gtav-cov.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/gtav-cov.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="210">Take-Two Interactive Software, the company behind ‘Grand Theft Auto V’ (GTA V), is working hard to eliminate cheaters.</p>
<p>The company has filed several lawsuits in the US and abroad, accusing alleged cheat makers and sellers of copyright infringement.</p>
<p>One case, filed at a New York court a little over a year ago, targeted Georgia resident David Zipperer, who was accused of working on and distributing the ‘Menyoo’ and ‘Absolute’ cheats.</p>
<p>Zipperer didn’t deny his involvement and said that he had already stopped working on the cheats. With help from a pro-bono attorney, he discussed a possible settlement. However, the game company wanted “tens of thousands” of dollars, which the defendant said he couldn&#8217;t afford.</p>
<p>“My client has no money. He swore to this Court that the money he earned from selling ‘cheat menus’ was used to support his family, that the money is gone, and that he has none left,&#8221; Zipperer&#8217;s attorney informed the court last summer.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Take-Two didn&#8217;t believe the cheat maker and swiftly submitted a scathing reply, painting a different picture. According to the game company, Zipperer repeatedly misled the Court regarding his financial situation.</p>
<p>Through a subpoena, they found out that the cheat maker earned at least&nbsp; $100,000, possibly much more. Some of these profits were spent on expensive electronic equipment and other personal purchases.</p>
<p>“Mr. Zipperer clearly has significantly more resources than he has repeatedly represented to this Court. We believe that these PayPal records reflect only a small fraction of the proceeds Mr. Zipperer has received from his illegal businesses,” the company wrote.</p>
<p>After the New York court issued a preliminary injunction Take-Two wanted to see a healthy settlement. It&#8217;s unclear whether it got what it wanted, but this week both parties agreed to a settlement, which is part of a consent judgment signed by the New York federal court.</p>
<p>The settlement remains &#8220;confidential&#8221; and involves <span class="fontstyle0">an &#8220;undisclosed amount<br>of money&#8221;, according to the legal paperwork.&nbsp;</span></p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/981aae2b.zippersettle.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/zippersettle.png" alt="" class="wp-image-170676"/><figcaption>From the consent judgment</figcaption></figure></div>


<p><span class="fontstyle0">It is clear, however, that Zipperer agreed that his work on the Menyoo and Absolute cheats constituted copyright infringement. He admittedly profited from these infringements, which caused Take-Two significant losses.</span></p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">&#8220;Mr. Zipperer&#8217;s violations of the Copyright Act and New York law have<br>caused, and continue to cause, Take-Two great and irreparable injury that cannot be fully compensated or measured in money,&#8221; the consent judgment reads.</span></p>
<p>The court order also includes a permanent injunction which prevents the cheat maker from engaging in any activities that infringe on the copyrights of Take-Two games, including GTA V. Creating or selling cheats for these games is also strictly prohibited.&nbsp;</p>
<p>This settlement is the latest in a series of similar outcomes. Several of Take-Two&#8217;s other lawsuits also resulted in confidential settlements.</p>
<p><em>&#8212;</em></p>
<p><em>A copy of the consent judgment signed by US District Court Judge Louis Stanton is <a href="media/4745b3a4.zippererconsent.pdf" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/zippererconsent.pdf">available here (pdf)</a>.</em></p><p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: http://torrentfreak.com/?p=170567
title: Reddit’s /r/Piracy is Deleting Almost 10 Years of History to Avoid Ban
uri: Reddit-s-r-Piracy-is-Deleting-Almost-10-Years-of-History-to-Avoid-B
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/gLQIMsCPZ2Y/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/981b03c0.redditp.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/redditp.png" alt="" class="wp-image-125451" srcset="https://torrentfreak.com/images/redditp.png 250w, https://torrentfreak.com/images/redditp-200x150.png 200w" sizes="(max-width: 250px) 100vw, 250px"></figure></div>



<p>With around a quarter of a billion monthly users, Reddit is one of the most important sites on the Internet.</p>



<p>The site plays host to millions of live discussions on countless topics ranging from the mundane to obviously controversial.</p>



<p>Recently we&#8217;ve reported on the troubles being faced by /r/piracy, Reddit&#8217;s most popular sub-Reddit focused on piracy discussion.</p>



<p>In an article published mid-March 2019, we reported how the moderators of the forum were <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/reddits-r-piracy-mods-get-tough-on-reckless-pirates-190317/">making best efforts</a> to keep content on the right side of the law and within Reddit&#8217;s rules. Just a handful of days later, however, the moderators received notice from Reddit that they were receiving <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/reddit-admins-issue-formal-warning-to-r-piracy-totally-out-of-the-blue-190318/">too many copyright complaints</a> from rightsholders.</p>



<p>For a sub-Reddit that has strict rules forbidding anyone posting links to infringing content, the notification came as a disappointment. While some complaints were legitimate (some people simply won&#8217;t abide by the rules and some posts do get missed), many were not. This placed the forum&#8217;s moderators between a rock and a hard place.</p>



<p>According to some of the copyright notices filed with Reddit, simply posting an alleged pirate site homepage URL warranted a complaint, even when that URL didn&#8217;t link to any infringing content. We&#8217;ve seen the same kind of issues <g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-del replaceWithoutSep" id="5" data-gr-id="5">before,</g> when copyright holders have made attempts to have<a href="https://torrentfreak.com/google-categorically-refuses-to-remove-the-pirate-bays-homepage-180729/"> site homepages delisted from Google</a>, despite their content never appearing there.</p>



<p>Further complicating the process is that the moderators of /r/piracy have no ability to respond to potentially false allegations. If a user makes a post that results in a copyright notice, only that user (or Reddit&#8217;s admins) are in a position to dispute the claim with the notice <g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-del replaceWithoutSep" id="5" data-gr-id="5">sender,</g> so that rarely happens. Even if it does, nothing is made public.</p>



<p>Meanwhile, the notices keep building up, despite best efforts and whether they&#8217;re valid or not. Even people simply posting names of releases are being flagged for copyright infringement, something that isn&#8217;t illegal in any form. As a result, those posts too are now being removed, as quickly as the mods can reach them.</p>



<p>&#8220;I have begun unofficially removing release posts and it&#8217;s quite sad considering that a rather large bulk of our users look forward to them every day, I know I did,&#8221; moderator &#8216;<g class="gr_ gr_76 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="76" data-gr-id="76">dysgraphical</g>&#8216; informs TF.</p>



<p>&#8220;We have had days when releases were the highlight of the day filled with hundreds of comments of excited <g class="gr_ gr_10 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style multiReplace" id="10" data-gr-id="10">people  discussing</g> the film. This has all been scrubbed now. We recently had an April  Fool&#8217;s &#8216;Avengers: Endgame&#8217; release post hit r/all and while the community was happy to <g class="gr_ gr_61 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins doubleReplace replaceWithoutSep" id="61" data-gr-id="61">meme</g> on being fooled, a few users were concerned that copyright holders might act on it and have it removed.&#8221; </p>



<p>It&#8217;s nothing less than self-censorship in response to sloppy and/or fraudulent claims, but these are testing times.</p>



<p>But the really big issue here relates to the huge archive of posts already present on /r/piracy &#8211; some ten years&#8217; worth of discussions. Is there anything in there that could warrant a <g class="gr_ gr_7 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="7" data-gr-id="7">surprise</g> complaint? Apparently so, since rightsholders have been digging up issues from the past and complaining to Reddit.</p>



<p>This left the moderators of /r/piracy with a huge dilemma. Uncertain of what lay in the archives and only being in a strong position to be absolutely certain of the state of play more recently, they asked the community for input on the &#8216;<a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Piracy/comments/b43khw/the_nuclear_option/">Nuclear Option</a>&#8216; &#8211; deleting every post older than six months old, just to be sure.</p>



<p>After the votes were counted, those in favor of deleting the archives outnumbered those asking for preservation by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Piracy/comments/b4pkwp/scrubbin_the_deck/">ten to one</a>. All that was left was to find a way to begin deleting history, around 9.5 years of posts. A <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Piracy/comments/b4pkwp/scrubbin_the_deck/ej9itqw/">script was created</a> and put into motion and the purge began.</p>



<p>&#8220;Given the speed, this might take weeks,&#8221; <g class="gr_ gr_8 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="8" data-gr-id="8">sa</g>ys moderator &#8216;dbzer0&#8217;, a nine-year veteran of the sub-Reddit.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s unclear when this sweeping process with be fully completed, but it&#8217;s hoped that it can keep the community alive. Not all of the moderators were in favor of the mass deletion since that, of course, deletes the community&#8217;s history too.</p>



<p>&#8220;<em>The </em>S<em>crubbing </em>[as the deletion process is now called] is just a <g class="gr_ gr_166 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="166" data-gr-id="166">poorly</g>, rushed attempt to elongate the community&#8217;s lifespan on Reddit,&#8221; <g class="gr_ gr_198 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="198" data-gr-id="198">dysgraphical</g> says.</p>



<p>&#8220;We have already seen this performed in other subreddits in which mod teams have bent over backwards to please the administration by implementing their own set of stringent rules. These communities no longer exist.&#8221; </p>



<p>But the vote was cast and the final decision appears to have been a democratic one rooted in self-preservation. It does raise interesting points, however<g class="gr_ gr_13 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="13" data-gr-id="13">.</g></p>



<p><g class="gr_ gr_13 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="13" data-gr-id="13">The</g> recently highlighted situation shows that sub-Reddits devoted to controversial topics &#8211; especially those related to piracy &#8211; are at risk of being targeted. When they are, the copyright notice and counter-notice process is somewhat undermined.</p>



<p>While users can be banned for repeat infringements, it&#8217;s trivial to open a new account. And when the notices start to pile up on Reddit &#8211; legitimately or not &#8211; whole communities can be banned, despite working above and beyond the requirements of the law<g class="gr_ gr_114 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="114" data-gr-id="114">.</g></p>



<p>&#8220;The issue at hand is not that r/Piracy distributes copyrighted content,  but rather that the discussion of digital piracy is no longer protected;  it never was,&#8221; <g class="gr_ gr_9 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="9" data-gr-id="9">dysgraphical</g> adds.</p>



<p>&#8220;As copyright holders continue pushing the envelope, by claiming that  the mention of streaming sites infringe their IP, Reddit will continue complying and effectively ban r/Piracy. Copyright holders on Reddit no longer need to dig deep to find infringing content, they can pick any thread or comment at random that loosely relates to their IP, and file a DMCA takedown notice.&#8221; </p>



<p>To give a school analogy, it appears that if a few kids misbehave, get misinterpreted, or targeted incompetently, the whole class gets kept behind after school &#8211; before being permanently expelled. It&#8217;s effectively mass punishment based on the acts of a few &#8211; or the whims of bots.</p>



<p>Finally, subscriptions to /r/piracy have always been on the increase and are now edging towards 370,000 subscribers but the ongoing purge is having a clear effect on traffic to the sub-Reddit, when the two unusual peaks (including the April 1 surge) are discounted.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="media/f644a129.reddit-traffic1.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/reddit-traffic1.png" alt="" class="wp-image-170753"/><figcaption>Reddit&#8217;s /r/piracy traffic stats</figcaption></figure>



<p>Whether the popular forum can fight back from this decline will remain to be seen but it&#8217;s clear that deleting most of its history is already causing pain. The big question is whether Reddit&#8217;s admins are taking note of this huge olive branch or whether they&#8217;ll still choose to chop down the whole tree regardless.</p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=170740
title: Pirated Promo Screeners of ‘American Gods’ and Other TV-Shows Leak Online
uri: Pirated-Promo-Screeners-of-American-Gods-and-Other-TV-Shows-Leak
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/O4VTa5MMRy8/
content:
<p><img class="alignright wp-image-170744" src="media/d66cb289.American_Gods_logo.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/American_Gods_logo.png" alt="" width="277" height="156">Roughly a decade ago, new episodes of TV-series regularly found their way onto the Internet, before appearing on TV.</p>
<p>These leaks were often linked to promotional screeners, which are generally sent out to reviewers and critics at the start of a new season.</p>
<p>In recent years these TV-screener leaks have become rarer, but a series of pirated releases that have appeared over the past several days is one of the largest breaches ever. While the source is unconfirmed, all signs suggest that a serious security hole has been exploited.</p>
<p>It all started when a new episode&nbsp;of The CW&#8217;s hit series &#8220;The 100&#8221; leaked online, weeks before the sixth season officially premieres. Soon after, a pattern started to emerge when three unreleased episodes of &#8220;American Gods&#8221; came out too.</p>
<p>The leaked American Gods episodes show the typical hallmarks of a promotional screener.</p>
<p>There is a clearly visible &#8220;For Screening Purposes Only&#8221; message popping up, for example, and the name &#8220;Jessica Silvester&#8221; is visible as a permanent watermark throughout the episodes.&nbsp;</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/13ec7c79.godzsilves.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/godzsilves.png" alt="" class="wp-image-170745"/><figcaption>From one of the leaked episodes</figcaption></figure></div>


<p>The name in question could point to the reviewer who received the screeners, or was supposed to at least. While the source of the leak has not yet been confirmed, the name matches that of a New York Magazine editor. Whether that&#8217;s the same &#8220;Jessica Silvester&#8221; is presently unknown.&nbsp;</p>
<p>What we do know is that the leaks didn&#8217;t stop there. Advance screener leaks of other shows including &#8220;Bless This Mess,&#8221; &#8220;The Bold Type,&#8221; &#8220;The Act,&#8221; &#8220;The Code,&#8221; &#8220;Knightfall,&#8221; and &#8220;The Chi&#8221; followed (full overview below).&nbsp;</p>
<p>In the case of the &#8220;The Bold Type,&#8221; which airs on Freeform, it&#8217;s clear that the review copies are for the press. This leak includes the first three episodes of season two, which starts this June.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/7f9dff32.theboldtype.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/theboldtype.png" alt="" class="wp-image-170765"/><figcaption>The Bold Type</figcaption></figure></div>


<p>The leaks are from various production companies, distributors, and TV networks. The only clear pattern we see is that they all appear to be promo screeners. These are obviously not intended to show up at pirate sites, which the leak of the aptly named show &#8220;Bless This Mess&#8221; nicely illustrates.&nbsp;</p>
<p>&#8220;For Review Only. Not for Downloading, Recording, File Sharing, Sale or Public Performance,&#8221; an embedded message reads.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/bbd91d56.blessmess.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/blessmess.png" alt="" class="wp-image-170764"/><figcaption>Bless This Mess</figcaption></figure></div>


<p>Aside from the screener watermarks, there are other messages visible as well, pointing to the &#8216;Russian&#8217; gambling site 1XBET. This name has popped up regularly in recent months as a &#8220;sponsor&#8221; of pirate releases.&nbsp;</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/1f1ee811.xbetpromo.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/xbetpromo.png" alt="" class="wp-image-170746"/><figcaption>1XBET promo in the leaked video</figcaption></figure></div>


<p>Andrey Busargin, Director of Brand Protection at international cybersecurity outfit <a href="https://www.group-ib.com/">Group-IB</a>, previously told us that casinos are increasingly teaming up with pirates to increase their revenues.</p>
<p>“This scheme allows online casinos to generate leads, wherever a user watches a pirated copy and whatever ads are displayed on a website with pirated copies,” Busargin said.</p>
<p>The name of the site is permanently visible throughout the various episodes, and there&#8217;s a promo code for a deposit bonus, in case any pirates want to take a gamble.</p>
<p>The leaks are a major setback for the rightsholders as it will draw people to pirate sites. Whether author Neil Gaiman, whose novel American Gods is based on, will complain has yet to be seen. <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/neil-gaiman-loves-piracy-its-advertising/">In 2011 he admitted</a> that in some instances piracy had boosted his book sales by 300%.</p>
<p>The big question that remains is the source of the leak, and whether the breach is a one-off or something more structural.</p>
<p><em>&#8212;</em></p>
<p><em>Here&#8217;s overview of the leaked screeners that have come out thus far:</em></p>
<ul>
<li><em>The 100, Season 6, Episode 1 and 2</em></li>
<li><em>American Gods, Season 2, Episode 5, 6 and 7</em></li>
<li><em>In The Dark, Season 1, Episode 1, 2 and 3</em></li>
<li><em>The Code, Season 1, Episode 1</em></li>
<li><em>The Bold Type, Season 3, Episode 1, 2 and 3</em></li>
<li><em>Bless This Mess, Season 1, Episode 1</em></li>
<li><em>Knightfall, Season 2, Episode 3 and 4</em></li>
<li><em>The Chi, Season 2, Episode 2, 3, 4 and 5</em></li>
<li><em>The Act, Season 1, Episode, 5, 6, 7 and 8</em></li>
</ul>
<p></p><p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=170796
title: Top 10 Most Pirated Movies of The Week on BitTorrent – 04/08/19
uri: Top-10-Most-Pirated-Movies-of-The-Week-on-BitTorrent-04-08-19
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/XKDDjpzTn1k/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-170798" src="media/eee361c2.glass.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/glass.png" alt="" width="299" height="183">This week we have four newcomers in our chart.</p>
<p>Glass is the most downloaded movie.</p>
<p>The data for our weekly download chart is estimated by TorrentFreak, and is for informational and educational reference only. All the movies in the list are Web-DL/Webrip/HDRip/BDrip/DVDrip unless stated otherwise.</p>
<p><a href="http://torrentfreak.com/category/dvdrip/feed/"><strong>RSS feed</strong></a>&nbsp;for the articles of the recent weekly movie download charts.</p>
<h5>This week&#8217;s most downloaded movies are:</h5>
<table class="css hover">
<thead>
<tr>
<th width="12%"><strong>Movie Rank</strong></th>
<th width="15%"><strong>Rank <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-pirated-movies-of-the-week-on-bittorrent-04-01-19/">last week</a></strong></th>
<th><strong>Movie name</strong></th>
<th width="18%"><strong>IMDb Rating / Trailer</strong></th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tfoot>
<tr>
<td colspan="4">Most downloaded movies via torrents</td>
</tr>
</tfoot>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td><strong>1</strong></td>
<td>(&#8230;)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6823368">Glass</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6823368">6.9</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBL6COBGjCA">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>2</strong></td>
<td>(1)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2386490/">How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2386490/">7.8</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLTDtbYmdWM">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>3</strong></td>
<td>(2)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4701182/">Bumblebee</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4701182/">7.0</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcwmDAYt22k">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>4</strong></td>
<td>(&#8230;)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5886046/">Escape Room</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5886046/">6.4</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dSKUoV0SNI">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>5</strong></td>
<td>(3)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1477834/">Aquaman</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1477834/">7.7</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmqJJqFX_CU">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>6</strong></td>
<td>(&#8230;)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6811018/">The Kid Who Would be King</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6811018/">6.1</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cg-h8TwQCgs">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>7</strong></td>
<td>(4)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4633694/">Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4633694/">8.6</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tg52up16eq0">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>8</strong></td>
<td>(6)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7959026/">The Mule</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7959026/">7.1</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_QksSzK7sI">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>9</strong></td>
<td>(5)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1860242/">The Highwaymen</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1860242/">7.1</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aH6vC-BBKOc">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>10</strong></td>
<td>(&#8230;)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0448115/">Shazam!</a> (HDCam)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0448115/">7.8</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-oD7B7oiBtw">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=170805
title: T-Mobile Blocks 22 ‘Pirate’ Domains as Net Neutrality Concerns Persist
uri: T-Mobile-Blocks-22-Pirate-Domains-as-Net-Neutrality-Concerns-Per
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/AA546m2-e5U/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright is-resized"><img src="media/e49204f7.deniedblocked.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/deniedblocked.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-143825" width="244" height="180"/></figure></div>



<p>After close to ten years of legal debate over the thorny issue of pirate site blocking, Austria is now one of many countries in the EU that restricts access to such sites.</p>



<p>The legal path was one of the more difficult ones to date and it took until November 2017 for the Supreme Court of Justice <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/the-pirate-bay-1337x-must-be-blocked-austrian-supreme-court-rules-171014/">to definitively rule</a> that The Pirate Bay and other “structurally-infringing” sites can indeed be <g class="gr_ gr_217 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_disable_anim_appear Punctuation only-del replaceWithoutSep" id="217" data-gr-id="217">blocked,</g> if rights holders have exhausted all other options. </p>



<p>The Court based its decision on the now-familiar <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/selling-piracy-configured-media-players-is-illegal-eu-court-rules-170426/">BREIN v Filmspeler</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://torrentfreak.com/block-the-pirate-bay-within-10-days-dutch-court-tells-isps-170922/">BREIN v Ziggo and XS4All</a> cases that received European Court of Justice rulings in 2017. </p>



<p>In January 2018, T-Mobile was asked to block several new sites, including thepiratebay.org, <g class="gr_ gr_11 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="11" data-gr-id="11">thepiratebay</g>.red, piratebayblocked.com, and <g class="gr_ gr_82 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="82" data-gr-id="82">pirateproxy</g>.cam. However, the ISP feared the blocking had the potential to violate net neutrality rules since the domains aren&#8217;t specifically listed in a court order and are only considered &#8216;clone&#8217; sites.  <br></p>



<p>As a result, the ISP <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/t-mobile-blocks-pirate-sites-then-reports-itself-for-possible-net-neutrality-violation-180130/">reported itself</a> to the Austrian Regulatory Authority for Broadcasting and Telecommunications (RTR) for a potential net neutrality breach. Several other ISPs including A1, Drei, Kabelplus, Liwest, and UPC later followed suit. </p>



<p>In December 2018, T-Mobile was asked to block more domains &#8211; <g class="gr_ gr_53 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="53" data-gr-id="53">kinox</g>.sg, movie4k.org, movie4k.am, movie4k.pe. The company <g class="gr_ gr_111 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="111" data-gr-id="111">highlight</g>ed no unusual issues, noting that the domains &#8220;correspond to those which have already been blocked on the basis of a court decision.&#8221;</p>



<p>The company now reports that following a request in March, it has also taken action to block a further 22 domains which are claimed to be involved in copyright infringement.</p>



<p>These include several Kinox, Movie4K <g class="gr_ gr_7 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="7" data-gr-id="7">and</g> Movie2K-related domains, plus burning-series.net, <g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="5" data-gr-id="5">serienstream</g>.be, <g class="gr_ gr_6 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="6" data-gr-id="6">streamkiste</g>. tv, serienjunkies.org, and cinemas.to.</p>



<p>The list also includes the popular sites bs.to and s.to, platforms that were recently blocked by Vodafone in Germany <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vodafone-germany-blocks-popular-pirate-forum-to-avoid-lawsuit-190328/">without a specific court order</a>, under fear of repercussions from music rights group GEMA.</p>



<p>While it doesn&#8217;t want to breach a <a href="https://tarnkappe.info/bs-to-s-to-t-mobile-austria-muss-diverse-netzsperren-durchfuehren/">separate</a> and unrelated court order in Austria, T-Mobile still has concerns over potential net neutrality breaches after blocking the domains listed in the latest batch.</p>



<p>&#8220;The listed sites, in terms of their content as well as their design and functionality, are largely the same as those that had to be blocked due to judicial decisions,&#8221; it notes.</p>



<p>&#8220;At the same time, we have sent a letter to the regulatory authority to have these restrictions checked for compatibility with the TSM Regulation (net neutrality).&#8221; </p>



<p>In January 2019, telecoms regulator <a href="https://www.rtr.at/de/rtr/OrganeTKK">Telecom Control Commission</a> said it will get involved when an ISP block is requested, triggering a supervisory process and a <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/austrian-telecoms-regulator-rejects-informal-pirate-site-blocks-190118/">full review</a> by the agency. Informal blocking of domains following a simple request from rights holders was therefore ruled out.</p>



<p>Moving forward, however, ISPs in Austria are still calling for an “independent judicial body” to confirm the legality of any blocking requests in advance to ensure that a minimum of time and resources are expended on the process.</p>



<p><em>The list of domains blocked by T-Mobile in the latest batch are:</em></p>



<p><em>&#8211; bs.to<br>&#8211; burning-series.net<br>&#8211; s.to<br>&#8211; serienstream.be<br>&#8211; streamkiste. tv<br>&#8211; serienjunkies.org<br>&#8211; cinemas.to</em><br><em>&#8211; kinox.si<br>&#8211; kinox.io<br>&#8211; kinox.sx<br>&#8211; kinox.sh<br>&#8211; kinox.gratis<br>&#8211; kinox.mobi<br>&#8211; kinox.cloud<br>&#8211; kinox.lol<br>&#8211; kinox.wtf<br>&#8211; kinox.fun<br>&#8211; kinox.fyi<br>&#8211; movie4k.sg<br>&#8211; movie4k.lol<br>&#8211; movie2k.nu</em><br><em>&#8211; movie4k.sh</em> </p>



<p>   </p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=170830
title: Operators of Three Pirate Sites Face Prison & $560 Million in Damages
uri: Operators-of-Three-Pirate-Sites-Face-Prison-560-Million-in-Damages
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/GyWW7nPfQF8/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/70326b63.piratkeyb-e1476968827887.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/piratkeyb-e1476968827887.png" alt="" class="wp-image-108110"/></figure></div>



<p>While there are potentially hundreds of pirate sites scattered around Europe, the operators of relatively few of them ever see the inside of a court room.</p>



<p>The same cannot be said of four men previously connected to the once hugely popular but now-defunct pirate sites SeriesYonkis, PeliculasYonkis and VideosYonkis (Series, Film, and Video Junkies).</p>



<p>The men went on trial yesterday in Murcia, Spain, and the stakes are extremely high. Potential prison sentences are on the table along with damages claims of more than half a billion dollars. It&#8217;s clear, this is no straightforward case.</p>



<p>Defendant Alberto García Sola is said to be the owner of a company called Poulsen SL, which apparently owned the sites. SeriesYonkis and PeliculasYonkis were sold to another company, Burn Media, in April 2011 for 610,000 euros.</p>



<p>Defendant Alexis Hoepfner is the owner of Burn Media, which brought the sites but then allegedly sold them on again in 2014. In the interim period, however, Hoepfner struck an <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/spanish-netflix-competitor-partnered-leading-pirate-site-180310/">extraordinary deal</a> with Spanish Netflix competitor Filmin, with his company obtaining a 23% stake in <g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="5" data-gr-id="5">Filmin</g>, on the condition that pirate links were replaced with others pointing to legal content.</p>



<p><a href="https://www.publico.es/sociedad/pirateria-digital-culebron-judicial-series-yonkis-guia-juzga-murcia.html"><g class="gr_ gr_3 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del" id="3" data-gr-id="3">Publico</g></a> reports that defendants Jordi Tamargo and David Martínez were Hoepfner&#8217;s partners, who allegedly pocketed 175,000 euros each for their involvement in the deal to buy the Yonkis sites.  </p>



<p>The case is based on evidence gathered by local film industry group EGEDA and FAP, the Spanish Anti-Piracy Federation, which represented the rights of MPAA members including Paramount, Sony, Universal, Walt Disney, and Warner Bros.</p>



<p>EGEDA, by Publico&#8217;s calculations, is demanding compensation totaling 546  million euros &#8211; around 199 million from Sola, 318 million from Hoepfner, and 14.3 million each from Tamargo and Martínez. FAP is demanding around 9.5 million euros in total from all four men<g class="gr_ gr_415 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="415" data-gr-id="415">.</g></p>



<p>While a Prosecutor&#8217;s Office report is believed to cap the damages at 170 million euros maximum, jail sentences of up to four years each are being demanded by the entertainment groups. P<g class="gr_ gr_56 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="56" data-gr-id="56">rosecutors</g> are believed to be aiming for less, perhaps two years.</p>



<p>SeriesYonkis, PeliculasYonkis <g class="gr_ gr_4 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="4" data-gr-id="4">and</g> VideosYonkis don&#8217;t operate as &#8216;pirate&#8217; portals anymore and haven&#8217;t done for years. Back in 2014, the sites <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/italian-police-carry-out-largest-ever-pirate-domain-crackdown-140305/">agreed to stop</a> linking to pirate content following an agreement with FAP.</p>



<p>Just weeks before reaching that deal, SeriesYonkis was <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/us-government-targets-pirate-bay-notorious-sites-140212/">labeled</a> a &#8220;notorious market&#8221; by the US Government. A year later, the label was removed by the USTR for its good behavior but that doesn&#8217;t appear to have helped the four defendants now on trial in Spain. </p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=170806
title: EU Court Asked to Rule on ‘Piracy Liability’ of Usenet Provider
uri: EU-Court-Asked-to-Rule-on-Piracy-Liability-of-Usenet-Provider
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/hsDcQTqWQi4/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-136985" src="media/8eded133.eu-copyright.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/eu-copyright.jpg" alt="" width="250" height="167">In 2009, anti-piracy group <a href="https://stichtingbrein.nl/">BREIN</a> took <a href="http://www.news-service.com/">News-Service Europe</a>&nbsp;(NSE) – one of Europe’s largest Usenet providers at the time – to court.</p>
<p>Representing the movie and music industries, BREIN argued that NSE must delete all infringing content from its servers, and in 2011 the Court of Amsterdam <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/major-usenet-provider-ordered-to-remove-all-infringing-content-110929/">sided</a> with the anti-piracy group.</p>
<p>In its initial verdict, the Court concluded that NSE willingly facilitated online piracy through its services. As a result, the company was ordered to remove all copyrighted content and filter future posts for possible copyright infringements.</p>
<p>According to the Usenet provider, this filtering requirement would be too costly to achieve. It shut down its service but appealed the case.</p>
<p>After several more years of litigation, the Amsterdam appeals court then ruled that NSE <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/court-usenet-provider-is-not-liable-for-piracy-161207/">wasn’t liable for pirating users</a>&nbsp;after all, but that it is required to offer a fast and effective notice and takedown procedure, possibly with additional measures.</p>
<p>BREIN was not happy with this outcome and decided to take the matter to the Dutch Supreme Court. While NSE is no longer a threat, the case could prove crucial for many other Usenet providers.</p>
<p>BREIN has been very critical of some commercial Usenet companies, describing them as a refuge for pirates of all ilks, with uploaders, site owners and resellers working in tandem to facilitate copyright infringement.</p>
<p>The Dutch Supreme Court has taken on the case but it&#8217;s struggling with some key questions on the liability side. In an order last week, it, therefore, decided to ask the European Court of Justice (ECJ) for input.</p>
<p>The four questions all relate to the role of Usenet providers, similar to NSE, as third-party intermediaries. NSE argues that its role is no different than a regular hosting service that stores content, in the sense that it merely offers a platform where people can share content.</p>
<p>However, NSE also facilitated the availability of content, which was sometimes synchronized with that of other Usenet providers. In addition, it offered a search functionality which made it easier for customers to find files.</p>
<p>The Supreme Court questions whether NSE is &#8220;communicating to the public&#8221; and whether it&#8217;s liable for the infringements of users. Among other things, this depends on whether it has an &#8220;active&#8221; or &#8220;passive&#8221; role under EU law.</p>
<p>To get more clarity, the <a href="https://www.ie-forum.nl/artikelen/prejudicieel-te-stellen-vragen-verricht-usenetdienst-een-mededeling-aan-het-publiek">following questions</a> (translated and summarized) are referred to the EU Court of Justice. These apply to Usenet providers that operate in a similar fashion to NSE. This includes selling subscriptions to its servers and offering a substantial quantity of copyright infringing works.</p>
<blockquote><p><em>1. Is such a Usenet provider performing an act of communication to the public under EU law?</em></p>
<p><em>2. If the answer to question 1 is yes, is the Usenet provider liable for this act of communication or is it shielded under Article 14 of the E-commerce Directive?</em></p>
<p><em>3. If the answer to question 1 is no, is the Usenet provider playing an active role that would make it liable for copyright infringements?</em></p>
<p><em>4. If the Usenet provider is shielded from liability, it there anything else it can be required to do?</em></p></blockquote>
<p>Interestingly, the Dutch Supreme Court also references &#8220;Article 13&#8221; (now Article 17) of the new EU Copyright Directive. This article requires online content sharing service providers to obtain licenses, or ensure that infringing content stays off their platforms once notified.</p>
<p>While the legal framework has yet to be adopted and implemented, the Supreme Court states that it&#8217;s unclear how this should be taken into account.</p>
<p>All in all, the answers from the EU court will be crucial for the NSE case and the future of many other Usenet providers in Europe that operate in a similar fashion. The Court previously ruled in similar cases against <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/pirate-bay-facilitates-piracy-and-can-be-blocked-top-eu-court-rules-170614/">The Pirate Bay</a> and a seller of <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/streaming-pirate-video-is-illegal-high-court-judge-says-170319/">fully-loaded streaming boxes</a>, which were both held liable.</p>
<p>That liability based on EU law is not limited to pirate sites and media boxes, which became apparent in an order handed down by the Supreme Court of Italy <a href="https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=3390d24b-d614-409d-aed3-96f8c2d51e83">last month</a>.</p>
<p>In a case filed by the TV company Mediaset, the Italian court ruled that Yahoo! can be held liable for broadcasting infringing videos under certain conditions. The Supreme Court set specific guidelines for when a hosting service is seen as operating &#8220;actively&#8221; or &#8220;passively,&#8221; and sent the case back to a lower court.</p>
<p>BREIN obviously hopes that the EU Court of Justice will conclude that Usenet providers can indeed be held liable. If that&#8217;s the case, the anti-piracy group is likely to put pressure on other providers, similar to <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/anti-piracy-group-brein-stopped-75-pirate-iptv-sellers-this-year-181128/">what it did with dozens of streaming box sellers</a> last year.</p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=170850
title: Vodafone Will Implement ‘Three-Strikes’ For Pirates
uri: Vodafone-Will-Implement-Three-Strikes-For-Pirates
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/Nkkeb0xXrcw/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/d809cb1d.throttle.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/throttle.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-8967"/></figure></div>



<p>More than a decade ago, the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) began putting local ISP Eircom under pressure to deal with online piracy.</p>



<p>The legal action, spearheaded by Sony, Universal, and Warner, was brought to an end after Eircom (now Eir) agreed to implement a so-called &#8220;three strikes&#8221; regime.</p>



<p>The agreement saw the labels tracking alleged infringers (mainly using BitTorrent networks) and sending notices of infringement to Eircom. The ISP agreed to forward these notices to its subscribers, with those receiving a third facing the possibility of a court process and disconnection from the Internet.</p>



<p>Once Eircom had complied, the labels homed in on other ISPs. After a fight UPC (now Virgin) caved into similar demands, agreeing to hand over details of subscribers who received a third &#8220;strike&#8221; to the record labels.</p>



<p>Last year, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/sony-universal-and-warner-ask-sky-to-disconnect-pirate-subscribers-180726/">legal action</a> against Sky ended swiftly when the ISP <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/sky-will-implement-three-strikes-scheme-to-disconnect-pirates-181009/">agreed</a> to implement a similar regime after a lawyer for the record labels claimed that schemes operated by the other ISPs were proving successful.</p>



<p><g class="gr_ gr_3 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="3" data-gr-id="3">Mr</g> Justice Robert Haughton, presiding, agreed that “the big stick does the job”, suggesting that when infringers are faced with losing their anonymity to the record labels, that is enough for them to correct their behavior. </p>



<p>Now, less than six months later, it has been revealed that another Irish ISP has agreed to implement the same regime.</p>



<p>After Sony, Universal and Warner filed an application against Vodafone Ireland to be heard in the Commercial Court, the ISP voluntarily agreed to adopt a &#8220;three strikes&#8221; mechanism. While this could be viewed as giving in without a fight, momentum was clearly against the telecoms company.</p>



<p><g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="5" data-gr-id="5">Mr</g> Justice Robert Haughton said he would make a similar order to the one made in the case against Sky, <a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/business/technology/vodafone-agrees-to-tackle-music-pirates-with-cease-and-desist-notices-1.3853581">Irish Times</a> reports. Sony, Universal, <g class="gr_ gr_186 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style multiReplace" id="186" data-gr-id="186">Warner  <g class="gr_ gr_185 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="185" data-gr-id="185">and</g></g> Vodafone will pay their own costs.</p>



<p>The system to be deployed by Vodafone is straightforward. The first two warnings sent to <g class="gr_ gr_282 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_hide gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins multiReplace replaceWithoutSep replaceWithoutSep" id="282" data-gr-id="282">allegedly-infringing</g> subscribers will be for informational purposes only and to act as a deterrent. Subscribers going on to receive a third notice will have their personal details handed to the record labels.</p>



<p>Then, at their discretion, the labels will have the option of taking a case to court to have the accounts of repeat infringers terminated.</p>



<p> Thus far, no such case against a subscriber in Ireland has been publicized.</p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=170930
title: Twitter Flags President Trump for Copyright Infringement, Again and Again
uri: Twitter-Flags-President-Trump-for-Copyright-Infringement-Again-and-Ag
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/Fe1DeZRhvGg/
content:
<p><img class="alignright wp-image-170934" src="media/82605338.trump-1.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/trump-1.png" alt="" width="270" height="208">When President Trump took office in early 2017, copyright holders hoped to have found a new ally in their fight against piracy.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The Copyright Alliance made this very clear in a <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/president-trump-told-that-strong-copyright-laws-are-in-his-interests-170124/">public letter</a> stressing that few presidents, if any, have had a more sizable and diverse copyright portfolio.&nbsp;</p>
<p>In the two years that followed not a whole lot has changed in terms of U.S. copyright policies. However, Trump himself has made headlines on a few occasions, being accused of copyright infringement.&nbsp;</p>
<p>This happened again yesterday when the US President posted, what many believed to be, a 2020 campaign video on Twitter. &#8220;MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!&#8221; <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1115716910556090368">Trump&#8217;s tweet reads</a>, with the video made up of a variety of news clips underneath.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The video in question has been floating around on YouTube for a few days and doesn&#8217;t appear to come from the White House, as some suggested. In fact, it was <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/The_Donald/comments/b9m5do/trump_2020_coming_soon_keep_america_great/?sort=new">posted</a> by a <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/adambvary/donald-trump-the-dark-knight-rises-warner-bros">Reddit user</a> &#8220;knock-nevisTDF,&#8221; last week,<a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/The_Donald/comments/bbd4gg/make_america_great_again/ekia6ic/"> who says</a> he made the clip himself.</p>
<p>The President appeared to like it though and was happy to share it via Twitter. However, what he may not have realized is that the video in question was set to music from “The Dark Knight Rises”, something that wasn&#8217;t well received by Warner Bros. Entertainment.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The movie studio saw it as a clear case of copyright infringement and set its legal team on the &#8216;case.&#8217;</p>
<p>“The use of Warner Bros.’ score from ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ in the campaign video was unauthorized,” a Warner Bros. spokesperson said in a statement <a href="https://variety.com/2019/film/news/trump-campaign-video-dark-knight-rises-warner-bros-legal-action-1203185454/">quoted</a> by Variety. “We are working through the appropriate legal channels to have it removed.”</p>
<p>Shortly after this statement, Twitter did indeed take the video down, as can be seen below. The copy that was posted on YouTube and shared on Reddit has been <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=79&amp;v=2kAQv3ZOAlU">removed as well,</a> although it remains <a href="media/f77dc03d.youtrump.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/youtrump.png">available elsewhere</a>.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/cb67c13a.trumpremove.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/trumpremove.png" alt="" class="wp-image-170943" srcset="https://torrentfreak.com/images/trumpremove.png 600w, https://torrentfreak.com/images/trumpremove-200x150.png 200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px"></figure></div>


<p>It&#8217;s an understatement to say that the President&#8217;s actions are being followed closely, so the removed video made headlines all over the world. Some reports <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6906103/Trumps-2020-campaign-video-removed-Twitter-Warner-Bros-announced-copyright-suit.html">even claim</a> that the Warner Bros. is filing a &#8220;copyright infringement suit&#8221; against&nbsp; Trump over his &#8220;2020 campaign video.&#8221;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>
<p>We haven&#8217;t seen any evidence of a pending lawsuit, nor is this an official campaign video, so this may just be another case of what President Trump would call &#8216;fake news.&#8217;&nbsp;</p>
<p>The reality is, however, that this isn&#8217;t the first time the President has been called out for sharing copyright-infringing content on Twitter. Just a few weeks ago, a video the R.E.M’s song, ‘Everybody Hurts,’ in the background, was <a href="https://hillreporter.com/twitter-removes-video-that-trump-tweeted-after-copyright-complaint-24659">removed</a> by Twitter.</p>
<p>Twitter reportedly took this action after Mike Mills, the bassist for R.E.M., complained about the unauthorized use of the track.&nbsp;</p>
<p>And just last week Electronic Arts reported one of President Trump&#8217;s tweets for using copyrighted audio from a Mass Effect 2 game trailer without permission. That is now <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/717003103871115267">&#8216;withheld&#8217;</a> from the public.&nbsp;</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/0f7054f5.wheld.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/wheld.png" alt="" class="wp-image-170956"/></figure></div>


<p>And that&#8217;s not all. There is also a copyright claim on a tweet about a <a href="https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/1095360852482498561">beautiful evening in El Paso</a>, posted a few weeks ago. While more detail is not available, we assume that the President used copyrighted material without permission, again.</p>
<p>If that&#8217;s not enough, there are trademark issues as well. HBO didn&#8217;t like it when President Trump <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1058388700617498625">used a photo</a> containing the Game of Thrones font and a play on the &#8220;Winter is Coming&#8221; message in a political context.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The company said in a <a href="https://www.ign.com/articles/2018/11/02/hbo-responds-to-president-trumps-use-of-game-of-thrones-reference-on-twitter">statement</a> that it &#8220;would prefer our trademark not be misappropriated for political purposes,&#8221; hinting at <a href="https://twitter.com/HBO/status/1058424663972478976">trademark misuse</a>, but it&#8217;s unclear whether it took any action in response.&nbsp;</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/fdcb92a0.sanccoming.jpg" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/sanccoming.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-170951"/></figure></div>


<p>For now, none of the complaints are affecting the status of President Trump&#8217;s Twitter account.</p>
<p>In theory, Twitter reserves the right to suspend accounts that repeatedly receive copyright complaints. This is <a href="https://help.twitter.com/en/rules-and-policies/copyright-policy">clearly stated</a> in the company&#8217;s copyright policy.&nbsp;</p>
<p>&#8220;If multiple copyright complaints are received Twitter may lock accounts or take other actions to warn repeat violators. These warnings may vary across Twitter’s services. Under appropriate circumstances we may suspend user accounts under our repeat infringer policy,&#8221; the policy reads.</p>
<p>How many &#8220;offenses&#8221; are needed to warrant a suspension is not mentioned, however.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Finally, it&#8217;s worth noting that the &#8220;Dark Knight Rises&#8221; score, titled &#8220;Why Do We Fall?&#8221; was composed by Hans Zimmer. He previously shared the track on his YouTube account, but the video in question was <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLtPWAssAc0">recently removed</a>, likely by himself.&nbsp;</p>
<p>That said, the same music is used in <a href="https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=why+do+we+fall+hans+zimmer+">hundreds if not thousands</a> of other YouTube videos, and it&#8217;s widely shared on Twitter as well. Apparently, copyright takedowns have priority when the President is involved.&nbsp;</p><p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=170987
title: Publisher Sues AdBlock Plus For Copyright Infringement
uri: Publisher-Sues-AdBlock-Plus-For-Copyright-Infringement
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/KazQK-85fPQ/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/3577328d.adblockplus.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/adblockplus.png" alt="" class="wp-image-170989"/></figure></div>



<p>There can be little doubt that without revenues generated by advertising, <g class="gr_ gr_9 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="9" data-gr-id="9">today&#8217;s</g> web would be a very different animal.</p>



<p>Many sites live or die by the money they bring in via advertising but a growing number of platforms feel that volume can make up for quality, bombarding visitors with what many consider unstoppable spam.</p>



<p>For the savvy, of course, plenty of options are available to block the most annoying ads. Many use browser plugins like uBlock or AdBlock Plus to limit the number of ads they see, much to the disappointment of those delivering them.</p>



<p>In an effort to put a stop to this &#8216;freeloading&#8217;, digital publishing company Alex Springer has waged a years-long campaign against German-based developer Eyeo GmbH, the company behind Adblock Plus.</p>



<p>The publisher, which owns Bild and Die Welt, among others, claimed that AdBlock Plus and its users undermined its business model. However, after trips through regional and eventually Germany&#8217;s Supreme Court, in April 2018 Adblock Plus and <a href="https://eyeo.com/">Eyeo</a> GmbH <a href="https://adblockplus.org/blog/german-supreme-court-ad-blocking-is-legal-axel-springer-lose-final-appeal">came out on top</a>.</p>



<p>Now, a year later, Axel Springer has returned for another bite of the cherry. This time the publisher claims that AdBlock Plus infringes copyright. The company&#8217;s complaint, reported on by <a href="https://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/Schon-wieder-Axel-Springer-verklagt-Adblock-Plus-4365734.html">Heise.de</a>, appears to push the boundaries of what is generally accepted as infringement.</p>



<p>&#8220;Advertising blockers change the programming code of websites and thus directly access the legally protected offer of publishers,&#8221; says Claas-Hendrik Soehring, head of media law at Axel Springer.</p>



<p>&#8220;In the long term, they will not only damage a central financing basis for digital <g class="gr_ gr_4 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-del replaceWithoutSep" id="4" data-gr-id="4">journalism,</g> but will also jeopardize open access to opinion-forming information on the Internet in the long term.&#8221;</p>



<p>Until the actual complaint is made available (according to Heise it is yet to be served) the precise details behind the complaint are open to speculation. However, considering the way AdBlock Plus works, it seems unlikely that a browser plug-in could in any way change code on its digital platforms.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s a point not lost on Eyeo, which totally rejects the claim.</p>



<p>&#8220;The argument that we intervene in the &#8216;programming code of websites&#8217;, I would like to call almost absurd,&#8221; Eyeo&#8217;s spokesperson said in a&nbsp;statement.</p>



<p>&#8220;It does not take much technical understanding to understand that a browser-side plug-in does not make it possible to modify anything on Springer&#8217;s servers.&#8221;</p>



<p>It&#8217;s not totally inconceivable that Alex Springer might attempt to present an argument under other aspects of copyright law, such as circumvention of technological measures put in place by copyright holders to restrict acts they don&#8217;t authorize<g class="gr_ gr_273 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="273" data-gr-id="273">.</g></p>



<p>Of course, the full details will only become apparent when the lawsuit is eventually made available for public scrutiny.</p>



<p> </p>



<p> </p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=170980
title: Starz Doesn’t Like News About Leaked TV-Shows, Takes Down TorrentFreak Tweet
uri: Starz-Doesn-t-Like-News-About-Leaked-TV-Shows-Takes-Down-TorrentFre
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/upecFSr63z8/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-171010" src="media/fa276741.silence1.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/silence1.png" alt="" width="280" height="170">At TorrentFreak, we have been covering copyright and piracy related news for well over a decade.&nbsp;</p>
<p>We write about things that copyright holders are not happy with, and similarly, we report on bad news for pirates as well. The leading factor is always whether we believe something is newsworthy, or not.</p>
<p>Earlier this week we <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/promo-screeners-of-american-gods-and-other-tv-shows-leak-online-190408/">published an article</a> that definitely fits that category. In the span of a few days, several TV-show episodes leaked online before their official release, which is something that rarely happens.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Due to the leak, complete seasons of unreleased TV-shows such as &#8220;The Spanish Princess,&#8221; &#8220;Ramy,&#8221; and &#8220;The Red Line,&#8221; surfaced on pirate sites. In most cases, there were visible signs revealing that the leaks were sourced from promotional screeners, but other than that information remains scarce.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Among the treasure trove of leaks were also several unreleased episodes of the Starz hit series &#8220;American Gods.&#8221; This is obviously not the type of news the American entertainment company wanted to see published, but in our niche, it&#8217;s a big deal nonetheless.&nbsp;</p>
<p>As with all our news articles, we automatically posted a link to it <a href="https://twitter.com/torrentfreak/status/1115176027268034560">on Twitter</a>, to share it with the audience there. The tweet was just a simple description, with an image and a link to the news report. Nothing out of the ordinary, one would think.&nbsp;</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em>The tweet</em></p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/8d2e07ae.removedtweet.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/removedtweet.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171016"/></figure></div>


<p>To our surprise, however, this tweet is now no longer available. Twitter informed us a few hours ago that The <a href="https://thesocialelement.agency/">Social Element Agency</a> asked it to remove the &#8220;infringing&#8221; tweet on behalf of <a href="https://www.starz.com/">Starz</a>.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The social media platform complied with the request and as a result, our tweet is now &#8220;withheld,&#8221; or removed if you will.</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em>Withheld</em></p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter is-resized"><img src="media/71c5485a.withheld.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/withheld.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171017" width="580" height="116"/></figure></div>


<p>According to the takedown notice, Starz argues that the tweet is infringing because it links to an article where people can see &#8220;of images of the unreleased episodes&#8221; and find more &#8220;information about their illegal availability.&#8221;</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em>From the DMCA takedown notice</em></p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/0e9e7e92.starzcomp.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/starzcomp.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171025"/></figure></div>


<p>For the record, our article only includes a <a href="media/13ec7c79.godzsilves.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/godzsilves.png">single identifiable frame</a> from a leaked &#8220;American Gods&#8221; episode, to show the screener watermarks, which are central to the story. That&#8217;s just 0.001% of the episode in question, without audio, which is generally seen as fair use, especially in a news context.</p>
<p>As for the claim that the article includes information about the shows&#8217; &#8220;illegal availability&#8221;, we only mention that they are being shared on pirate sites, without giving any names or links. That&#8217;s no ground for a takedown request.</p>
<p>Luckily, our analysis is backed up by Kit Walsh, who&#8217;s a Senior Staff Attorney at the Electronic Frontier Foundation.&nbsp;</p>
<p>&#8220;Starz has no right to silence TorrentFreak&#8217;s news article or block links to it. The article reports that there are people on the Internet infringing copyright, but that is a far cry from being an infringement itself,&#8221; Walsh says.</p>
<p>&#8220;The screenshots are important parts of the reporting that validate the facts being reported. Starz should withdraw its takedown and refrain from harassing journalists in the future,&#8221; she adds.</p>
<p>As for Starz attempt to &#8216;silence&#8217; our reporting. This turns out to be quite counterproductive. Without their takedown notice, we probably wouldn&#8217;t have brought up the leaks again.</p>
<p>We have reached out directly to the Starz representative who sent the DMCA notice to request comment and further information. At the time of writing, we have yet to hear back.&nbsp; If Starz doesn&#8217;t withdraw its takedown notice we will consider appropriate follow-up steps.&nbsp;</p>
<p>In the meantime, anyone who&#8217;s interested in learning more about the TV-show leaks can find our <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/promo-screeners-of-american-gods-and-other-tv-shows-leak-online-190408/">news report here</a>.&nbsp;</p><p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171057
title: Pirate Bay, RARBG, 1337x & Torrentz2 to be Permanently Blocked in India
uri: Pirate-Bay-RARBG-1337x-Torrentz2-to-be-Permanently-Blocked-in-Indi
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/2t0TnovWSBg/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/e49204f7.deniedblocked.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/deniedblocked.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-143825"/></figure></div>



<p>Website blocking on copyright grounds has been going on for some time in India, mainly via so-called&nbsp;<a href="https://torrentfreak.com/court-order-blocks-bittorrent-megaupload-and-more-111227/">John Doe orders</a>, where large numbers of websites are blocked temporarily to protect various new movie releases.</p>



<p>As <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/hollywood-studios-score-blocking-order-against-rarbg-in-india-180417/">highlighted</a> last year, however, rightsholders have been looking for a more permanent solution. Going back and forth to court is an inefficient process, particularly when the same key &#8216;pirate&#8217; sites are often in the thick of the action<g class="gr_ gr_237 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="237" data-gr-id="237">.</g></p>



<p><g class="gr_ gr_237 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="237" data-gr-id="237">Their</g> wishes now appear to have been granted by the High Court in Delhi.</p>



<p>Following a series of eight complaints filed by Twentieth Century Fox and local Disney-owned media giant UTV Software Communications, Justice Manmohan handed down an order Wednesday which targets some of the largest torrent and streaming sites on the Internet.</p>



<p>The Pirate Bay, RARBG, Torrentz2, 1337x, ExtraTorrent, YTS, <g class="gr_ gr_91 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="91" data-gr-id="91">FMovies</g> <g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="5" data-gr-id="5">and</g> BMovies are all listed, along with several alternative domain names and/or proxies employed by some of the sites <em>(full list below)</em>.</p>



<p>The plaintiffs&#8217; arguments were in line with the majority of similar blocking orders requested elsewhere in the world. The sites and their users infringe their copyrights by offering or facilitating access to their protected content, contrary to local law, they argued.</p>



<p>The 99-page order <em>(<a href="media/3fe2fdec.MMH10042019SC7242017.pdf" data-original-source="http://lobis.nic.in/ddir/dhc/MMH/judgement/11-04-2019/MMH10042019SC7242017.pdf">pdf</a>)</em> is extremely detailed and alphabetically lists successful blocking cases in many other countries &#8211; from Australia to Uruguay &#8211; adding weight to the argument that they should also be blocked in India.</p>



<p>The Court also noted that despite being served via the contact information provided in their WHOIS details, none of the sites chose to &#8220;rebut or challenge&#8221; any of the evidence produced by the plaintiffs, which inevitably led to the conclusion that in the opinion of the Court, all are liable for copyright infringement under Section 51 of the Copyright Act.</p>



<p>When making its order, the Court also considered whether handing down a blocking injunction would &#8220;make one an opponent of a free and open Internet&#8221;. It concluded <g class="gr_ gr_8 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="8" data-gr-id="8">otherw</g>ise, noting that &#8220;advocating limits on accessing illegal content online&#8221; does not violate the principles of an open Internet.</p>



<p>On the thorny issue of tackling the inevitable appearance of mirrors and proxies after a blocking order is issued, the Court said that the plaintiffs will be able to file an affidavit containing the details. These will be considered and, where appropriate, blocking instructions will be handed to ISPs.</p>



<p>In closing, the Court ordered all of the defendant websites and anyone working with them to stop &#8220;hosting, streaming, reproducing, distributing, making available to the public and/or communicating to the public, or facilitating the same, on their websites, through the internet in any manner whatsoever, any cinematograph work/content/programme/show in relation to which plaintiffs have copyright.&#8221;</p>



<p>A decree was also passed instructing local ISPs to permanently block the websites in question.</p>



<p>Finally, the Court also published a &#8220;suggestion&#8221; which could set hearts racing among pirates in India<g class="gr_ gr_37 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="37" data-gr-id="37">.</g></p>



<p>Describing website blocking as &#8220;cumbersome&#8221;, the order states that the majority of visitors to pirate sites are by &#8220;youngsters who do not have knowledge that the said content is infringing <g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style multiReplace" id="5" data-gr-id="5">and / or</g> pirated.&#8221;</p>



<p>It&#8217;s therefore suggested that the relevant authorities should explore the possibility of sending emails, pop-ups, or other warnings to those who continue to consume infringing content.</p>



<p>&#8220;In the <g class="gr_ gr_3 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="3" data-gr-id="3">event</g> the warning is not heeded to and the <g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_hide gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style multiReplace replaceWithoutSep replaceWithoutSep" id="5" data-gr-id="5">viewers / subscribers</g> continue to view, access or download the infringing/pirated content then a fine could be levied on the viewers/subscribers,&#8221; the Court added.</p>



<p><em>The full list of domains to be blocked is as follows:</em></p>



<p><em>1337x.to, torrentz2.eu, bmovies.to, bmovies.is, fmovies.is, fmovies.se, fmovies.to, bmovies.se, fmovies.pe, fmovies.io, fmovies.taxi, bmovies.ru, fmovies.world, rarbg.is, rarbg.com, rarbg.to, rarbgproxy.org, thepiratebay.org, thepiratebay.se, yts.am, yts.ag, yts.tw, yts-yify.gold, yts.altorrente.com, yts.gy, yify.is, extratorrent.ag, torrentz.ht, torrentmovies.co</em></p>



<p></p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171105
title: Steal This Show S04E14: Faircoin Part 2
uri: Steal-This-Show-S04E14-Faircoin-Part-2
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/nfcvHOj72ts/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-113928" src="media/d01749d9.stslogo180.png" data-original-source="http://torrentfreak.com/images/stslogo180.png" alt="" width="180" height="180">This is the second and final part of our interview with&nbsp;<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enric_Duran">Enric Duran</a>, leader of the&nbsp;<a href="https://fair-coin.org/">Faircoin project</a>&nbsp;and founder of<a href="https://fair.coop/en">&nbsp;Fair Coop</a>.</p>
<p>We discuss the advantage of using Faircoin rather than Bitcoin or even Euros; the history of anarchism of in Spain and the use of pre-crypto ‘scrip’ currencies in and between anarchist communes; the need to build an infrastructure for the coming community of disaffected normies, and more.</p>
<p>We also take a long excursion into Enric’s backstory as the ‘Robin Hood’ of the antiglobalisation movement: how he stole half a million euros plus from banks and gave it all to anticapitalist projects, and his ensuing life in the underground. And finally, we come around to the big question: how to get to a global Commons without requiring big-state communism. Bonus: the mysterious link between Ethereum, Vitalik Buterin and Enric Duran’s commune Calafou.</p>
<p>&#8212;</p>
<p><a href="https://stealthisshow.com">Steal This Show</a> aims to release bi-weekly episodes featuring insiders discussing crypto, privacy, copyright and file-sharing developments. It complements our regular reporting by adding more room for opinion, commentary, and analysis.</p>
<p><strong>Host:</strong> Jamie King</p>
<p><strong>Guest: </strong><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enric_Duran">Enric Duran</a></p>
<p><center><iframe src="//stealthisshow.com/?lpe-frame=1&amp;lpe-season=4&amp;lpe-episode=14" width="100%" height="180px" frameborder="0"></iframe></center></p>
<p><strong><sup><em>If you enjoy this episode, consider becoming a patron and getting involved with the show. <a href="https://patreon.com/user?u=4275705">Check out Steal This Show&#8217;s Patreon campaign</a>: support us and get all kinds of&nbsp;fantastic benefits!</em></sup></strong></p>
<p><strong>Produced </strong> <em>by </em>Jamie King<br>
<strong>Edited &amp; Mixed</strong> <em>by</em> Lucas Marston<br>
<strong>Original Music</strong> <em>by</em> David Triana<br>
<strong>Web Production</strong> <em>by</em> Eric Barch</p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171079
title: Stream-Ripper Operator Rejects Record Labels’ Piracy ‘Hysteria’ in Court
uri: Stream-Ripper-Operator-Rejects-Record-Labels-Piracy-Hysteria
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/-46zThDIDDQ/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-167641" src="media/9c98c266.flvto-2.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/flvto-2.png" alt="" width="277" height="175"></p>
<p>Last year,&nbsp;a group of prominent record labels&nbsp;<a href="https://torrentfreak.com/major-labels-sue-more-youtube-ripper-sites-180806/">filed a piracy lawsuit</a>&nbsp;against the Russian operator of YouTube-ripping sites FLVTO.biz and 2conv.com.</p>
<p>The labels hoped to shut the sites down, but this effort backfired.</p>
<p>In January, US District Court Judge Claude M. Hilton&nbsp;<a href="https://torrentfreak.com/youtube-ripper-wins-dismissal-of-record-labels-us-piracy-lawsuit-190123/">dismissed the case</a> due to a lack of jurisdiction. The Virginia Court carefully reviewed how the sites operate and found no evidence that they purposefully targeted either Virginia or the United States.</p>
<p>The sites are not seen as highly interactive and their interaction with users could not be classified as commercial, the Court concluded. Since the site owner didn&#8217;t purposefully target Virginia, the Court ruled that it doesn&#8217;t have jurisdiction over the operator.</p>
<p>The record labels didn&#8217;t agree with this conclusion and took the case to the Fourth Circuit appeals court. If the verdict stands, the companies believe that Internet pirates will have “<a href="https://torrentfreak.com/stream-ripper-verdict-gives-carte-blanche-to-internet-pirates-record-labels-say-190314/">carte blanche</a>” to facilitate copyright infringement, as they would be untouchable by U.S. courts.</p>
<p>The labels&#8217; appeal attracted <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/hollywood-fears-that-stream-ripper-verdict-will-serve-as-roadmap-for-foreign-pirates-190322/">support</a> from other major copyright holders. Through amicus briefs,&nbsp; Hollywood&#8217;s MPAA, The Association of American Publishers, and the Copyright Alliance, all argued that the verdict should be overturned.</p>
<p>This week, the Russian operator, Tofig Kurbanov, submitted his answering brief. Through his legal team, he informs the Court that <span class="fontstyle0">the District Court was right to dismiss the case. He has never been to the U.S. and managed the sites entirely and exclusively from Russia.</span></p>
<p>Aside from going into detail on all the legal elements of the jurisdiction issue, the response also hits back at the massive piracy claims and &#8220;<span class="fontstyle0">xenophobia-tinged&#8221; allegations </span>from the record labels and other rightsholders.</p>
<p>&#8220;Cognizant perhaps of the complete absence of a Constitutional basis for the<br>assertion of personal jurisdiction over Kurbanov, Plaintiffs and their amici <span class="fontstyle0">seek to make up for this omission with a combination of xenophobia-tinged allegations</span> and &#8216;the sky is falling&#8217; arguments,&#8221; the response reads.</p>
<p>The scope of the alleged infringing activity should not mean that the Court can ignore Constitutional limitations, the defense argues. According to the site operator, it should also be noted that the same rightsholders have a history of targeting new technology.</p>
<p>&#8220;Plaintiffs and their amici have consistently opposed virtually every technological advance from the 1970s forward including the advent of cassette tapes, compact discs, digital audio tapes, and MP3s.&nbsp;</p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">&#8220;In each instance, Plaintiffs and their </span><span class="fontstyle2">amici’s </span><span class="fontstyle0">cries that the sky was falling<br>were either misplaced or entirely made-up,&#8221; the defense adds.</span></p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">The Russian site operator continues that the rightsholders&#8217;</span><span class="fontstyle0"> &#8220;hysteria&#8221; is ultimately irrelevant. The appeal is about whether or not the Court has jurisdiction over the matter. According to the defense, it&#8217;s clear that it hasn&#8217;t.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em>Hysteria</em></p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/c122b1c6.hysteria.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/hysteria.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171090"/></figure></div>


<p>The record labels placed a lot of emphasis on the site&#8217;s advertisements in their appeal brief. For example, they argued that the stream-ripping sites used geolocation-based advertisements to target specific locations, including the United States and Virginia.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The defense counters this by stressing that all of the advertising activities were outsourced to third party companies, which make it irrelevant.</p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">&#8220;Plaintiffs’ attempts to tie personal jurisdiction to the geolocation of ads on<br>the Websites is misplaced, where any such geolocation is accomplished solely by third-party advertising brokers,&#8221; the defense writes.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p>The labels also argued that because the sites are generating revenue from US visitors, there is a &#8220;commercial&#8221; relationship so the Court has jurisdiction. This &#8216;free&#8217; advertising model is widely used by other companies such as Facebook, ESPN, CNN, they argued.&nbsp;</p>
<p>In its response, the defense doesn&#8217;t dispute that these other sites use advertising. However, it uses that argument to its advantage while noting that Facebook, ESPN, CNN are not automatically subject to any and all jurisdictions in the world.</p>
<p>While it is true that the stream-ripping sites are available in the US, that&#8217;s certainly not their most popular user base. For <span class="fontstyle0"><a href="https://www.flvto.biz/">FLVTO.biz</a>, more than 90% of the visitors come from other countries, and for <a href="https://2conv.com/">2conv.com</a> this number is more than 94%, the defense informs the Appeals Court.</span></p>
<p>It is worth noting that the current issue is not about whether or not the stream-rippers are copyright-infringing in any way. The question that has to be answered first is whether a U.S. court has jurisdiction over the Russian operator of the sites.</p>
<p>Many of the arguments that both sides presented are similar to those put before the District Court earlier. The record labels and other rightsholders hope that the earlier dismissal will be overturned, while Kurbanov and other site owners prefer to keep it in place.</p>
<p>&#8211;</p>
<p><em>A copy of the full answering brief of defendant-appellee Tofig Kurbanov is available <a href="media/b2a6ca7b.flvtoresponse.pdf" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/flvtoresponse.pdf">here (pdf)</a>.</em></p><p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: http://torrentfreak.com/?p=170575
title: Russian Ebook Pirates ‘Exploit Loophole’ in Anti-Piracy Legislation
uri: Russian-Ebook-Pirates-Exploit-Loophole-in-Anti-Piracy-Legislatio
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/u3lkQJU20_g/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/894f1af8.ebook-ereader.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/ebook-ereader.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-144637"/></figure></div>



<p>With many thousands of sites now blocked in Russia following allegations of copyright infringement, piracy should &#8211; at least in theory &#8211; become harder.</p>



<p>Many of the most stubborn sites, such as the infamous RuTracker, are now inaccessible directly via local ISPs, meaning that users must deploy countermeasures such as proxies, VPNs (where they&#8217;re still available), and other means, in order to reach their content.</p>



<p>There&#8217;s little doubt that piracy is now becoming harder than it once was but pirates have a tendency to be not only persistent, but also creative &#8211; even if that means resorting to technologies that are decades old.</p>



<p>According to local news outlet <a href="https://www.vedomosti.ru/">Vedomosti</a>, people are turning the sales of pirate eBooks into a cottage industry, while exploiting a loophole in the law to avoid criminal liability.</p>



<p>Many of these transactions take place on <a href="https://www.avito.ru/">Avito</a>, Russia&#8217;s most popular classified ads site and the second largest in the world behind Craigslist. Countless ads for pirate eBooks litter the platform, offering anything from a single book to bundles of many.</p>



<p>This content is offered for prices ranging from just a few cents to a couple of dollars, which is many times cheaper than official offerings. However, little of this activity can land any of the sellers in trouble. The threshold for criminal liability in Russia for what are essentially counterfeit goods is 100,000 rubles (around $1,500). Individual sales tend <g class="gr_ gr_18 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="18" data-gr-id="18">not</g> to meet those thresholds.</p>



<p>Making matters even more slippery for anti-piracy companies is that those who place the ads for pirate eBooks do not post the content online. Instead, the senders use email to transfer the eBooks to their customers. This means their ads cannot be easily be detected by anti-piracy bots and any infringing transactions remain private.</p>



<p>Furthermore, since there are no links to infringing content, the listings are effectively immune from Russia&#8217;s somewhat draconian anti-piracy laws. They cannot be targeted with legal action under the regime so platforms can&#8217;t be blocked in the way that normal pirate sites can. </p>



<p>Instead, copyright holders are reliant on platforms like Avito to help take content down. The company does remove listings, but only when they are reported as problematic. However, there are reportedly entire communities thriving on social media platforms dedicated to these sales, so tackling the problem could be time-consuming.</p>



<p>If nothing else, what this shows is that in the piracy world, where&#8217;s there&#8217;s a will to pirate content, there will probably be a way. And when that way is via email or other hidden techniques, there&#8217;s very little anyone can do about it &#8211; at least for now.</p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=170922
title: US Govt and Rightsholders Want WHOIS Data Accessible Again, to Catch Pirates
uri: US-Govt-and-Rightsholders-Want-WHOIS-Data-Accessible-Again-to-Catch-P
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/hhlAVYzq3v8/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-135510" src="media/3bdfeafa.piratemusiccasset.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/piratemusiccasset.png" alt="" width="234" height="152"></p>
<p>It&#8217;s been nearly a year since the EU’s new privacy regulation, the GDPR, was implemented.</p>
<p>The GDPR requires many online services and tools to tighten their privacy policies. This also affects domain registrars.</p>
<p>Faced with this new regulation, the domain registrar oversight body ICANN implemented a <a href="https://www.icann.org/news/announcement-2018-08-23-en">temporary specification</a>. This led to restrictions in access to personal data of site owners that would previously have been available through the WHOIS system.</p>
<p>The change was welcomed by privacy advocates and many domain registrants, but anti-piracy groups are not happy. Industry groups such as the MPAA use WHOIS information to investigate and go after pirate sites.</p>
<p>The Hollywood group has been rather adamant about its need to access WHOIS data. It <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/mpaa-making-all-domain-whois-data-public-will-advance-privacy-181117/">previously warned</a> the US National Telecommunications and Information Administration that a more open system will increase privacy, rather than the other way around.</p>
<p>Since then, little has changed. However, the MPAA remains determined. In a letter (<a href="media/c97131dd.Comment_Submitted_by_Motion_Picture_Association_of_America.pdf" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/Comment_Submitted_by_Motion_Picture_Association_of_America.pdf">pdf</a>) sent to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) this week, it asks the US Government agency to help out. Ideally, it wants a system where authorized organizations get easy access.</p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">&#8220;The MPAA requests that the FTC continue urging [ICANN] to expeditiously adopt and implement an access and accreditation model restoring the availability of WHOIS information to protect consumers and legitimate commerce, including to combat copyright infringement.</span></p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">&#8220;The MPAA also asks the FTC to help ensure domain name providers diligently review and grant requests for such access until the model is implemented,&#8221; the anti-piracy group adds.</span></p>
<p>The movie industry group points out that, since<span class="fontstyle0"> the founding of the commercial Internet, WHOIS information has been the starting point to combat online crime,&nbsp; including identity theft, theft of intellectual property, fraud, cyber attacks, illicit sale of opioids, and human trafficking.</span></p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">The temporary solution ICANN has in place now is not a good alternative, the MPAA argues, as it unnecessarily restricts access.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p>The MPAA is not the only industry group complaining about WHOIS restrictions. The Copyright Alliance, Creative Future, and the Independent Film and Television Alliance also sent a letter (<a href="media/5c430a7b.ativeFuture_and_the_Independent_Film_and_Television_Alliance.pdf" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/Comment_Submitted_by_Copyright_Alliance_CreativeFuture_and_the_Independent_Film_and_Television_Alliance.pdf">pdf</a>) to the FTC highlighting the same issue.</p>
<p>In addition, the US Government itself has chimed in as well. Last week <span class="fontstyle0">David J. Redl, <a href="https://www.ntia.doc.gov/page/david-j-redl">NTIA</a>&#8216;s Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information, <a href="media/f0661b5b.redl-to-chalaby-04apr19-en.pdf" data-original-source="https://www.icann.org/en/system/files/correspondence/redl-to-chalaby-04apr19-en.pdf">sent a letter</a> to ICANN Chair Cherine Chalaby. In the letter, Redl urges ICANN to take &#8220;swift&#8221; action.<br>
</span></p>
<p>&#8220;The WHOIS information is a critical tool that helps to keep people accountable for what they do and put online. Law enforcement uses WHOIS to shut down criminal enterprises and malicious websites,&#8221; Redl writes.</p>
<p>Redl notes that he was pleased to see that, with help various stakeholders, some progress had been made. However, ICANN should continue to move forward, especially since the temporary specification expires next month.</p>
<p>&#8220;Now its time to deliberately and swiftly create a system that allows for third parties with legitimate interests, like law enforcement, IP rights holders, and cybersecurity experts to access non-public data critical to fulfilling their missions,&#8221; Redl notes.</p>
<p>The letter also comes with a sting. If ICANN fails to adopt a new policy, or at least get closer to it, US lawmakers may have to step in.</p>
<p>&#8220;Without clear and meaningful progress, alternative solutions such as calls for domestic legislation will only intensify and be considered,&#8221; Redl writes.</p>
<p>This option appears to be the subject of discussion behind closed doors, as the MPAA also brought it up in its letter to the FTC.</p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">&#8220;In the event ICANN and domain name providers fail to do so, the U.S. Congress is well within its prerogatives to pass legislation preserving access to WHOIS information to protect its citizens and promote legitimate commerce,&#8221; the MPAA writes.</span></p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">&#8220;Because of the importance of continued access to WHOIS information to the FTC and others, the MPAA asks the FTC and other agencies to support legislative efforts if such circumstances come to pass.&#8221;</span></p>
<p>It&#8217;s clear that the pressure is on.</p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=170828
title: Stream-Ripping: What Are YouTube, Spotify & Deezer Doing About it?
uri: Stream-Ripping-What-Are-YouTube-Spotify-Deezer-Doing-About-it
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/ekG1dWvV17w/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright is-resized"><img src="media/e7a1b9f0.ripper.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/ripper.png" alt="" class="wp-image-170902" width="237" height="214"/><figcaption><em>Credit: <a href="https://pixabay.com/photos/paper-low-photoshop-rip-2904876/">Pixabay</a></em></figcaption></figure></div>



<p>&#8220;Stream ripping, which is the process of creating a downloadable file from content that is available to stream online, is now the most prevalent form of online music copyright infringement,&#8221; music group IFPI declared in 2017. </p>



<p>The statement was in response to the <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/youtube-mp3-settles-with-riaa-site-will-shut-down-170904/">shutdown</a> of once-leading YouTube-ripping site YouTube-MP3, which previously helped millions of visitors convert videos into downloadable MP3 tracks, to the detriment of artists, according to IFPI.</p>



<p>But despite the fall of this giant, stream-ripping is still very high on the music piracy agenda. Where torrent sites and file-sharing applications were once the primary targets for legal action, stream-ripping sites now appear to be more of a concern for record labels everywhere.</p>



<p>In 2018, a group of major record labels with assistance from the RIAA&nbsp;<a href="https://torrentfreak.com/major-labels-sue-more-youtube-ripper-sites-180806/">targeted two of the larger stream-rippers</a>&nbsp;that remained online following YouTube-MP3&#8217;s demise.</p>



<p>FLVTO.biz, 2conv.com, and their owner Tofig Kurbanov were sued for copyright infringement at a Virginia District Court. The case was <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/youtube-ripper-wins-dismissal-of-record-labels-us-piracy-lawsuit-190123/">dismissed</a> since there was no evidence they targeted the United States. The labels quickly <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/stream-ripper-verdict-gives-carte-blanche-to-internet-pirates-record-labels-say-190314/">appealed</a>, so the case continues. Similar platforms <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/riaa-complaint-shuts-down-youtube-ripper-mp3fiber-180821/">collapsed</a> more quickly.</p>



<p>But the big elephant in the room is why the labels aren&#8217;t (to coin a well-worn piracy phrase) trying to cut off the head of the hydra? These &#8216;ripping&#8217; sites aren&#8217;t the source of the content because <g class="gr_ gr_40 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="40" data-gr-id="40">in</g> most cases, YouTube is.</p>



<p>Equally, when people access platforms like Spotify and Deezer using readily available tools and services to rip MP3s to their own hard drives, why aren&#8217;t the leaks getting plugged by those respective companies? </p>



<p>This week, TorrentFreak asked all three services for their opinions on stream-ripping and why the phenomenon is still a problem, not only for the record labels but also for them. After all, everyone involved loses revenue when users don&#8217;t return to a streaming service for repeat performances of musical works.</p>



<p>&#8220;We are deeply committed to ensuring YouTube is not a home for copyright-infringing content and have invested significantly in teams and technology to combat this issue,&#8221; a YouTube spokesperson told TF.</p>



<p>&#8220;YouTube&#8217;s Terms of Service prohibit the downloading or copying of videos without the prior written consent of YouTube or the respective copyright licensor, and we take technical steps to prevent this behavior.&#8221;  </p>



<p>Given the size and relatively open nature of the YouTube platform, it&#8217;s no surprise that the Google-owned company is at the center of the stream-ripping controversy. But ripping from YouTube is only part of the problem.</p>



<p>Premium and ad-supported services such as Spotify and Deezer are also targeted by people ripping streams directly to their machines. In these cases, third-party platforms aren&#8217;t even necessary since readily-available user-side tools to do the work.</p>



<p>Both companies have taken action in the past (including using <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/spotifys-two-million-unauthorized-users-hammered-google-for-alternatives-180326/">technical means</a> and via DMCA notices (<a href="https://torrentfreak.com/deezer-tries-to-shut-down-hacked-pirate-versions-171223/">1</a>,<a href="https://torrentfreak.com/deezer-piles-pressure-on-pirates-deezloader-reborn-throws-in-the-towel-180315/">2</a>,<a href="https://torrentfreak.com/deezer-tries-to-remove-pirate-downloading-tool-but-under-what-law-190202/">3</a>) against circumvention tools) but we were keen to hear about the problems from the companies themselves.</p>



<p>Unlike YouTube, which responded extremely quickly, both Spotify and Deezer failed to respond to our requests for comment, so we remain in the dark on the companies&#8217; policies and whether or not they intend to tighten the noose moving forward.</p>



<p><g class="gr_ gr_122 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="122" data-gr-id="122">That</g> being said, could stream-ripping be less of a problem than it once was?</p>



<p>PRS for Music is a UK organization that pays royalties to its members when their content is performed, broadcast, streamed, downloaded, reproduced, played in public, or used in film and TV.</p>



<p>In July 2017, PRS published a <a href="https://www.prsformusic.com/what-we-do/influencing-policy/stream-ripping">report</a> (which in part relied on data supplied by anti-piracy firm MUSO) <g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="5" data-gr-id="5">indicat</g>ing that between January 2014 and September 2016, the use of stream-ripping services increased by 141.3%.</p>



<p>However, more recent data supplied by MUSO to TorrentFreak suggests that the use of stream-ripping services might be on the wane. In January 2018, the company logged 743.6 million visits to stream-ripping platforms but by January 2019, that figure had decreased to 589.4 million visits.</p>



<p>It should be noted some popular &#8216;ripping&#8217; platforms, such as the 200 million visits per month <a href="https://www.onlinevideoconverter.com/">OnlineVideoConverter</a>, have <g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="5" data-gr-id="5">uses</g> other than simply ripping MP3s from YouTube videos. However, given the rest of the top 10 most-visited platforms are more tightly focused, the decline does seem genuine. </p>



<p>Quite why this is the case isn&#8217;t clearly defined but IFPI&#8217;s recently published <a href="https://www.ifpi.org/news/IFPI-GLOBAL-MUSIC-REPORT-2019">Global Music Report 2019</a> may contain a few subtle hints. The group reported that total revenues for 2018 were US$19.1 billion, a music market growth of 9.7%. And legal streaming played a huge part. </p>



<p>&#8220;Streaming revenue grew by 34.0% and accounted for almost half (47%) of global revenue, driven by a 32.9% increase in paid subscription streaming,&#8221; IFPI reported.</p>



<p>&#8220;There were 255 million users of paid streaming services at the end of 2018 accounting for 37% of total recorded music revenue. Growth in streaming more than offset a 10.1% decline in physical revenue and a 21.2% decline in download revenue.&#8221;</p>



<p>Whether or not former stream-ripping users are now choosing to &#8220;go legal&#8221; will remain to be seen but in the meantime, it&#8217;s clear the record labels consider the activity to be unacceptable<g class="gr_ gr_96 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="96" data-gr-id="96">.</g></p>



<p>In a statement, the BPI told TorrentFreak that music fans often don&#8217;t realize that by ripping music from YouTube &#8220;they are also ripping off artists&#8221; while also helping stream-ripping services to break the law.</p>



<p>&#8220;Stream ripping deprives artists and the creative businesses that invest in their talent of significant <g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-del replaceWithoutSep" id="5" data-gr-id="5">income,</g> and causes real harm &#8211; not least to up and coming musicians who rely on that revenue. Sites shouldn’t be able to so easily encourage and dupe users with such casual slogans as… ‘convert videos in one click’,&#8221; the BPI commented.   </p>



<p>&#8220;The music industry is letting music fans know <g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="5" data-gr-id="5"><g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="5" data-gr-id="5">that stream rippers</g></g> are illegal by taking legal action and closing down the sites – <g class="gr_ gr_4 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="4" data-gr-id="4"><g class="gr_ gr_4 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="4" data-gr-id="4">like</g></g> we did with YouTube-MP3.  Stream rippers also circumvent the protections put in place by YouTube and we hope that, in addition to our work, YouTube itself takes further action.&#8221;</p>



<p>YouTube, for its part, says it is doing all it can to prevent people from ripping content from its site.</p>



<p>&#8220;Once notified of an infringing tool or service that violates our Terms of Service, we take action, including disabling access to the YouTube API. In addition, we work with the music industry to identify and respond to stream ripping entities,&#8221; the company told us.</p>



<p>So at least for now, stream-ripping remains a problem for the music industry but with greater uptake of comprehensive and reasonably-priced legal alternatives, the decline in their use could be set to continue.</p>



<p>Some people argue that there&#8217;s nothing better than having permanent MP3 files on their own machine, particularly when they come for free. Those files can&#8217;t be taken away, at the whim of a label or delivery platform.</p>



<p>But for the most part, interaction with huge local MP3 libraries (unless downloaders put in considerable labeling and organizational effort) offers a second-rate experience, crucially lacking in advanced discovery methods. </p>



<p>In addition to the music, of course, perhaps it is the developing curation systems of legal services that are attracting consumers to today&#8217;s legal offerings? If so, that, in turn, will lead to a natural decline in use of ripping services because, quite frankly, they aren&#8217;t known for being particularly innovative.</p>



<p>So that brings us to the conclusion that whether or not technical measures are put in place to prevent their operation, stream-ripping services will continue to be out-classed by their legal rivals. They may be free but at some point, an outstanding user experience will become the irresistible draw. </p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=170936
title: U.S. Set-Top Box Warning Could Apply to Large Numbers of Streaming Pirates
uri: U-S-Set-Top-Box-Warning-Could-Apply-to-Large-Numbers-of-Streaming-Pir
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/TRGwlsOKEbs/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright is-resized"><img src="media/24891553.image-27.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/image-27.png" alt="" class="wp-image-170941" width="236" height="200"/></figure></div>



<p>With streaming now becoming the preferred method of obtaining video content for huge numbers of Internet users, sales of capable hardware are on the rise.</p>



<p>Devices like Amazon&#8217;s Fire TV Stick, Google&#8217;s Chromecast, Roku&#8217;s Streaming Stick, Apple TV, and the Nvidia Shield are now the tools of choice for millions of users. But while the above are completely legal to market and own, that isn&#8217;t always the case for alternatives from less well-known suppliers.</p>



<p>In most countries, people are able to buy streaming-capable (often Android-based and/or WiFi-enabled) devices over the Internet that don&#8217;t comply with local laws, and not just because they&#8217;re supplied ready-configured for piracy.</p>



<p>In Europe, for example, electronic devices must comply with strict safety, health, and environmental requirements (such as limits on external radio interference), before being able to display the <a href="https://europa.eu/youreurope/business/product/ce-mark/index_en.htm">&#8216;CE&#8217; mark</a> as required by law.</p>



<p>For those produced or sold in the United States, electronic devices can obtain certification and show the FCC logo <em>(above right)</em> providing that, among other things, the interference they cause is under the limits approved by the&nbsp;Federal Communications Commission (FCC).</p>



<p>According to the FCC, however, many devices being marketed, sold and used in the country do not meet the standards. In an Enforcement Advisory published this week, the FCC states that engaging in any of the above <g class="gr_ gr_4 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="4" data-gr-id="4">activites</g> in respect of non-compliant devices is illegal and subject to punishment.</p>



<p>&#8220;The Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission) has observed an increase in the marketing of Video TV Set-Top Boxes, designed to stream Internet-based content, that <g class="gr_ gr_83 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="83" data-gr-id="83">do</g> not comply with FCC equipment marketing requirements,&#8221; the advisory reads.</p>



<p>&#8220;Anyone marketing or operating noncompliant devices should stop immediately. Violators may be subject to substantial monetary penalties that could total more than $147,000 per violation.&#8221;</p>



<p>In this case, the term &#8216;marketing&#8217; is rather broad and defined by the FCC as importing, distributing, advertising or offering non-compliant devices for sale or lease. The $147,000 figure certainly looks scary too, but that&#8217;s only likely to apply to serious offenders <em>(see: <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/47/503"> 47 U.S.C. § 503(b)(2)(D)</a>,  <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/47/1.80">47 CFR §§ 1.80(b)(7)</a>, <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/47/1.80#b_9">47 CFR §§ 1.80(b)(9)</a> )</em></p>



<p>While even non-compliant devices can be used for otherwise legal purposes (streaming Netflix or Amazon Prime, for example), the advisory comes at a time when large numbers of companies are selling devices configured for piracy purposes (or targeted at piracy-focused buyers), which is likely responsible for a decent slice of the observed increase in marketing.</p>



<p>So-called &#8220;fully loaded boxes&#8221; grant access to large volumes of copyrighted content in breach of copyright law and have attracted the negative attention of global anti-piracy coalition the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (ACE). </p>



<p>However, simply using non-compliant devices in the United States is also illegal, meaning that many thousands &#8211; potentially millions &#8211; of people who obtained their streaming devices from non-certified sources in the Far East or even the United States, for example, are breaking the law.</p>



<p>While sellers of illegal devices could indeed become targets for the FCC at any time, it seems unlikely that individuals will be affected as resources are limited are there are much bigger fish to fry.</p>



<p>According to the FCC, its Enforcement Advisories are &#8220;designed to educate businesses about and alert consumers to what&#8217;s required by FCC rules, the purpose of those rules and why they&#8217;re important to consumers, as well as the consequences of failures to comply.&#8221; </p>



<p>With that advice out of the way, users can find out whether their set-top boxes are legal (in terms of hardware at least) by referring to page 2 of the FCC&#8217;s Enforcement Advisory <em>(<a href="media/e50b8f09.DA-19-265A1.pdf" data-original-source="https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-19-265A1.pdf">pdf</a>)</em>.</p>



<p><em> </em></p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=170662
title: Movie Companies Target Showbox ‘Pirate’ Sites in US Court
uri: Movie-Companies-Target-Showbox-Pirate-Sites-in-US-Court
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/T6PE0bFjdoE/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-117504" src="media/d1e001e7.showbox-logo.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/showbox-logo.png" alt="" width="220" height="212"></p>
<p>The movie industry sees online streaming piracy as a prime threat to its revenues.&nbsp; Whether it&#8217;s through dedicated pirate boxes, websites, or apps.</p>
<p>In recent years the major Hollywood studios have mainly targeted sellers of streaming boxes, while a group of smaller filmmakers is focusing more on apps.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Last week, the companies behind the movies &#8220;The Hitman&#8217;s Bodyguard,&#8221; &#8220;London Has Fallen,&#8221; &#8220;Hunter Killer,&#8221; &#8220;I Feel Pretty,&#8221; and &#8220;<span class="fontstyle2">Once Upon a Time in Venice,&#8221; went after the operators of various websites that promote and distribute the Showbox app.</span></p>
<p>The Showbox app, as well as many similarly named clones, are used by millions of people. The apps allow users to stream movies and TV shows via torrents and direct sources, all through a user-friendly Netflix-style interface.</p>
<p>In a lawsuit filed at a U.S. District Court in Hawaii, the movie companies point out that many of the films available through the app are published without permission, which they say results in massive piracy.</p>
<p>&#8220;Plaintiffs bring this action to stop the massive piracy of their motion pictures brought on by the software application Show Box,&#8221; the 58-page complaint begins.</p>
<p>&#8220;The Defendants misleadingly promote the Show Box app as a legitimate means for viewing content to the public, who eagerly install the Show Box app to watch copyright protected content, thereby leading to profit for the Defendants,&#8221; the companies add.</p>
<p>The movie studios list several defendants, who are all suspected of having ties to one or more Showbox-related sites. The first one is <span class="fontstyle0">Qazi Muhammad Zarlish</span> from Pakistan, who allegedly operates &#8216;latestshowboxapp.com.&#8217;</p>
<p>Next up are the India-based digital marketing agency <span class="fontstyle0">Pebblebridge and its </span>employee <span class="fontstyle0">Vishnudath Reddy Mangilpudi, who</span> are linked to several domains including &#8216;<span class="fontstyle0">showbox.fun&#8217;. </span>Hoan Phan and <span class="fontstyle0">Nghi Phan, who are said to be Vietnamese, stand </span>accused of operating &#8216;showboxofficial.com&#8217; and &#8216;<span class="fontstyle0">apkmirrordownload.com&#8217; </span>respectively, complete the list.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/b17b506e.showlaw.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/showlaw.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-170875"/></figure></div>


<p>The site operators are accused of copyright infringement as well as inducement and false advertising. While the sites are (or were) available worldwide, the movie companies state that they have clear ties to the US.</p>
<p>For example, they used American domain name registrars such as Namecheap, hosting services from U.S. based company <span class="fontstyle0">Digital Ocean, and email services from Google and Microsoft.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p>The website operators are believed to profit by offering the app to a broader public. While the software is not directly hosted by all the sites in question, all of their operators are accused of intentionally inducing visitors to engage in copyright-infringing activity.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Some of these users may not even know that the Showbox app is &#8216;illegal,&#8217; the movie companies stress. This may result in innocent people getting sued. This is something these movie makers are well aware of, as most have sued individual users in the past.</p>
<p>&#8220;These Defendants have placed hundreds of individuals in Hawaii if not thousands of individuals in the United States in legal peril for copyright infringement while they hide behind anonymous domain registrations, false identities and addresses, and enjoy the gains from their illicit enterprise,&#8221; the complaint reads.</p>
<p>The movie companies have been trying to shut some of the sites down for a while now. With help from Namecheap, for example, they gathered IP-addresses and email addressed that were linked to some of the domain names.</p>
<p>This leads to some interesting conclusions. One of the defendants, Hoan Phan, used the IP-address <span class="fontstyle0">64.62.174.44</span> to login to the Namecheap account connected to the site <span class="fontstyle0">showboxofficial.com. The same IP-address was also used to share copies of the movies &#8220;Mechanic: Resurrection and &#8220;London Has Fallen.&#8221;</span></p>
<p>The movie companies conclude that Phan must have shared these movies. However, the IP-address in question appears to belong to a proxy or VPN service and could have been used by hundreds, if not thousands of people.&nbsp;</p>
<p>That said, the defendants are not accused of direct copyright infringement. Instead, the movie companies argue that they <span class="fontstyle0">knowingly and materially contributed to the copyright infringement</span> of Showbox users, by promoting the use of the app and showing people where it can be downloaded.</p>
<p>With the lawsuit, they hope to shut the sites down. At the time of writing, they have already partially succeeded at that. Without any court intervention, Latestshowboxapp.com and Showboxofficial.com are no longer linking to the app.</p>
<p>The Showbox copy on apkmirrordownload.com is still up, and Showbox.fun remains available the time of writing. The latter site has put up a large red warning notice, urging people to use legal alternatives instead, but it&#8217;s still linking to Showbox.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/ddb6a090.showboxfun.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/showboxfun.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-170905"/></figure></div>


<p>To stop any ongoing activity, the movie companies request an injunction preventing the site owners from contributing to any infringement of their movies. Any Showbox copies hosted on their servers should be removed as well, they suggest.&nbsp;</p>
<p>In addition, this injunction should also require Internet search engines, hosting companies, domain name registrars, and domain name registries to stop providing access to<span class="fontstyle0"> the domain names through which the defendants distribute and promote Showbox.</span></p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">Finally, there&#8217;s a request for damages as well. In theory, a court could award up to $150,000 in statutory damages for willful copyright infringement, per movie. Provided they are guilty, of course.</span></p>
<p>Most previous cases against alleged &#8216;pirate&#8217; site operators have resulted in default judgments where the rightsholders are granted an injunction and a damages award. However, the recent stream-ripper case against FLVTO.biz and 2conv.com show that, for foreign operators, it <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/youtube-ripper-wins-dismissal-of-record-labels-us-piracy-lawsuit-190123/">can pay off</a> to put up a defense.&nbsp;</p>
<p><em>&#8212;</em></p>
<p><em>A copy of the complaint from Hunter Killer Productions, Inc., TBV Productions, LLC, Venice PI, LLC, Bodyguard Productions, Inc., and LHF Productions, Inc., and all associated exhibits is available <a href="media/2615a262.Complaint_Binder_20-013C-1.pdf" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/Complaint_Binder_20-013C-1.pdf">here (pdf)</a>.&nbsp;</em></p><p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171149
title: EU Council of Ministers Approve Copyright Directive, Including Article 17 (13)
uri: EU-Council-of-Ministers-Approve-Copyright-Directive-Including-Article
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/vlHyKR6a-xE/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/8eded133.eu-copyright.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/eu-copyright.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-136985"/></figure></div>



<p>Back in 2016, the European Commission announced plans to&nbsp;<a href="https://torrentfreak.com/eu-proposes-mandatory-piracy-filters-for-online-services-160914/">modernize EU copyright law</a>, a move that initially received very little mainstream attention.</p>



<p>By 2018, there was intensive lobbying both in favor and against two extremely controversial elements of the Copyright Directive.</p>



<p>Article 11 (later renamed to Article 15) was decried by opponents as a &#8220;tax&#8221; on links to Internet-based news, contrary to the claims of publishers who felt that such a mechanism is necessary to prevent online platforms from monetizing their reporting.</p>



<p>Article 13 (renamed to Article 17 in the <a href="media/059be3d3.A-8-2018-0245-AM-271-271_EN.pdf" data-original-source="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/A-8-2018-0245-AM-271-271_EN.pdf">final text</a>) was framed by supporters as a much-needed tool to ensure copyright holders are fairly remunerated for content published on platforms like YouTube without their permission. Opponents feared this would inevitably lead to upload filters and censorship.</p>



<p><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/eu-parliament-adopts-copyright-directive-including-article-13-190326/">On March 26</a>, a proposal to allow amendments to the text of the directive was voted down, with&nbsp;<a href="media/656f558c.Screenshot_14.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/Screenshot_14.png">317 in favor and 312 against</a>.&nbsp;The EU Parliament then moved to vote on the entire text of the Copyright Directive without amendments.</p>



<p>The Copyright Directive was adopted, with 348 Members of Parliament in favor, 274 against, and 36 abstentions.</p>



<p>That, however, wasn&#8217;t the end of the road as the legislation still needed to be approved by the Council of Ministers (the EU&#8217;s main legislative body) before formal adoption. That vote took place a few moments ago during the Agriculture and Fisheries Council.</p>



<p>As <a href="https://twitter.com/Senficon/status/1117679032890478594">highlighted</a> by Julia Reda MEP earlier this morning, a majority of 55% of  Member States, representing 65% of the population, was required to adopt the legislation. That was easily achieved with 71.26% in favor, so the Copyright Directive will now pass into law.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="media/69fad9e9.directive-adopted.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/directive-adopted.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171167"/></figure>



<p>As the image above shows, several countries voted against adoption, including Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Poland, Finland, and Sweden. Belgium, Estonia, and Slovenia <g class="gr_ gr_116 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="116" data-gr-id="116">absta</g>ined.</p>



<p>But in the final picture that just wasn&#8217;t enough, with both Germany and the UK voting in favor, the Copyright Directive will now be adopted.</p>



<p>&#8220;The entertainment lobby will not stop here, over the next two years, they will push for national implementations that ignore users’ fundamental rights,&#8221; <a href="https://twitter.com/Senficon/status/1117713424555835394">comments</a> Julia Reda.</p>



<p>&#8220;It will be more important than ever for civil society to keep up the pressure in the Member States!&#8221;  </p>



<p><em>Breaking news, this piece will be updated</em></p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171142
title: Starz Goes on Twitter Meta-Censorship Spree to Cover Up TV-Show Leaks
uri: Starz-Goes-on-Twitter-Meta-Censorship-Spree-to-Cover-Up-TV-Show-Leaks
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/TQ54mJTPaus/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-61200" src="media/571f10fd.face-palm.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/face-palm.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="133">Last week we <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/promo-screeners-of-american-gods-and-other-tv-shows-leak-online-190408/">posted a news article</a> documenting how several TV-show episodes had leaked online before their official release.</p>
<p>Due to the leaks, complete seasons of unreleased TV-shows such as “The Spanish Princess,” “Ramy,” and “The Red Line,” surfaced on pirate sites. In most cases, there were visible signs revealing that the leaks were sourced from promotional screeners.</p>
<p>The leaks also hit Starz, as three then-unreleased episodes from its TV series “American Gods&#8221; appeared online as well. The American entertainment company was obviously not happy with that, but its response was rather unconventional.</p>
<p>Soon after the news was published, Starz issued a takedown request through The Social Element Agency, requesting Twitter to remove our tweet to our own article. Twitter was quick to comply and removed the tweet that supposedly infringed Starz copyrights.&nbsp;</p>
<p>We disagreed. The article in question never linked to any infringing material. It did include a screenshot from a leaked episode, showing the screener watermarks, but those watermarks were central to the story, as <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/starz-doesnt-like-news-about-leaked-tv-shows-takes-down-torrentfreak-tweet-190411/">we explained in a follow-up piece</a>.</p>
<p>The good news is that many legal scholars, journalists, and lawyers agree with our stance. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (<a href="https://www.eff.org/">EFF</a>), for example, responded that Starz has no right to silence TorrentFreak and also shared that opinion on Twitter, where many others chimed in as well.&nbsp;</p>
<p>That&#8217;s when things started to spiral out of control. Starz takedown efforts only encouraged more people to share the original story about the leaks, which is a classic example of the &#8216;Streisand Effect&#8217;. However, Starz didn&#8217;t budge and issued takedown notices against those tweets as well.</p>
<p>EFF&#8217;s tweet, for example, is no longer available now, as can be seen below.&nbsp;</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/b1feed2a.efftweet.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/efftweet.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171159"/></figure></div>


<p>However, that was just the beginning. With more and more people chiming in over the weekend, Starz began to target tweets that linked to our follow-up article as well. </p>
<p>In other words, Starz started taking down tweets containing links to an article where we explained how a tweet to our original article about the leaks had been removed. This is what happened to <a href="https://twitter.com/mathewi">Mathew Ingram</a> who describes the situation as Kafka-esque.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><a href="https://twitter.com/mathewi/status/1117415486235529216"><img src="media/6ed7b8e9.ingram.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/ingram.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171156"/></a></figure></div>


<p><span style="font-size: inherit;">&#8220;I think it&#8217;s an egregious over-reaching interpretation of the DMCA and I&#8217;m disappointed that Twitter agreed to take my tweet down — and a similar tweet by the EFF — when they are clearly not infringing,&#8221; Ingram tells us, commenting on the removal.</span></p>
<p>&#8220;And I think it&#8217;s extremely disturbing that Twitter is taking down tweets that merely have links to news articles in them,&#8221; he adds.</p>
<p>Ingram&#8217;s tweet went viral and encouraged even more people to share our original article, as well as the follow-up. Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales decided to join in as well, for example.&nbsp;</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><a href="https://twitter.com/jimmy_wales/status/1117445247578013698"><img src="media/262563e3.wales.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/wales.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171151"/></a></figure></div>


<p>Others saw it as a good opportunity to cross a Twitter goal from their bucket lists, such as journalist <a href="https://twitter.com/robpegoraro/status/1117568682060685312">Rob Pegoraro</a>.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><a href="https://twitter.com/robpegoraro/status/1117568682060685312"><img src="media/508df089.rob.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/rob.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171154"/></a></figure></div>


<p>The overzealous takedown requests (we counted more than two dozen) are no joke, of course. And there are plenty of legal scholars who are not happy with this type of overreach. This includes Annemarie Bridy, who kindly backs us amidst all this drama.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><a href="https://twitter.com/AnnemarieBridy/status/1117442167192993792"><img src="media/34878d57.bridy2.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/bridy2.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171155"/></a></figure></div>


<p>Ironically, Bridy also posted a tweet that linked to our follow up coverage about the removed tweets, which <a href="https://twitter.com/AnnemarieBridy/status/1117554611705901057">was removed as well</a>. To stop this type of abuse, she suggests changing the law so that senders of these type of notices can be held accountable.</p>
<p>&#8220;We really need a statutory cause of action—with statutory damages equal to those for infringement &amp; attorneys fees—for copyright misuse. It currently exists only as an empty letter in the DMCA and a useless equitable defense to a claim of infringement,&#8221; Bridy <a href="https://twitter.com/AnnemarieBridy/status/1117486403175063552">notes</a>.</p>
<p>EFF is similarly critical. The digital rights organization labels Starz efforts as <a href="https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2019/04/effs-tweet-about-overzealous-dmca-takedown-now-subject-overzealous-takedown">overzealous</a> and has filed a counternotice to get their own tweet restored. </p>
<p>The most recent takedown requests are different from the one we received. They are sent directly by a Starz &#8220;Digital Marketing Specialist,&#8221; and not through a third-party company.</p>
<p>TorrentFreak previously reached out to Starz&#8217; representative for a comment on the takedown efforts, but we have yet to receive a reply.</p>
<p>Many agree that the broad takedown requests go too far and, at this point, we don&#8217;t think that Starz is very happy with it either. Instead of suppressing the news about the leaks, the takedown notices are only encouraging more people to share it. </p>
<p>Now let&#8217;s see if tweets to this article are also targeted by Starz&#8230;</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><a href="https://twitter.com/JeremyLittau/status/1117511527832150017"><img src="media/72287821.Screenshot_1-1.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/Screenshot_1-1.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171157"/></a></figure></div>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171217
title: Top 10 Most Pirated Movies of The Week on BitTorrent – 04/15/19
uri: Top-10-Most-Pirated-Movies-of-The-Week-on-BitTorrent-04-15-19
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/zbMTDvKONg8/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-170798" src="media/eee361c2.glass.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/glass.png" alt="" width="299" height="183">This week we have two newcomers in our chart.</p>
<p>Glass is the most downloaded movie.</p>
<p>The data for our weekly download chart is estimated by TorrentFreak, and is for informational and educational reference only. All the movies in the list are Web-DL/Webrip/HDRip/BDrip/DVDrip unless stated otherwise.</p>
<p><a href="http://torrentfreak.com/category/dvdrip/feed/"><strong>RSS feed</strong></a>&nbsp;for the articles of the recent weekly movie download charts.</p>
<h5>This week&#8217;s most downloaded movies are:</h5>
<table class="css hover">
<thead>
<tr>
<th width="12%"><strong>Movie Rank</strong></th>
<th width="15%"><strong>Rank <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-pirated-movies-of-the-week-on-bittorrent-04-08-19/">last week</a></strong></th>
<th><strong>Movie name</strong></th>
<th width="18%"><strong>IMDb Rating / Trailer</strong></th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tfoot>
<tr>
<td colspan="4">Most downloaded movies via torrents</td>
</tr>
</tfoot>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td><strong>1</strong></td>
<td>(1)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6823368">Glass</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6823368">6.9</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBL6COBGjCA">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>2</strong></td>
<td>(4)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5886046/">Escape Room</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5886046/">6.4</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dSKUoV0SNI">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>3</strong></td>
<td>(2)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2386490/">How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2386490/">7.8</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLTDtbYmdWM">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>4</strong></td>
<td>(&#8230;)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1987680/">The Upside</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1987680/">6.5</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dt1EEV-Szu4">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>5</strong></td>
<td>(5)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1477834/">Aquaman</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1477834/">7.7</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmqJJqFX_CU">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>6</strong></td>
<td>(3)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4701182/">Bumblebee</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4701182/">7.0</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcwmDAYt22k">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>7</strong></td>
<td>(7)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4633694/">Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4633694/">8.6</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tg52up16eq0">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>8</strong></td>
<td>(&#8230;)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8563452/">Crypto</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8563452/">5.1</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYZut3DWvek">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>9</strong></td>
<td>(8)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7959026/">The Mule</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7959026/">7.1</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_QksSzK7sI">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>10</strong></td>
<td>(back)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4154664/">Captain Marvel</a> (HDTS)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4154664/">7.2</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0LHxvxdRnYc">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171136
title: Premiere of Final Game of Thrones Season Triggers Piracy Bonanza
uri: Premiere-of-Final-Game-of-Thrones-Season-Triggers-Piracy-Bonanza
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/zs4XL7qd6bo/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-171208" src="media/0a58794a.thrones-1.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/thrones-1.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="193">Yesterday the eighth and final season of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_of_Thrones">Game of Thrones</a> premiered, generating a massive demand on both legal and less-authorized channels.</p>
<p>The first episode came out a <a href="https://consequenceofsound.net/2019/04/directv-now-releases-game-of-thrones-season-8-premiere-early/">few hours early</a> for some people on DirectTV Now, adding to the long history of Game of Thrones leaks.</p>
<p>Not much later, the season premiere was also widely available on various pirate sites. The first pirate releases were not sourced from the leak, however. They came from Amazon and were put online just minutes the show officially became available online.</p>
<p>Traditionally, Game of Thrones has been the most pirated TV-show in history, and it soon became apparent that this may also be the case with the final season.</p>
<p>At the time of writing, more than 120,000 people are actively sharing one of the three most-popular torrents. And at The Pirate Bay, the five most popular releases are all Game of Thrones episodes.&nbsp;</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/9eef9644.thrones8.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/thrones8.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171206"/></figure></div>


<p>The most-shared torrent at the moment, with tens of thousands of peers, is a 3.34 GB rip from the group MEMENTO. Like every year, the total number of downloads is eventually expected to run to several million per episode.</p>
<p>Part of this unofficial audience prefers piracy over a paid subscription. However, the fact that pirate copies are available before the official release in many countries doesn’t help either.</p>
<p>TorrentFreak spoke to the operator of one of the most popular torrent sites, who prefers not to be named. However, he informed us that the Game of Thrones premiere resulted in a 20% boost in visitors this morning.</p>
<p>This uptick is similar to what he&#8217;s seen with Game of Thrones episodes in the past. On average, the peak goes down a bit throughout the season. Then, for the season finale, there&#8217;s a similar increase again.</p>
<p>In absolute numbers, there are fewer people sharing the episodes via BitTorrent than a few years ago. The absolute record dates back to 2015, when <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/game-of-thrones-season-finale-breaks-piracy-record-150615/">over a quarter million</a> people were simultaneously sharing a single file. This is in part because the piracy ecosystem has evolved.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Torrent sites used to be the main distribution platforms for pirated TV shows, but unauthorized streaming sites are much more popular today. These sites don&#8217;t make any viewing numbers public, but they should be good for millions of &#8216;pirate&#8217; views as well.&nbsp;</p>
<p>HBO and other related rightsholders are already working hard to take fresh links offline, or at least <a href="https://www.lumendatabase.org/notices/18373005">remove them from search engines</a>, but history has shown that putting a serious dent in Game of Thrones piracy isn&#8217;t easy.&nbsp;</p><p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=170834
title: Ukrainian Cyberpolice Unit Announces Launch of “Operation Pirates”
uri: Ukrainian-Cyberpolice-Unit-Announces-Launch-of-Operation-Pirates
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/Qh-F4n3DlSw/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/70326b63.piratkeyb-e1476968827887.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/piratkeyb-e1476968827887.png" alt="" class="wp-image-108110"/></figure></div>



<p>Under pressure from entertainment industry groups and broadcasters, governments around the world are increasingly paying more attention to the issue of online piracy.</p>



<p>What was once perceived as an issue for the companies having their content pirated, is now being painted as a threat to national prosperity<g class="gr_ gr_180 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="180" data-gr-id="180">.</g></p>



<p>Those in power are now warned that online piracy groups are increasingly criminal in nature, their activities deprive states of tax and other revenues, while legitimate jobs are put under threat. Ukraine, once a haven for pirate sites, is now apparently paying attention<g class="gr_ gr_19 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="19" data-gr-id="19">.</g></p>



<p>After being regularly <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/us-calls-out-dozens-of-countries-on-yearly-piracy-watchlist-180430/">featured</a> in the USTR&#8217;s &#8216;Priority Watch List&#8217;, the Ukrainian government has just announced &#8220;Operation Pirates&#8221;, an <g class="gr_ gr_140 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins doubleReplace replaceWithoutSep" id="140" data-gr-id="140">anti-piracy</g> initiative aimed at raising awareness of online piracy in an effort to counter it.</p>



<p>Beginning the second week in April and set to run for a month, the campaign is spearheaded by the Ukrainian cyberpolice under the watchful eye of division chief Sergey Demedyuk.</p>



<p>&#8220;We must learn how to respect intellectual works, because at first glance, watching a videotape on a pirate resource does not pose any threat to the security of society,&#8221; Demedyuk says.</p>



<p>&#8220;But, at the same time, such actions provoke perpetrators to bypass legislation to violate the rights of citizens who own this property. Therefore, the culture of payment for copyrighted video and audio content online should be developed in Ukraine.&#8221;</p>



<p>Demedyuk notes that pirate site operators aren&#8217;t interested in simply providing their visitors with free content. Their motivation is to generate revenue from advertising placed on their unlicensed platforms.</p>



<p>&#8220;Such earnings can start at $500 a month from one site.&nbsp;At the same time, there is no guarantee that these resources carry no malware,&#8221; he adds.</p>



<p>According to Demedyuk, the National Police of Ukraine is now establishing a public-private partnership in order to tackle these sites. To this end, a Memorandum of Cooperation has been signed by the authorities and major industry groups.</p>



<p>The signatories include Starlight Media (Ukraine&#8217;s largest broadcasting group), Media Group Ukraine (one of the largest media holding companies), TV channel Studio 1 + 1, Discovery Networks, IFPI-member Music Industry Association of Ukraine, and the Ukrainian Anti-Piracy Association.</p>



<p>At the time of writing, the Memorandum itself hasn&#8217;t been published by the government and none of the companies and organizations detailed above have made its details available via their web portals. Nevertheless, recent actions show that Ukraine is taking online piracy more seriously.</p>



<p>Last year, police <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/ukraine-cyberpolice-shut-down-pirate-streaming-site-180630/">shut down <g class="gr_ gr_3 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="3" data-gr-id="3">Olainfilm</g></a>, a streaming site with half a million users. Then in February 2019, authorities announced that dozens of sites, allegedly operated by the same man, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/ukraine-cyberpolice-shut-down-dozens-of-pirate-sites-190204/">had also been closed down</a>.</p>



<p>According to new figures released this week by Ukraine&#8217;s cyberpolice, &#8220;100 pirate online cinemas&#8221; have been shuttered since the start of 2019.</p>



<p></p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171256
title: Demonoid Founder ‘Deimos’ is Believed to Have Passed Away
uri: Demonoid-Founder-Deimos-is-Believed-to-Have-Passed-Away
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/HNgeLkj3vmY/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-144142" src="media/9766c5db.demonoidlargnew-e1504614957760.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/demonoidlargnew-e1504614957760.jpg" alt="" width="250" height="250">As one of the oldest torrent communities, the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demonoid">Demonoid</a> tracker has gone through many ups and downs over the years.</p>
<p>The site has disappeared for months, more than once, but always reappeared.</p>
<p>Early last year things were looking quite positive for the site. Founder and operator &#8216;Deimos&#8217; was committed to <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/demonoid-hopes-to-return-to-its-former-glory-170910/">rebuilding</a> the site back to the thriving community it once was, but at the end of the summer new problems emerged.</p>
<p>Initially, there were some technical issues and isolated downtime. However, as the weeks passed on, the site disappeared completely. All the while, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/demonoid-goes-down-while-owner-remains-missing-180924/">Deimos was nowhere to be found</a>.</p>
<p>This was particularly unusual as some staffers chatted with him nearly every day but that changed abruptly. Months went by without a word from Deimos. Meanwhile, some of Demonoid&#8217;s domains started to expire.</p>
<p>Roughly two months ago, TorrentFreak received an anonymous tip which came as a complete shock. The short email pointed to information that suggested Deimos had passed away following a tragic accident.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The information we received included several pointers that we could indirectly link to Demonoid&#8217;s founder. However, despite overwhelming circumstantial evidence, we were unable to confirm 100% that it was the same person.&nbsp;</p>
<p>We shared this information with Demonoid staffer &#8216;phaze1G,&#8217; who discussed it among the team. Slowly but steadily, the realization started to sink in that all signs indeed suggested that Deimos was no longer alive.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Although there&#8217;s no complete certainty, phaze1G decided to inform the Demonoid community about the findings this morning. This wasn&#8217;t an easy decision and took weeks of consideration and attempts to get more clarity.</p>
<p>&#8220;With great sadness, I want to announce that Deimos, the founder of Demonoid known as someone who was one of the earliest and influential people on the torrent scene since it&#8217;s beginning has died in an accident back on August, 2018,&#8221; phaze1G <a href="https://www.demonoid.info/announcements/what-happened-with-demonoid-and-deimos/">writes</a>.</p>
<p>The date of the accident, which was the result of a panic attack, coincides with Deimos&#8217; disappearance. In addition, there were further signs that suggest that Deimos was indeed the victim.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Phaze1G and other Demonoid staffers are devastated by the sad news and have put up a <a href="https://www.demonoid.info/commemoration/index.html">commemoration</a> page to remember Demonoid&#8217;s founder.</p>
<p>&#8220;Our comeback kid Demonoid will now rest after years of fighting along with his father,&#8221; the commemoration page reads.&nbsp;</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/411294ef.deimos-.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/deimos-.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171272"/></figure></div>


<p>After the initial disappearance, there were reports that someone logged in to the site under his account. In hindsight, phaze1G believes that this may have been a friend or family member, who wiped the server, perhaps after making a backup.&nbsp;</p>
<p>&#8220;It was someone with enough tech skills such as friends, family or Umlauf, so currently there is at least one person who holds the database of Demonoid and if it ever comes back that person will not be Deimos,&#8221; phaze1G notes.&nbsp;</p>
<p>For now, the remaining staff have no idea where to go next. They created a temporary <a href="https://www.demonoid.info/">forum</a> a while ago to keep the community going, but without Deimos, the spirit of the site is gone.</p>
<p>&#8220;Demonoid Fora was formed as a reminder of Demonoid and Deimos, but I have no idea what to do next, or what to do regarding Demonoid at all. Demonoid is and always was Deimos&#8217; child. Umlauf was there to help when it was hard, so without those 2 giants, there is no Demonoid.</p>
<p>&#8220;Even if we recreate it from the ground with 99% identical look and features, it will not be it without Deimos and won&#8217;t have that feeling of home it once had,&#8221; phaze1G adds.</p>
<p>Deimos started the site in his early twenties. While he handed over the reins to outsiders for a few years, he took over the helm again two years ago, hoping to return the site to its <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/demonoid-hopes-to-return-to-its-former-glory-170910/">former glory</a>.&nbsp;</p>
<p>In the months leading up to his disappearance, he worked on the site continuously to achieve this goal, showing the passion and commitment many staffers knew him for.</p>
<p>&#8220;Many things were happening behind the scene, he cared so much about users&#8217; privacy and replied almost to everyone who private message him and asked how he was and stuff. He was really a friendly person,&#8221; phaze1G says.</p>
<p>&#8220;I&#8217;m glad that I had a chance to know him and I will miss him dearly, not because of Demonoid only, but because of the person, he was,&#8221; he adds.</p><p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171245
title: Germany: Upload Filters Can Only Be Prevented “As Far As Possible”
uri: Germany-Upload-Filters-Can-Only-Be-Prevented-As-Far-As-Possible
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/zDewlrxt02g/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/8eded133.eu-copyright.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/eu-copyright.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-136985"/></figure></div>



<p>On Monday, the EU Council of Ministers approved the Copyright Directive, which includes the controversial Article 17 (formerly 13).</p>



<p>The law requires platforms like YouTube and Facebook, for example, to sign licensing agreements with creators in order to use their content<g class="gr_ gr_129 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="129" data-gr-id="129">.</g></p>



<p><g class="gr_ gr_129 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="129" data-gr-id="129">If</g> that is not possible, the platforms will have a responsibility to ensure that infringing content uploaded by users is taken down and not re-uploaded to their services.</p>



<p>Much of the furious debate leading up to the initial adoption of the Copyright Directive by the EU Parliament (March 26, 348 Members of Parliament in favor, 274 against, and 36 abstentions) centered on the fear that platforms including (but not limited to) the above would have to install upload filters to comply with the take down and stay down requirements.</p>



<p>Proponents, on the other hand, said that the <a href="media/059be3d3.A-8-2018-0245-AM-271-271_EN.pdf" data-original-source="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/A-8-2018-0245-AM-271-271_EN.pdf">text</a> doesn&#8217;t mention upload filters at <g class="gr_ gr_6 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-del replaceWithoutSep" id="6" data-gr-id="6">all,</g> and that those claiming otherwise were being alarmist in order to prevent the Directive from passing. It&#8217;s perhaps telling that no one has yet presented any workable alternative to upload filters.</p>



<p>In a statement issued by Germany in the wake of Monday&#8217;s vote, the government effectively admits that upload filters are not a great idea but will be required under Article 17 (formerly 13) if no one can come up with a better solution. In fact, it says their use is &#8220;likely&#8221;.</p>



<p>&#8220;There is indeed consensus that creators should be able to partake in the exploitation of their works by upload platforms. Article 17 of the Directive establishes an obligation to ensure the permanent &#8216;stay down&#8217; of protected content which raises the likely use of algorithmic solutions (&#8216;upload filters&#8217;) which have raised serious concerns and broad critique among the German public,&#8221; the <a href="media/260ac6e7.imfname_10895457.pdf" data-original-source="https://www.parlament.gv.at/PAKT/EU/XXVI/EU/06/18/EU_61832/imfname_10895457.pdf">statement</a> reads.</p>



<p>Noting that that government wants to support performers, authors, and indeed all creators to use technology to create and distribute their work, it adds that the protection of that work and the right to earn revenue from it is paramount.</p>



<p>However, it also wishes to respect fundamental rights wherever possible, while <g class="gr_ gr_8 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="8" data-gr-id="8">preserv</g>ing the right to use protected works &#8220;where permitted by legislation&#8221; on upload platforms.</p>



<p><g class="gr_ gr_7 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="7" data-gr-id="7">The</g> government says that the European Commission is &#8220;obliged to enter into a dialog with all concerned parties&#8221; to develop guidelines for the application of Article 17, but that doesn&#8217;t guarantee that &#8220;upload filters&#8221; won&#8217;t be required if all else fails.</p>



<p>&#8220;The government, therefore, assumes that the dialog will be borne out of the desire to ensure appropriate remuneration for creators, as far as possible prevent &#8216;upload filters&#8217;, safeguard freedom of speech and preserve user rights,&#8221; it writes, as per a translation by <a href="https://twitter.com/schwemer/status/1117733916411088896">Sebastian Schwemer</a>.</p>



<p>So, &#8220;..as far as possible prevent &#8216;upload filters'&#8221; is apparently the standard for Germany, probably the single most powerful player in the EU. Given the reputation of filtering technologies to go wrong at the worst possible time, opponents of the Directive will be saying &#8220;told you so.&#8221;</p>



<p>On the plus side, Germany appears to have listened to some of the general <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/german-data-privacy-commissioner-sounds-alarm-over-upload-filter-oligopoly-190301/">concerns</a> previously voiced by its own Federal Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information.</p>



<p>It notes that the EU &#8220;should support the development of open-source technologies with open interfaces (APIs)&#8221; while finding solutions that &#8220;counter a <em>de facto</em> copyright register in the hands of dominating platforms via public, transparent reporting processes.&#8221;</p>



<p>The German statement also insists that the new rules will only be aimed at &#8220;market-dominating&#8221; platforms and will specifically exclude sites like Wikipedia, Github, blogs, forums, messenger services like WhatsApp, and cloud storage platforms. But, of course, time will tell &#8211; the Internet tends to develop at a pace faster than law and nothing offered in this statement is legally binding.</p>



<p>EU member states will have two years to implement the grand aspirations of the Copyright Directive into local law, and that includes those who voted against it &#8211; Netherlands, Luxembourg, Poland, Italy, and Finland &#8211; who have negative views of the legislation.</p>



<p>&#8220;The objectives of this Directive were to enhance the good functioning of the internal market and to stimulate innovation, creativity, investment and production of new content, also in the digital environment. The signatories support these objectives,&#8221; the five countries said in a joint statement.</p>



<p>&#8220;However, in our view, the final text of the Directive fails to deliver adequately on the above-mentioned aims. We believe that the Directive in its current form is a step back for the Digital Single Market rather than a step forward<g class="gr_ gr_56 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="56" data-gr-id="56">.</g></p>



<p>&#8220;Most notably we regret that the Directive does not strike the right balance between the protection of rights holders and the interests of EU citizens and companies. It <g class="gr_ gr_4 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation replaceWithoutSep" id="4" data-gr-id="4">therefore</g> risks to hinder innovation rather than promote it and to have a negative impact [on] the competitiveness of the European Digital Single Market.&#8221;</p>



<p>While YouTube and Facebook already have filtering systems in place, they aren&#8217;t the only players in town. It seems likely, therefore, that the next two years may yet prove as controversial as the two that preceded them. Memes are probably safe, but other content could have a bumpy ride.</p>



<p> </p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171332
title: ‘Game of Thrones Season Premiere Pirated 54 million Times in a Day’
uri: 2019-04-17-
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/lMOseldfILc/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-171208" src="media/0a58794a.thrones-1.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/thrones-1.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="193">Last Sunday, the long-awaited final season of the hit series Game of Thrones aired in dozens of countries worldwide.</p>
<p>The show has broken several piracy records over the years and thus far this week, there has been another <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/premiere-of-final-game-of-thrones-season-triggers-piracy-bonanza-190415/">piracy bonanza</a>.</p>
<p>As usual, the torrent download figures quickly ran into the millions. However, little is known about the traffic that goes to web-based streaming portals, which have outgrown traditional file-sharing sites in recent years.</p>
<p>One of the main problems is that it&#8217;s impossible for outsiders to know exactly how many visitors pirate streaming services get. Traffic data for these sites are not public, which makes it difficult to put an exact figure on the number of views one particular video has.</p>
<p>Piracy monitoring firm <a href="https://www.muso.com/">MUSO</a> hasn&#8217;t shied away from this unexplored territory though and has now released some hard numbers.</p>
<p>According to MUSO, the premiere episode of the seventh season of Game of Thrones has been pirated more than 54 million times during the first day alone. This massive number is largely driven by streaming websites.</p>
<p>For comparison, HBO&#8217;s official, or legitimate, viewing numbers add up to just 17.4 million.</p>
<p>The data reveals that online streaming sites accounted for 76.6% of all pirate views, followed by web downloads at 12.2%. Public torrent sites were good for another 10.8% and private torrent sites close the row with 0.5%.</p>
<p>MUSO&#8217;s finding are partly based on data from SimilarWeb, which uses a sample of roughly 200 million ‘devices’ to estimate website traffic. Website visits are then seen as “downloads or view,” and the sample data is extrapolated into the totals. Whether people actually saw the full episode is unknown.</p>
<p>This web-based approach also means that certain types of pirate traffic are not taken into account. This includes data from Usenet and most of the pirate streaming boxes that have become popular in recent years.</p>
<p>TorrentFreak asked the company how it knows if a certain page hit actually generated a view but, at the time of writing, we have yet to hear back.&nbsp;</p>
<p>In addition to the pirate numbers and sources, MUSO also revealed the top countries where the Game of Thrones premiere was accessed. India is in the lead here with 9.5 million pirate hits, followed by China and the US with 5.2 and 4 million respectively.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The top ten of countries with the most Game of Thrones pirates is completed by the UK, Nigeria, Iran, Kenya, France, Canada, and Australia, as seen below.&nbsp;</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/c2bae30f.musogot.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/musogot.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171338"/></figure></div>


<p>While it&#8217;s clear that Game of Thrones is widely popular among pirates, the data doesn&#8217;t show why that is. In some regions, it may not be available, and where it is, the price for a subscription can be too steep for some. Instead of missing out, people then choose to pirate instead.</p>
<p>According to Andy Chatterley, CEO of MUSO, it is important for rightsholders not to ignore these numbers, no matter what a person&#8217;s reason to pirate is.</p>
<p dir="ltr">“Regardless of rationale, the piracy figures for just the first 24 hours since the episode aired demonstrate that these audiences cannot &#8211; and should not &#8211; be ignored,&#8221;&nbsp;Chatterley says.</p>
<p dir="ltr">The main goal for HBO is to, eventually, convert these pirates into paying customers. They are some of the most passional consumers after all.</p>
<p dir="ltr">&#8220;[T]his data shows that consumers are still being driven to unlicensed sources to find content. It’s imperative that rights holders understand that piracy audiences are some of their most dedicated fans, which, above all else, presents a vast commercial opportunity,&#8221; MUSO&#8217;s CEO adds.</p><p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171281
title: Top Film Director Sees Piracy as Most Successful Form of Distribution
uri: Top-Film-Director-Sees-Piracy-as-Most-Successful-Form-of-Distribution
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/MfWgf2BRj0Y/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-171299" src="media/0a6b9382.werner-1.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/werner-1.jpg" alt="" width="222" height="235">The vast majority of filmmakers are not happy with online piracy. They would rather see people using paid platforms or services.</p>
<p>This is also true for German Director <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Werner_Herzog">Werner Herzog</a>, who has won many prestigious awards during his more than 50-year career.</p>
<p>A few days ago, the director received a lifetime achievement award at the <a href="https://www.visionsdureel.ch/">Visions du Réel</a> Film Festival in Nyon. During a masterclass, the topic of piracy came up, which prompted Herzog to share some interesting thoughts.</p>
<p>When Herzog released his first film in 1962, movie piracy wasn&#8217;t an issue. However, that clearly changed in recent years.</p>
<p>During the discussion, Ukrainian producer <a href="https://dokweb.net/database/persons/biography/e0b9fc69-a482-4672-afb3-b2bfe06c9bbd/illia-gladshtein">Illia Gladshtein</a> said that the legal availability of Herzog&#8217;s films is far from optimal. Often the only way to see them is through torrent sites. While piracy is a sensitive topic among filmmakers, the German director certainly realizes its potential.</p>
<p>&#8220;Piracy has been the most successful form of distribution worldwide,&#8221; Herzog told the audience.</p>
<p>While the 76-year old director doesn&#8217;t like piracy or seeks to promote it, he&#8217;s fine with people downloading his films without permission, if there are no legal alternatives available.</p>
<p>&#8220;If you don’t get [films] through Netflix or state-sponsored television in your country, then you go and access it as a pirate,&#8221; Herzog noted, <a href="https://www.screendaily.com/news/piracy-is-the-most-successful-form-of-distribution-says-werner-herzog-/5138586.article">quoted</a> by Screen.</p>
<p>&#8220;I don’t like it because I would like to earn some money with my films. But if someone like you steals my films through the internet or whatever, fine, you have my blessing,&#8221; the director added.</p>
<p>Availability remains an important talking point. Most of the questions the director receives nowadays are from teenagers who ask him where they can find his films.</p>
<p>Luckily, his back catalog is now easier to access through legal streaming platforms, Blu-Rays or DVDs. That&#8217;s probably a good thing, since 15-year olds generally know their way around pirate sites.</p>
<p>Herzog&#8217;s comments show that even some of the most respected filmmakers see some benefit in piracy. For them, it&#8217;s often more important that their films can be seen by a wide audience.</p>
<p>This means that &#8216;defeating&#8217; piracy ultimately starts with making sure that legal availability is in order.</p>
<p>&#8211;</p>
<p style="text-align: right;"><sup>Werner Herzog photo by <a href="media/2d26aeb1.Werner_Herzog" data-original-source="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Werner_Herzog">Nicolas Genin</a></sup></p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171352
title: UK Porn Filters Could Mean Sweaty Palms For Piracy Blockers
uri: UK-Porn-Filters-Could-Mean-Sweaty-Palms-For-Piracy-Blockers
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/l7ykMjmNrWY/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright is-resized"><img src="media/206e821a.censored-china.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/censored-china.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-153780" width="261" height="180"/></figure></div>



<p>Before the dawn of the mainstream Internet, underage access to pornographic content meant trying to sneak a glance over <g class="gr_ gr_15 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="15" data-gr-id="15">someone&#8217;s</g> shoulder at a well-thumbed adult magazine.</p>



<p>Or, if you were &#8216;lucky&#8217;, finding a VHS cassette in a friend&#8217;s dad&#8217;s cupboard, behind the coats and shoes, in a box, inside another box, in an envelope marked &#8220;holiday video&#8221;. Such things apparently happened.</p>



<p>With the dawn of the Internet, things have certainly changed. With just a few clicks, one can find pornographic material, with &#8216;graphic&#8217; often being the <g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del gr-progress sel" id="5" data-gr-id="5">o</g>perative word. What adults choose to watch is their business, but children being able to access much of the content on today&#8217;s platforms is probably not what most parents want.</p>



<p>So in the absence of traditional parental controls, the UK government has stepped in to prevent youngsters from inadvertently stumbling across adult content. From July 15, the country will <a href="https://www.bbfc.co.uk/about-bbfc/media-centre/age-verification-online-pornography-begin-july">adopt a checking scheme</a> that will require profit-making sites with more than a third of their content pornographic in nature to verify visitors&#8217; ages.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s believed that the <a href="https://www.ageid.com/">AgeID system</a>, operated by major porn site owner Mindgeek, will one of the key facilitators of that. People who want to access porn sites will be required to provide scans of their driving licenses or passports, provide credit card details, or activate via SMS. Users&#8217; details will then be verified by a third-party.</p>



<p>There will be other ways to obtain verification <g class="gr_ gr_7 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-del replaceWithoutSep" id="7" data-gr-id="7">too,</g> since some shops will be selling special cards containing a code that people can use to access sites like Pornhub and YouPorn. However, eligible sites that refuse to play by the verification rules will be <g class="gr_ gr_6 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="6" data-gr-id="6">blocked</g> by local ISPs, preventing them from doing any business in the UK.</p>



<p>In theory, at least.</p>



<p>While the aims are noble, circumvention of this entire scheme (for adults and children alike) lies just a few key presses away. Subscribing to a VPN will effectively drive a coach and horses through the legislation, providing no-fuss and instant access to all age-compliant websites, and those that refuse to comply too.</p>



<p>The government acknowledges that this could happen, but it wants to be seen to be doing <em>something</em>. Indeed, as part of the Digital Economy Act 2017, the UK will become the first country in the world to proudly deploy such a system. However, thanks to many years of website blocking on the piracy front, large numbers of people will already have the tools at hand to make July 15 <g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="5" data-gr-id="5">seem</g> like life on the 14th.</p>



<p>Herein lies the problem. As website blocking increases &#8211; whether that&#8217;s via direct ISP action or the verification scheme detailed above &#8211; people have more and more reasons to learn how to evade those blocks. It doesn&#8217;t really matter whether it&#8217;s adults or even teenagers spreading the knowledge, on July 15 (if not sooner) circumvention methods will spread like wildfire.</p>



<p>And this can only mean bad news for those who have worked incredibly hard to have many <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/nearly-4000-pirate-sites-are-blocked-by-isps-around-the-world-190210/">hundreds of pirate sites</a> blocked in the UK over the past nine years or so.</p>



<p>Once those VPNs get fired up to access XVideos or whatever other sites tickle people&#8217;s fancies, it will soon become apparent that every single one of those previously blocked torrent and streaming portals will become accessible again too.</p>



<p>Good VPNs do not discriminate and they don&#8217;t care what people are looking at. Their aim is to protect their users&#8217; privacy and make web censorship a thing of the past. The only saving grace in respect of the verification scheme is that <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/which-vpn-services-keep-you-anonymous-in-2019/">decent ones</a> also cost money, so teenagers may not always have the means to pay for one<g class="gr_ gr_277 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="277" data-gr-id="277">.</g></p>



<p>That raises the possibility &#8211; or even likelihood &#8211; that many people will take the easy option of downloading a &#8216;free&#8217; VPN from Google Play or Apple&#8217;s variant. Many of these have a questionable track history, especially when it comes to privacy, so people flocking in this direction won&#8217;t be doing themselves any favors.</p>



<p>All that being said, the architects of the scheme say that the potential for circumvention of the verification scheme is low. Perhaps today&#8217;s teenagers are less interested in seeing forbidden content than those that went before and will embrace the scheme with open arms. We shall see.</p>



<p>For most adults, however, it seems likely that handing over passports, driving licenses, and credit cards will only add to the already considerable but relatively straightforward pressure of remembering browser history wiping and incognito tabs.</p>



<p>In the meantime, there&#8217;s always The Pirate Bay, RARBG and all the other &#8216;pirate&#8217; sites offering adult material. None of them will be included in the verification scheme but could see a small surge in traffic, if &#8216;porn-pass panic&#8217; sweeps the country. And if it does, they&#8217;ll be easier to access than ever before.</p>



<p></p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171366
title: Movie Studios Are Suing Canadian BitTorrent Users, But That’s Nothing New
uri: Movie-Studios-Are-Suing-Canadian-BitTorrent-Users-But-That-s-Nothin
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/Yx9DQmQ8N2Q/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-83641" src="media/6e26cf2e.canada-pirate.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/canada-pirate.png" alt="" width="225" height="113">This week Canadian news outlets are reporting about a supposed new legal campaign against people who pirate movies and TV-shows via BitTorrent.&nbsp;</p>
<p>This includes an <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/movie-studios-bittorrent-users-lawsuits-norwich-order-1.5100700">article from CBC</a>, which featured a still from Game of Thrones, suggesting that downloaders of the popular HBO series are at risk too.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The coverage comes a bit as a surprise, because there is <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/movie-outfits-are-quietly-targeting-canadian-file-sharers-in-court-180904/">nothing new to these lawsuits</a>. &#8220;Reverse class-action&#8221; suits have been ongoing for a few years in Canada now. Also, HBO or &#8216;Game of Thrones&#8217; are not part of it.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The lawsuits in question are a variant of what is commonly known as &#8220;copyright trolling.&#8221; This practice is limited to a few movie production companies that have targeted hundreds of thousands of alleged pirates all over the world.&nbsp;</p>
<p>In Canada, we are aware of 18 of these lawsuits which target thousands of alleged pirates in total. These cases were filed by the rightsholders of films such as The Hitman’s Bodyguard, Mechanic: Resurrection, Criminal, London Has Fallen, and Dallas Buyers Club,</p>
<p>The defendants are listed as &#8220;John Does,&#8221; who are initially only known by their IP-addresses. After the movie companies obtain a Norwich order from the court, they obtain the contact details of these people, who they can then approach with a settlement demand.</p>
<p>This has led to settlements of thousands of dollars in some cases, where the maximum damages for non-commercial infringement is CAD$ 5,000.&nbsp;</p>
<p>As said before, this isn&#8217;t new. However, the news started rolling again following a tweet from Nova Scotia-based lawyer David Fraser, who <a href="https://twitter.com/privacylawyer/status/1117884896553263104">posted</a> a copy of a &#8220;statement of claim&#8221; online. The lawyer also pointed to an article, where the law firm offered help, suggesting that this is a &#8216;novel&#8217; procedure.</p>
<p>&#8220;Using a novel legal procedure called a &#8216;reverse class-action&#8217; Hollywood studios are consolidating what would otherwise be hundreds of lawsuits into just a handful of lawsuits,&#8221; the <a href="https://www.mcinnescooper.com/services/online-file-sharing-reverse-class-action-lawsuits/">article reads</a>.</p>
<p>This then led to a report on <a href="https://mobilesyrup.com/2019/04/16/hollywood-teksavvy-rogers-illegal-downloading/">Mobilesyrup</a>, where it was again suggested that this is a new phenomenon.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/5ebd36b7.fraser.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/fraser.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171373"/></figure></div>


<p>Interestingly, the date of the statement of claim is almost a year old now, which is a clear hint that this isn&#8217;t as fresh as some people think. Indeed, a reverse class-action lawsuit against alleged BitTorrent pirates was already <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/canadian-movie-pirates-targeted-in-reverse-class-action-160429/">filed in 2016</a>, and many have followed since.</p>
<p>This week&#8217;s reporting shows that the cases have progressed quietly in the courts. That&#8217;s not a complete surprise, as they generally don&#8217;t go to trial. The goal of the movie outfits is to settle the matter out of court.&nbsp;</p>
<p>That brings us to a final point of confusion. These settlement requests are entirely different from the automated settlements that ISPs forward via email. The latter practice is part of the notice-and-notice system. While these automated settlement requests were outlawed last year, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/canadas-new-anti-abuse-copyright-notice-rules-are-being-ignored-190307/">they&#8217;re still coming in</a>.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The letters that are part of a reverse class-action, which are delivered through the postal system, are entirely different. They are part of a legal proceeding and people who receive a statement of claim should not ignore it. Those who do face a default judgment, which is generally higher than a settlement.</p>
<p>Attorney <a href="http://www.plaideurs.ca/en/the-firm/james-plotkin/">James Plotkin</a> of law firm CazaSaikaley previously informed us that it&#8217;s&nbsp;wise to consult an attorney instead.</p>
<p>“Get competent legal advice. It is important to understand the legal playing field. Defendants are not helpless in these actions, so ignoring the claim and allowing the plaintiff to proceed in obtaining a default judgment is probably not the best option for most people,” he said.</p>
<p>That is the type of advice one would expect from an attorney. However, in this case, it is certainly warranted. And the outcome could be positive as well, as Plotkin has already helped one defendant to get rid of the claim, without a settlement.</p>
<p>Summarizing, we can conclude that lawsuits continue to target alleged BitTorrent pirates in Canada. The cases are filed by a small number of movie production companies and have nothing to do with Game of Thrones.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Those who are unfortunate enough to get caught up in this should carefully research their options. Unlike the “notice-and-notice” emails, ignoring the legal paperwork is generally not a good option.</p><p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171412
title: Huge Video-Hosting Site Openload Stops Paying Uploaders
uri: Huge-Video-Hosting-Site-Openload-Stops-Paying-Uploaders
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/dFS9_0ioG8M/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/329514a7.openload.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/openload.png" alt="" class="wp-image-162114"/></figure></div>



<p>Earlier this month we <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/freeloading-kodi-add-on-users-are-undermining-rapidvideo-190405/">reported</a> on the plight of Rapidvideo, a popular file-hosting site that specializes in hosting videos.</p>



<p>The site previously allowed visitors to view content uploaded by other users for free, with the system funded by advertising. However, interesting market conditions forced the platform into a surprise announcement.</p>



<p>&#8220;We can’t finance ourselves from internet ads any longer,” the company said while revealing plans for a $5 per month subscription plan.</p>



<p>One of the main problems, it transpired, was the massive influx of Kodi users, whose &#8216;pirate&#8217; add-ons access the site&#8217;s content, bypassing its advertising.</p>



<p>&#8220;We have around 650 Gbit/s of bandwidth in use, while 320 Gbit/s is for KODI, download tools, etc and for that we don’t get paid by the ads,” the site explained.</p>



<p>In comments to TF, Rapidvideo said that the add-ons in question are able to use the URL from the site&#8217;s HTML5 player, resulting in huge amounts of unmonetized video traffic. The need for a subscription package would help to mitigate that issue, the site added.</p>



<p>Of course, Rapidvideo isn&#8217;t the only site to suffer from this and similar problems. This week, another file-sharing giant changed its business model, again citing unsustainable ad revenues as the cause.</p>



<p><a href="https://openload.co/">Openload</a> is currently one of the top 250 most-visited sites on the entire Internet. Last year we reported how it <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/pirate-site-openload-generates-more-traffic-than-hulu-or-hbo-go-181002/">generates more traffic</a> than Hulu or HBO Go. However, similar pressures to those being experienced by Rapidvideo have forced the platform towards change.</p>



<p>The big immediate difference is that users who upload content to the site will no longer get paid based on the number of views their videos get. That&#8217;s a bit like YouTube de-monetizing all of its most popular contributors.</p>



<p>&#8220;We are closing our Affiliate Program from 15/04/2019. Balances which exceed the minimum withdraw amount of 20$ can be withdrawn until 30/04/2019!&#8221; the site said in a statement to its many affiliates.</p>



<p>&#8220;Unfortunately we had to do this step due to recent events and ongoing weakness in generating revenue from advertising. In order to keep the service alive and stable we have to go this way.&#8221;</p>



<p>Only the operators of the site know how many of these uploading affiliates it has but there was certainly no shortage of criticism online when the program was withdrawn. That being said, all businesses are affected by changes in the market and if the revenue doesn&#8217;t pay the bills, then that&#8217;s life.</p>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/b0bb1b75.openload-affiliate.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/openload-affiliate.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171415"/></figure></div>



<p>Affiliates aren&#8217;t paid a lot. The image above<em> (redacted for privacy reasons)</em> shows the Openload affiliate panel. The user had made less than $9 but of course, he won&#8217;t be getting any money because he didn&#8217;t accumulate at least $20. Others, however, report being paid out, as promised.</p>



<p>The other key issue is that affiliate programs incentivize users to upload content to a particular service, with YouTube operating the most famous program of all. It&#8217;s easy to see how the removal of the Openload program could result in less content being uploaded there. However, the operators of the site say they are fully aware of what might happen.</p>



<p>&#8220;All our decisions are final. We are aware of the consequences,&#8221; a representative <a href="https://www.wjunction.com/threads/openload-io-video-mp3-image-file-up-to-40-10k-unlimited-speed-no-premium-acc.198965/page-398#post-2323516">said</a>.</p>



<p>For now, it appears that a handful of other services are rallying round in an attempt to attract former Openload affiliates to their sites. Whether that will be successful will remain to be seen, but there certainly appears to be a connection between the size of these sites and their ability to earn revenue from ads.</p>



<p>The bigger they are the harder it is, apparently. Which means that successful sites might eventually start suffering from the same issues as both Rapidvideo and Openload.</p>



<p></p>



<p> </p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171427
title: EFF Backs Stream Rippers in Legal Battle Against Record Labels
uri: EFF-Backs-Stream-Rippers-in-Legal-Battle-Against-Record-Labels
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/20qAX4RXbkI/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-171444" src="media/d8997ee0.efflogo.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/efflogo.png" alt="" width="288" height="107">Last year,&nbsp;a group of prominent record labels&nbsp;<a href="https://torrentfreak.com/major-labels-sue-more-youtube-ripper-sites-180806/">filed a piracy lawsuit</a>&nbsp;against the Russian operator of YouTube-ripping sites FLVTO.biz and 2conv.com.</p>
<p>The labels hoped to shut the sites down, but this effort backfired.</p>
<p>In January, US District Court Judge Claude M. Hilton&nbsp;<a href="https://torrentfreak.com/youtube-ripper-wins-dismissal-of-record-labels-us-piracy-lawsuit-190123/">dismissed the case</a> due to a lack of personal jurisdiction. The Court carefully reviewed how the sites operate and found no evidence that they purposefully targeted either Virginia or the United States.</p>
<p>The sites are not seen as highly interactive and their interaction with users could not be classified as commercial, the Court concluded.</p>
<p>The record labels didn’t agree with this conclusion and took the case to the Fourth Circuit appeals court. If the verdict stands, the companies believe that Internet pirates will have “<a href="https://torrentfreak.com/stream-ripper-verdict-gives-carte-blanche-to-internet-pirates-record-labels-say-190314/">carte blanche</a>” to facilitate copyright infringement, as they would be untouchable by U.S. courts.</p>
<p>Tofig Kurbanov, the Russian operator of the two stream-rippers, argued against this last week, hoping to keep the current dismissal in place. Yesterday he received support from the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) which submitted an amicus curiae brief.</p>
<p>The digital rights group takes interest in copyright cases, in particular when they get in the way of people&#8217;s ability to freely use technology. In this instance, EFF points out that the stream-rippers provide a neutral technology, that has plenty of legal uses.</p>
<p>&#8220;Like a web browser, photocopy machine, or video recorder, the converters at issue in this case are neutral technologies, equally capable of lawful and infringing uses. And lawful uses abound, from saving a copy of a family member’s home video to downloading clips from a TV show as raw material for a critical commentary,&#8221; EFF writes.</p>
<p>The digital rights group points out that companies such as the record labels in this suit, seek to control<span class="fontstyle0"> the use and availability of copying. To this end, they file lawsuits against foreign site operators who often don&#8217;t put up a defense.</span></p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">This then allows them to apply for default judgments and broad preliminary injunctions which compel third-party intermediaries such as domain registrars, or CDN providers, to take action. That can be dangerous, EFF notes, as the merits of the case are not thoroughly considered.</span></p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">&#8220;These injunctions, which can be legally problematic, are often granted<br>
without challenge. Through this process, difficult questions about the scope of such injunctions go unanswered,&#8221; EFF notes.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p>While there have indeed been several default judgments in the past, that was not an issue in the present case. In fact, at this point, it&#8217;s irrelevant whether the sites at issue are infringing at all. The case was dismissed based on a lack of jurisdiction, after all.</p>
<p>According to EFF, the District Court made the right choice in doing so and it encourages the Court of Appeals to uphold this decision. Looking at the broader picture, this may act as a safeguard against default judgments in future cases, the group explains.</p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">&#8220;Preserving the limits of personal jurisdiction to uphold due process, as the district court did in this case, also avoids default judgments against foreign defendants, and promotes the resolution of complex legal issues on a full record,&#8221; EFF writes.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p>Focusing on the jurisdiction issue in the case at hand, EFF notes that the court made the right decision. The sites&#8217; terms of use do not constitute a commercial relationship and geo-targeted ads are not enough to establish jurisdiction, the group argues.</p>
<p>On top of that, the websites in question are not &#8220;interactive,&#8221; as the District Court also pointed out.</p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">&#8220;Here, the websites at issue here are semi-interactive; as explained by the<br>
district court, there is no evidence that users exchanged multiple files with the websites, and users do not need to create an account, sign in, or even register in order to use the websites,&#8221; EFF writes.<br>
</span></p>
<p>EFF is not the only outside party that has taken an interest in the case.&nbsp;The record labels’ previously attracted <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/hollywood-fears-that-stream-ripper-verdict-will-serve-as-roadmap-for-foreign-pirates-190322/">support</a>&nbsp;from other major copyright holders. Through amicus briefs,&nbsp; Hollywood’s MPAA, The Association of American Publishers, and the Copyright Alliance, all argued that the verdict should be overturned.</p>
<p>It is now up to the Fourth Circuit appeals court, to weigh all arguments and ultimately come to a decision.</p>
<p><em>&#8212;</em></p>
<p><em>A copy of EFF&#8217;s Amicus Curiae brief in support of FLVTO.biz and 2conv.com and its operator is <a href="media/5e36058e.effflvto.pdf" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/effflvto.pdf">available here (pdf)</a>.</em></p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171301
title: The Pirate Bay Lives On, A Decade After ‘Guilty’ Verdicts
uri: The-Pirate-Bay-Lives-On-A-Decade-After-Guilty-Verdicts
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/L9Hmri2QNwc/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/0e036607.pirate-bay.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/pirate-bay.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-53470"/></figure></div>



<p>On the morning of March 3, 2009, Fredrik Neij, Gottfrid Svartholm, Peter Sunde and Carl Lundström, were all waiting for the <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/final-day-of-the-pirate-bay-trial-090303/">final day</a> in the now-infamous trial featuring The Pirate Bay.</p>



<p>The night before the original &#8216;notorious site&#8217; had gone offline, worrying the masses. But as it had done countless times before, the site reappeared once again after Fredrik (TiAMO) worked his magic &#8211; from inside the halls of justice.</p>



<p>&#8220;I fixed the Pirate Bay from inside the courtroom just minutes ago. The site is back online,&#8221; he <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/final-day-of-the-pirate-bay-trial-090303/">said</a>. </p>



<p>This type of defiance, before and after the quartet were eventually sentenced to jail and huge fines <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/the-pirate-bay-trial-the-verdict-090417/">a&nbsp;decade ago this </a><g class="gr_ gr_69 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-del replaceWithoutSep" id="69" data-gr-id="69"><a class="" href="https://torrentfreak.com/the-pirate-bay-trial-the-verdict-090417/">week</a>,</g> became a hallmark of the three key defendants. While early financier Lundström quickly fell by the wayside, the trio of Sunde, Neij <g class="gr_ gr_160 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="160" data-gr-id="160">and</g> Svartholm only appeared to gather energy from the momentous event.</p>



<p>All three expressed surprise at receiving jail sentences but all pledged never to pay a penny to the authorities.</p>



<p>&#8220;We can’t pay and we wouldn’t pay if we could,&#8221; Sunde said. &#8220;If I would have money I would rather burn everything I owned.&#8221;</p>



<p>While millions expected The Pirate Bay itself to immediately disappear, Sunde vowed that would never happen. Quite remarkably and against all the odds, his words carry weight today. Anyone can visit ThePirateBay.org and see the same homepage they&#8217;ve always seen, as if the trial of the site&#8217;s operators never happened.</p>



<p>For them, however, life would prove less than straightforward in the years to come<g class="gr_ gr_9 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="9" data-gr-id="9">.</g></p>



<p>On November 26, 2010, following an inevitable appeal, the court <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/the-pirate-bay-appeal-verdict-101126/">decreased the prison sentences</a> for three of the defendants (Sunde, Neij <g class="gr_ gr_258 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="258" data-gr-id="258">and</g> Lundström) but increased the damages to be paid to the entertainment industry plaintiffs. Svartholm, who was absent from the appeal hearing on medical grounds, would be dealt with later.</p>



<p>In the end, all four men served their sentences but Sunde, Neij and Svartholm did so defiantly. No one expected anything less from the Nordic upstarts, who took on the might of Hollywood and the music industries expecting to win, only to lose in the end.</p>



<p>Or did they?</p>



<p>While no one can claim time in prison as a victory, Sunde, Neij and Svartholm (or brokep, TiAMO, and Anakata, to use their aliases) remained steadfast in their opposition. None went quietly, none caved into enormous pressure, none went back on their word.</p>



<p>These are qualities despised by copyright holders when viewed through the prism of the &#8216;theft&#8217; of their intellectual property. But for millions of followers in the pirate world, there was a chance to vicariously sail the high seas through the experiences of their heroes, at least for a few years.</p>



<p>All three men have now slipped into the background of Pirate Bay history but it is nothing short of remarkable that the site still exists today. Despite endless enforcement efforts, not to mention widespread blocking around the world, it&#8217;s still one of the most visited torrent sites on the planet.</p>



<p>Admittedly, the graphics, search feature, and just about everything else are still stuck in the past. But unlike flashier alternatives such as KickassTorrents and ExtraTorrent, the platform still exists today while serving millions of users with the latest content.</p>



<p>The Pirate Bay has also become the digital embodiment of the fabled hydra. Today the main domain still exists, but so do dozens of other tentacles that replicate the site if not entirely, closely enough. While the body may one day be found and slain, there are no signs that day is near. </p>



<p>The Galaxy&#8217;s Most Resilient BitTorrent Site? It&#8217;s hard to argue otherwise.</p>



<p>  </p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=170928
title: Omniverse Wants “Scandalous” Claims Removed From ACE’s Piracy Lawsuit
uri: Omniverse-Wants-Scandalous-Claims-Removed-From-ACE-s-Piracy-La
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/jxtwJQdWxME/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-168567" src="media/cc98a9b3.omniverse1.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/omniverse1.jpg" alt="" width="284" height="162"></p>
<p>In February, several major Hollywood studios, Amazon, and Netflix filed <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/ace-sues-cord-cutting-service-omniverse-for-copyright-infringement/">a&nbsp;lawsuit</a> against&nbsp;Omniverse One World Television.</p>
<p>Under the flag of anti-piracy group&nbsp;<a href="https://www.alliance4creativity.com/">ACE</a>, the companies accused Omniverse and its owner Jason DeMeo of supplying pirate streaming channels to various IPTV services.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.omniversetv.com/">Omniverse</a> doesn’t offer any streaming boxes but sells live-streaming services to third-party distributors, such as HDHomerun, Flixon TV, and SkyStream TV, which in turn offer live TV streaming packages to customers.</p>
<p>According to ACE, these channels are offered without permission from its members. As such, the company was branded a pirate streaming TV supplier. However, Omniverse disagrees with this assessment.</p>
<p>In a new court filing, the company requests the California federal court to strike any comparisons to services such as &#8220;Dragon Box,&#8221; stating that these are &#8220;scandalous&#8221; and &#8220;immaterial.&#8221;</p>
<p>Omniverse explains that it&#8217;s a technical provider for the licensed cable company Hovsat, which has a long-standing agreement with DirecTV to distribute a broad range of TV-channels with few restrictions.</p>
<p>&#8220;<span class="fontstyle0">The contract between Hovsat and DirecTV has no limitations with regard to geographic markets, nor innovating with regard to delivery method,</span>&#8221; Omniverse informs the court.</p>
<p>The streaming service provider believes that the license allows it to offer these channels to third-party companies.&nbsp; ACE clearly disagrees and has branded the company a pirate service, similar to the streaming box vendor Dragon Box.</p>
<p>This comparison is rejected outright by Omniverse, which stresses that it operates entirely differently from Dragon Box.</p>
<p>&#8220;Comparisons between Omniverse and Dragon Box are immaterial because Dragon Box is a hardware device utilizing software to search and link pirated content and Omniverse is a marketing partner of a cable company,&#8221; the company writes.</p>
<p>Also, Dragon Box recently admitted that it offered copyright infringing software and <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/dragon-box-has-to-pay-ace-14-5-million-in-piracy-damages-190129/">settled its lawsuit with ACE for $14.5 million</a> in the same court. Any comparisons may, therefore, be damaging for Omniverse.</p>
<p>&#8220;Comparisons between Omniverse and Dragon Box are also scandalous because comparing the two unlike entities damages Omniverse through guilt by (misplaced) association,&#8221; Omniverse writes.</p>
<p>The streaming service provider requests the court to strike all comparisons to Dragon Box. In addition, it would like ACE to update its complaint to clarify what the problem is.</p>
<p>If ACE accuses Omniverse of outright piracy, similar to Dragon Box, it should say so in the complaint. However, if it argues that Omniverse went beyond the authority of the Hovsat license, all Dragon Box mentions should be dropped.</p>
<p>This clarification will also help Omniverse to prepare a proper defense, the company argues. A classic piracy lawsuit is different from a lawsuit about a licensing dispute, it says.</p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">&#8220;If Plaintiffs’ Complaint is alleging Omniverse is a pirate, Omniverse needs to prepare for an action that covers multiple properties held by</span>&nbsp;<span class="fontstyle0">multiple plaintiffs. If Plaintiffs’ Complaint is alleging Omniverse does not operate under proper authorization, Omniverse needs to prepare for an action primarily involving the meaning of the Hovsat-DirecTV agreement. Or both.&#8221;</span></p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">The court has yet to respond to the request from Omniverse. It is clear, however, that the Hovsat license will play an important role in this case.</span></p>
<p>A few days ago the court signed two subpoenas that are directed at Hovsat and DirecTV. The subpoenas were requested by ACE, which is looking for information about agreements between Omniverse, Hovsat, and DirecTV.</p>
<p><em>&#8212;</em></p>
<p><em>A copy of Omniverse&#8217;s motion to strike the scandalous claims, as well as other requests, is available <a href="media/8ae0887c.scandalous9.pdf" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/scandalous9.pdf">here (pdf)</a>.</em></p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">.</span></p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171286
title: Fake News is Coming? Game of Thrones Pirates Are Going to Jail
uri: Fake-News-is-Coming-Game-of-Thrones-Pirates-Are-Going-to-Jail
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/h1eu0VkpolI/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/c27fe1bc.game-of-thrones-2013.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/game-of-thrones-2013.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-80746"/></figure></div>



<p>In case anyone hadn&#8217;t noticed, a new series of Game of Thrones started last week. That meant hundreds of articles about the show, especially since this is probably its last hurrah.</p>



<p>We too did our bit, writing earlier this week how the first episode in the series had resulted in a <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/premiere-of-final-game-of-thrones-season-triggers-piracy-bonanza-190415/">flood of downloads</a> via torrent sites. We&#8217;ve been writing about the show in this context for years, so the latest installment probably didn&#8217;t come as a surprise.</p>



<p>What will have come as a surprise, to the people who had the misfortune to read it, was an article published on the Daily Mail&#8217;s site.</p>



<p>As is customary, the piece was placed to the left of a sidebar of clickable articles focusing on the physical attributes of mainly female celebrities in various states of undress. The piece about Game of Thrones admittedly featured less flesh but sought to be just as outrageous.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image is-resized"><img src="media/4353f45a.mail-thrones.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/mail-thrones.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171288" width="600"/></figure>



<p>With a headline like the one above, this was clearly going to be a knockout story. With huge numbers of Aussies downloading Game of Thrones every week, the prospect of filling the nation&#8217;s jails with pirates must have been thought through well in advance by the nation&#8217;s authorities.</p>



<p>So who in government had issued the stark warning?</p>



<p>Well, if you&#8217;re hoping to find the answer <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6922783/You-JAILED-caught-illegally-downloading-final-Game-Thrones-season.html">in the article</a>, you can forget it. The piece uses the words &#8216;jailed&#8217; or &#8216;jail&#8217; several times, yet not once does it put any more meat on the bones of the headline claim that Game of Thrones downloaders could be seeing the inside of a cell.</p>



<p>It does cite a 7news.com.au <a href="https://7news.com.au/entertainment/game-of-thrones-australians-warned-over-illegal-downloading-c-61078">report</a> which claims that people &#8220;could pay a big price down the line&#8221; for pirating the show. However, we&#8217;ve been through that article with a fine tooth comb looking for any references to criminal prosecutions of downloaders by Australian authorities, and came up with absolutely nothing.</p>



<p>That leaves us with a few possibilities<g class="gr_ gr_213 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style replaceWithoutSep" id="213" data-gr-id="213">.</g></p>



<p>Perhaps the Daily Mail has a source inside the government that supplied the information that warranted a SHOCKING headline but asked the paper to back it up with zero details just to keep everyone on their toes.</p>



<p>To rule that out, TorrentFreak contacted the government, to see if any statement had been made to back up the claims detailed above, specifically concerning the claim that downloaders of Game of Thrones could be thrown in jail.</p>



<p>The Department of Communications and the Arts responded quickly.</p>



<p>&#8220;No announcement has been made by government regarding criminal prosecution for breach of copyright law,&#8221; the team said.</p>



<p>&#8220;Copyright owners have a number of exclusive rights, including the right <g class="gr_ gr_4 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style multiReplace" id="4" data-gr-id="4">to  control</g> the reproduction of their material and the right to <g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style multiReplace" id="5" data-gr-id="5">communicate  that</g> <g class="gr_ gr_6 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style multiReplace" id="6" data-gr-id="6">material  to</g> the public, which includes uploading, posting or downloading <g class="gr_ gr_7 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Style multiReplace" id="7" data-gr-id="7">content  online</g>.  </p>



<p>&#8220;A person might infringe the exclusive rights of the copyright owner of ‘Game of Thrones’ if they upload, stream, download or share unauthorized copies of the program.&#8221;</p>



<p>Escalating the downloading of a Game of Thrones episode to a criminal offense would make huge headlines anywhere. However, apart from this single piece in the Daily Mail, no other publication has chosen to republish this unsourced claim as fact. That in itself is telling.</p>



<p>That leaves us with another option, that there&#8217;s a secret industry source, that said (off the record, mind you) that anyone downloading Game of Thrones could be subject to incarceration. And this is where things get a bit weird.</p>



<p>&#8220;Creative Content Australia executive director Lori Flekser told 7 News the crackdown wasn&#8217;t just about stopping revenue loss,&#8221; the Daily Mail&#8217;s original piece read.</p>



<p>It didn&#8217;t attribute the &#8216;jail&#8217; claims to Flekser, but the implication was there. We doubted that the <a href="https://www.creativecontentaustralia.org.au/about">anti-piracy group</a> would&#8217;ve made such a comment, so we checked with Flekser herself.</p>



<p>&#8220;You are absolutely correct &#8211; this is not something I said or endorse,&#8221; Flekser told us.</p>



<p>&#8220;Prosecution has occurred where people have profited from the sale of pirated content, such as the reference in that article to the <a href="https://www.itnews.com.au/news/sydney-man-gets-suspended-jail-sentence-for-giving-8000-people-free-foxtel-470472">2017 case</a> of Sydney man Haidar Majid Salam Al Baghdadi  who was convicted for his role in the selling of unauthorized access to Foxtel services.&#8221;</p>



<p>After Flekser emailed her comments to TF, we checked the Daily Mail article against an indexed copy from the date it was originally published. Interestingly, the publication had removed all references to Flekser but maintained the line that Game of Thrones pirates could be put in jail. </p>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/ac6b6906.mail-before-after.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/mail-before-after.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171396"/></figure></div>



<p>Well, let&#8217;s go along with the &#8216;jail&#8217; charade and consider the feas<g class="gr_ gr_4 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="4" data-gr-id="4">i</g>bility of that.</p>



<p>In Victoria, which covers Melbourne, for example, it costs in excess of <a href="http://www.corrections.vic.gov.au/utility/publications+manuals+and+statistics/corrections+statistics+quick+reference">AUS$328.00 per day</a> to lock someone up. Last year, Australia had around 42,000 prisoners <em><a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/4517.0">in total</a></em> and according to <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/game-of-thrones-season-premiere-pirated-54-million-times-in-a-day-190417/">figures</a> published earlier this week, around a million Aussies downloaded the first episode of the new Game of Thrones series &#8211; <em>in a day</em>. </p>



<p>If the authorities decided to criminalize downloaders and put even 5% of these people in jail, Australia&#8217;s judicial system &#8211; if not the whole country &#8211; would be in crisis.</p>



<p>Furthermore, if only a tiny proportion of offenders went to jail (let&#8217;s say a modest five people), there would be a public outcry, especially when one considers that shoplifting goods up to the value of <a href="https://www.legalaid.vic.gov.au/find-legal-answers/criminal-offences/theft-and-property-damage">AUS$600</a> is often dealt with via an on-the-spot fine resulting in no criminal record.</p>



<p>That presents an uncomfortable third option, that this is a classic and pretty blatant example of fake news. Or, at the very least, an outrageous headline drawing traffic to an article that fails to come up with the goods or back itself up in any way.</p>



<p>Make no mistake, pirating TV shows is illegal in Australia and those also sharing them with others (using BitTorrent, for example) could find themselves having to explain their actions in court in a civil case. Thus far, however, there has been very little sign of that practice <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/dallas-buyers-club-gives-up-chasing-pirates-in-australia-160210/">making a comeback</a> in the country.</p>



<p>There are also criminal implications for those who commit infringement on a commercial scale, as Flekser told us. But downloading an episode of Game of Thrones doesn&#8217;t seem to fit that description for an individual, even if a million Aussies did it collectively this week.</p>



<p>Of course, that&#8217;s much less interesting than &#8220;everyone&#8217;s going to prison&#8221;, so let&#8217;s find a ridiculous angle and mislead the public instead. Fake news is coming? It&#8217;s already arrived.</p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171238
title: Warner Bros. Takes Down TorrentFreak Tweet Over Software Piracy?
uri: Warner-Bros-Takes-Down-TorrentFreak-Tweet-Over-Software-Piracy
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/ColXwmv_oXI/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-141948" src="media/e9d826ba.warnerbrosentertainment.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/warnerbrosentertainment.jpg" alt="" width="277" height="161">Last week there was quite an uproar when Starz deleted one of our tweets, which linked to a news article about several<a href="https://torrentfreak.com/promo-screeners-of-american-gods-and-other-tv-shows-leak-online-190408/"> prominent TV-show leaks</a>.</p>
<p>As reasons for the takedown, the DMCA notice <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/starz-doesnt-like-news-about-leaked-tv-shows-takes-down-torrentfreak-tweet-190411/">mentioned</a> “images of the unreleased episodes” and “information about their illegal availability,” something that&#8217;s generally seen as fair use.</p>
<p>Making matters worse, Starz also sent takedown requests to several people who tweeted links to the article where we complained about the first takedown. This then generated a lot of criticism from journalists, legal scholars, and the public at large.</p>
<p>Starz eventually retracted some of the DMCA notices and <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/starz-goes-on-twitter-meta-censorship-spree-to-cover-up-tv-show-leaks-190415/">apologized for the &#8220;misunderstanding&#8221;</a> in a public statement. We have yet to hear back from the company directly, despite multiple requests, so we decided to move on. There&#8217;s more news to report, after all.</p>
<p>However, a few days after the DMCA notice from Starz, Twitter contacted us with a similar complaint, again from an American media giant. Apparently, Warner Bros. had also asked the social media platform to remove one of our tweets.</p>
<p>The takedown notice, sent by Warner Bros&#8217; anti-piracy partner Marketly, accused us of posting a tweet that made &#8220;computer program(s)&#8221; available &#8220;for copying through downloading,&#8221; without permission of the copyright owner.</p>
<p>&#8220;We hereby give notice of these activities to you and request that you take expeditious action to remove or disable access to the material described above, and thereby prevent the illegal reproduction and distribution of this software via your company&#8217;s network,&#8221; the notice added.</p>
<p>At TorrentFreak we simply report news, and looking at <a href="https://twitter.com/torrentfreak/status/1111563702468313088">the &#8220;infringing&#8221; tweet in question</a>, we fail to see a link with software piracy. Instead, it&#8217;s simply a link to our news article about the previously convicted admins of the movie pirate sites <span class="js-display-url">Kinox.to</span> and <span class="js-display-url">Movie4k.to.</span></p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/8961812f.tweetwb.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/tweetwb.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171438"/></figure></div>


<p>Still a bit puzzled, we looked back at the DMCA notice again and noticed that it didn&#8217;t list any software, but movies and TV-shows instead. That made more sense, but the takedown notice still doesn&#8217;t.</p>
<p>We assume that Warner Bros. isn&#8217;t happy with <span class="js-display-url">Kinox.to</span>&nbsp;and <span class="js-display-url">Movie4k.to, which is understandable. However, removing a tweet to a news article that discusses a newsworthy event related to these sites goes too far.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p>Especially when you consider that our article doesn&#8217;t even link to these sites. The tweet does, ironically, but those links are automatically generated by Twitter. We didn&#8217;t put those in. Yet, we are punished for it, adding a copyright &#8216;strike&#8217; to our Twitter account.</p>
<p>We assume that this is yet another misunderstanding and we kindly request Warner Bros., via Marketly, to sort this out. While we&#8217;re at it, we will ask about the mysterious pirated software, because we still haven&#8217;t located that either.</p>
<p>Incidents like this show that there is surprisingly little attention paid to the context of potentially infringing content. This was also fairly obvious last week with the Starz drama, which hasn&#8217;t been completely resolved yet. On the contrary.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Some of the tweets linking to our reporting about the leaked TV shows remain unavailable at the time of writing. This includes <a href="https://www.lumendatabase.org/notices/18365756">a tweet from &#8216;FCT</a>,&#8217; who <a href="https://twitter.com/torrentfreak/status/1118642312064716800">complained</a> about the situation repeatedly. We requested clarification from Starz on this issue earlier this week but haven&#8217;t heard back.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Starz did remove some of its most recent takedown requests, including one directed at our original tweet. However, at the same time, it also reversed several DMCA notices for content that <a href="https://twitter.com/SerieSerieS0/status/1117300502235009024">does appear to be infringing</a>, as shown below.&nbsp;</p>
<p>It looks like they&#8217;re not paying much attention at all.</p>


<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="media/92c53f6e.startzmega.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/startzmega.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171440"/></figure>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171484
title: New Game of Thrones Episode Leaks Online Early
uri: 2019-04-21-New-Game-of-Thrones-Episode-Leaks-Online-Early
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/lx_5w-hjjm8/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-171208" src="media/0a58794a.thrones-1.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/thrones-1.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="193">Several hours before its official premiere, the second episode of the latest Game of Thrones season is already widely available on torrent and streaming sites.</p>
<p>According to reports from several viewers, the German version of Amazon Prime accidentally made the episode available on the platform a few hours ago.</p>
<p>Apparently, the second episode of the season <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/gameofthrones/comments/bfozvm/no_spoilers_2nd_episode_is_already_up_on_amazon/">simply started</a> playing after the first one finished.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/a537390b.golt.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/golt.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171491" srcset="https://torrentfreak.com/images/golt.png 528w, https://torrentfreak.com/images/golt-200x150.png 200w" sizes="(max-width: 528px) 100vw, 528px"></figure></div>


<p>After this mistake, it didn’t take long before someone ripped the show, and soon after many links to pirated copies started to appear on the usual torrent and streaming sites.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/9aca6127.throneleak.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/throneleak.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171485"/></figure></div>


<p>This isn&#8217;t the first time that a Game of Thrones episode has been released early. The popular HBO series has a long history of leaks. The most prominent one dates back to 2015 when the <a href="http://first four episodes of the new Game of Thrones season have leaked online a day before the official premiere." data-wplink-url-error="true">first four episodes</a> leaked from a promotional screener.&nbsp;</p>
<p>In 2017 a Game of Thrones episode <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/next-game-of-thrones-episode-leaks-online-170804/">leaked</a> with a &#8220;Star India&#8221; watermark. This eventually led to the <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/game-of-thrones-pirates-arrested-for-leaking-episode-early-170814/">arrests</a> of four people.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Today&#8217;s leak appears to be a mistake by Amazon, but the result is ultimately the same. Pirates will get an early viewing of the latest episode, before those who pay, and spoilers are being widely shared online.</p>
<p>For several years in a row Game of Thrones has been the most pirated TV-show, and this year the interest is overwhelming once again. Data published by piracy tracking company MUSO earlier this week showed that the first episode of this season was pirated <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/game-of-thrones-season-premiere-pirated-54-million-times-in-a-day-190417/">54 million times</a> in just one day.</p><p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171425
title: VPN Users Could Be Depriving Pirate Sites of Ad Revenue
uri: VPN-Users-Could-Be-Depriving-Pirate-Sites-of-Ad-Revenue
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/IK6HxPTRedU/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright is-resized"><img src="media/0d0565d2.dollar-money.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/dollar-money.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-38877" width="229" height="172"/></figure></div>



<p>For more than a decade, copyright holders around the world have pushed Internet service providers to block &#8216;pirate&#8217; sites.</p>



<p>While users in the United States are yet to experience any blocking on copyright grounds, elsewhere &#8211; particularly in Europe &#8211; the site blocking phenomenon is in full swing.</p>



<p>Indeed, according to a <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/nearly-4000-pirate-sites-are-blocked-by-isps-around-the-world-190210/">recent overview</a> by the Motion Picture Association, almost 4,000 websites are blocked by ISPs across 31 countries. The number of domains blocked is more than double that amount, in excess of 8,000 worldwide.</p>



<p>While the action is seen as effective at preventing direct access to sites, plenty of workarounds exist. Alternative &#8216;pirate&#8217; domains regularly appear, along with mirrors, clones and the rising use of Tor and, of course, VPNs.</p>



<p>Interestingly, however, we received correspondence from the operator of a major &#8216;pirate&#8217; site this week that indicated that VPN-based traffic is undesirable because it is considered almost worthless by advertising networks.</p>



<p>&#8220;Pirate sites need money to operate,&#8221; he explained. &#8220;Having more VPN users accessing the site doesn&#8217;t equal more money.&#8221;</p>



<p>According to the operator, ad agencies frown upon such traffic. Instead, they prefer traffic that is easily categorized into geographic regions, with some countries&#8217; traffic being considered more valuable than others.</p>



<p>Users visiting sites from places such as the US, UK, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, and Australia, are considered more valuable than those visiting from India and China, for example. </p>



<p>The site operator says that advertisers pay for his traffic on a geographic basis. An example list of geocodes published by <a href="https://dev.maxmind.com/geoip/legacy/codes/iso3166/">Maxmind</a> shows a sample, with the United States listed as &#8216;US&#8217;, United Kingdom as &#8216;GB&#8217;, and Canada as &#8216;CA&#8217;. However, at the top of the list is A1, which stands for Anonymous Proxy.</p>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/3a5dcc38.image-28.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/image-28.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171429" srcset="https://torrentfreak.com/images/image-28.png 586w, https://torrentfreak.com/images/image-28-200x150.png 200w" sizes="(max-width: 586px) 100vw, 586px"></figure></div>



<p>&#8220;Advertisers pay per [geocode] and do campaigns per [geocode]. VPNs are marked with GEO A1 which is outside the scope of those tiers thus no one gets paid for those,&#8221; he explained.</p>



<p>Another site operator working in a similar niche told us that in his experience, payment for VPN traffic is patchy. However, he agreed with the overall sentiment.</p>



<p>&#8220;It all depends on the network to be honest. I have worked with a few networks before that don&#8217;t even show a popup if you&#8217;re using a VPN,&#8221; he explained.</p>



<p>Of course, the A1 code isn&#8217;t just limited to VPNs. TOR also comes under that category and that traffic is frowned up too.</p>



<p>&#8220;No ad agency pays for TOR traffic,&#8221; we were told. &#8220;There are special flags for TOR , anonymous proxies, VPN, dedicated servers, VPS servers. It&#8217;s really easy to monitor those networks and changes to them.  Everything is public anyway.&#8221;</p>



<p>IP2Location sells <a href="https://www.ip2location.com/database/px2-ip-proxytype-country">access to a database</a> for $799 which claims to be able to detect VPNs, proxies, and bots. It also offers a demo, which allows the user to enter an IP address and discover whether it falls into the above categories. We tested it with a diverse range of VPN servers and the tool identified the VPN every single time.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="media/e93870a4.vpn-test.png" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/vpn-test.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171431"/></figure>



<p>So while visitors may be able to unblock &#8216;pirate&#8217; sites with VPNs, TOR, and similar tools, it&#8217;s clear that many advertisers aren&#8217;t partial to this kind of traffic. There are other more creative ways to monetize these visitors through various schemes but for the large site in question, they&#8217;re more of a burden.</p>



<p>&#8220;More visits, more server load for 0$,&#8221; he concluded. </p>



<p> </p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171505
title: Top 10 Most Pirated Movies of The Week on BitTorrent – 04/22/19
uri: Top-10-Most-Pirated-Movies-of-The-Week-on-BitTorrent-04-22-19
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/PmWqAW5C_ZI/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-170798" src="media/eee361c2.glass.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/glass.png" alt="" width="299" height="183">This week we have two newcomers in our chart.</p>
<p>Glass is the most downloaded movie.</p>
<p>The data for our weekly download chart is estimated by TorrentFreak, and is for informational and educational reference only. All the movies in the list are Web-DL/Webrip/HDRip/BDrip/DVDrip unless stated otherwise.</p>
<p><a href="http://torrentfreak.com/category/dvdrip/feed/"><strong>RSS feed</strong></a>&nbsp;for the articles of the recent weekly movie download charts.</p>
<h5>This week&#8217;s most downloaded movies are:</h5>
<table class="css hover">
<thead>
<tr>
<th width="12%"><strong>Movie Rank</strong></th>
<th width="15%"><strong>Rank <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-pirated-movies-of-the-week-on-bittorrent-04-15-19/">last week</a></strong></th>
<th><strong>Movie name</strong></th>
<th width="18%"><strong>IMDb Rating / Trailer</strong></th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tfoot>
<tr>
<td colspan="4">Most downloaded movies via torrents</td>
</tr>
</tfoot>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td><strong>1</strong></td>
<td>(1)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6823368">Glass</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6823368">6.9</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBL6COBGjCA">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>2</strong></td>
<td>(2)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5886046/">Escape Room</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5886046/">6.4</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dSKUoV0SNI">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>3</strong></td>
<td>(&#8230;)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4827558/">High Life</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4827558/">6.3</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dSKUoV0SNI">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>4</strong></td>
<td>(3)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2386490/">How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2386490/">7.8</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLTDtbYmdWM">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>5</strong></td>
<td>(5)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1477834/">Aquaman</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1477834/">7.7</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmqJJqFX_CU">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>6</strong></td>
<td>(&#8230;)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5932728/">The Professor and the Madman</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5932728/">7.5</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dt1EEV-Szu4">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>7</strong></td>
<td>(6)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4701182/">Bumblebee</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4701182/">7.0</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcwmDAYt22k">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>8</strong></td>
<td>(9)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7959026/">The Mule</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7959026/">7.1</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_QksSzK7sI">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>9</strong></td>
<td>(4)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1987680/">The Upside</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1987680/">6.5</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dt1EEV-Szu4">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><strong>10</strong></td>
<td>(7)</td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4633694/">Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse</a></td>
<td><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4633694/">8.6</a> / <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tg52up16eq0">trailer</a></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171390
title: ACE Sees “Piracy Reduction” Efforts Pay Off, But Work is Not Done Yet
uri: ACE-Sees-Piracy-Reduction-Efforts-Pay-Off-But-Work-is-Not-Done
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/tRaFqasGwsg/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-140379" src="media/b447d2ef.ace-logo.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/ace-logo.jpg" alt="" width="315" height="141">During the summer of 2017, several of the largest entertainment industry companies in the world teamed up to create a new anti-piracy coalition.</p>
<p>The Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (<a href="https://www.alliance4creativity.com/">ACE</a>) brought together well-known Hollywood outfits including Disney, Warner Bros, NBCUniversal, media giants such as Sky and BBC, as well as the streaming-based newcomers Amazon, Netflix, and Hulu.</p>
<p>This is without a doubt one of the most prominent copyright enforcement groups in history and one with a clear mission. ACE wants to bring a halt to all forms of piracy but with a specific focus on online streaming, which it sees as a major threat to its industry.</p>
<p>The organization has filed several lawsuits in the US, for example, targeting vendors of pirate streaming boxes. This has been quite effective so far, with Dragon Box settling for <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/dragon-box-has-to-pay-ace-14-5-million-in-piracy-damages-190129/">$14.5 million</a> TickBox TV agreeing to pay <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/ace-scores-legal-victory-and-wins-25m-piracy-damages-from-tickbox-180911/">$25 million</a> in damages.</p>
<p>However, behind the scenes, there have been many less visible enforcement efforts as well. ACE regularly reaches out to developers who create &#8216;add-ons&#8217; and &#8216;builds&#8217; that are specifically designed to access pirated content through streaming boxes, including those running Kodi.</p>
<p>These efforts are not made public by ACE, but the targeted developers sometimes speak about them in public. Last week, for example, when the Hydra9 repository was targeted, among others. </p>
<p>&#8220;Some in the community got served ACE letters yesterday, including myself. My letter specifically mentions most of my builds, and the Hydra9 repo,&#8221; developer &#8216;Terror&#8217; informed people on Telegram, sharing a cease and desist letter. </p>
<p>&#8220;I have made so many friends in this community and the Hydra9 team has been the highlight of my time making builds. I will likely continue as a skinner/teacher only, after I’m done dealing with ACE,&#8221; he added.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/9f1ca0ae.aceimediate.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/aceimediate.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-171409"/></figure></div>


<p>The letter in question is similar to those that have gone out to many other developers since 2017. As can be seen below, it comes with a rather impressive list of logos from entertainment industry companies, to which Discovery Inc., Channel 5, and Telefe <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/ace-expands-anti-piracy-coalition-with-discovery-viacom-companies/">have yet to be added</a>.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/2958724c.aceletter.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/aceletter.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-171408"/></figure></div>


<p>It appears that these efforts have been quite successful but thus far ACE hasn&#8217;t said much about them in public. To find out more, we asked the organization whether it could share any data on how many of these requests it has sent out over the past two years.&nbsp;</p>
<p>While we didn&#8217;t get any exact figures from ACE, which clearly doesn&#8217;t want to give away too much, the group said that a &#8220;significant&#8221; number of developers and site operators cooperated after being notified.&nbsp;</p>
<p>“ACE has sought and obtained voluntary cooperation from a significant number of owners, operators, and developers of sites, add-ons, and services that facilitate piracy,&#8221; <em>ACE </em>spokesperson Richard&nbsp;VanOrnum told us.&nbsp;</p>
<p>ACE targets people throughout the world and says it prioritizes voluntary measures over lawsuits. Through these efforts, it hopes to boost the legal market. Thus far, the media companies behind the group are happy with the results.</p>
<p>“Our members are pleased that the overwhelming majority of owners, operators, and developers of sites, add-ons, and services that facilitate copyright theft voluntarily comply with copyright law upon contact with ACE representatives,&#8221; VanOrnum tells us.</p>
<p>&#8220;We will execute more planned global actions along these lines and look to continue our success protecting creators around the world,” he adds.</p>
<p>If a cease and desist order is ignored, legal action remains an option. While ACE hasn&#8217;t shied away from that in the past, it aims to address issues out of court where possible.</p>
<p>Cease and desist letters are only part of its strategy though. ACE also seeks cooperation from many other players in the ecosystem, including advertising networks, payment processors, cyberlockers, domain name registrars and registries, search engines, online marketplaces, and social media services, to name a few.</p>
<p>ACE hopes to promote legally available content while addressing illegal add-ons and streaming boxes. However, it also has its eyes set on other streaming services, including apps and websites.&nbsp;</p>
<p>“We are continuously reviewing our strategy and will consider new outreach and enforcement efforts where appropriate,&#8221; VanOrnum tells us, again, without giving away any concrete targets.</p>
<p>The group does explain that it has a comprehensive &#8220;piracy reduction plan&#8221; which tries to incorporate all the major streaming threats.</p>
<p>While the early signs suggest that this plan is paying off, work is far from done yet. New investigations are being launched on a regular basis, which means that the cease and desist letter Hydra9 received, was certainly not the last.</p><p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171524
title: Nintendo Targets Amazing C64 Port of Super Mario Bros. After 7 Years’ Development
uri: 2019-04-23-
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/bwfzrcipHHQ/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright is-resized"><img src="media/46d36449.super-mario-bros-64.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/super-mario-bros-64.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171527" width="265" height="186"/></figure></div>



<p>When it was released in 1982, the Commodore 64 (or C64) was a revelation.</p>



<p>Resplendent in all its 8-bit glory, the machine packed 20 kilobytes of ROM, 64 kilobytes of RAM, the ability to display multicolor sprites and a sound chip (the now legendary SID) to die for.</p>



<p>How many machines were eventually sold is up for debate, but with lower estimates of more than 12 million units and some as high as 30 million, it was clearly a massive success story that still has developers excited today.</p>



<p>In parallel with the companies who wrote code for Commodore&#8217;s machine, a thriving hobbyist scene thrived in the 80s. So-called &#8216;demos&#8217;, distributed via BBSs, pushed the computer to its limits, delighting users with super-smooth scrolling and sampled speech &#8211; in fact anything it wasn&#8217;t originally expected to do.</p>



<p>The fascination with the C64 has persisted for decades. It wasn&#8217;t officially discontinued until 1994 but since then has lived on, both in hardware and emulated forms. Those pushing the limits of what the machine can do have also remained hard at work.</p>



<p>One of those individuals is a programmer known online as <a href="https://csdb.dk/scener/?id=32495">ZeroPaige</a>, who for the past seven years has been attempting to cram a port of Nintendo&#8217;s 1985 NES game Super Mario Bros. into Commodore&#8217;s now ancient hardware.</p>



<p>On April 18, 2019, ZeroPaige revealed that his goal had been reached, with the release of <a href="https://csdb.dk/release/?id=176968">Super Mario Bros 64</a>. </p>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter is-resized"><img src="media/c3c1cc79.SMB64.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/SMB64.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171529" width="534" height="378"/></figure></div>



<p>&#8220;This is a Commodore 64 port of the 1985 game SUPER MARIO BROS. for the Famicom and Nintendo Entertainment System,&#8221; ZeroPaige <a href="https://www.lemon64.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=71262&amp;start=0">wrote</a>.</p>



<p>&#8220;It contains the original version that was released in Japan and United States, as well as the European version. It also detects and supports a handful of turbo functionalities, and has 2 SID support.&#8221;</p>



<p>The developer released the somewhat incredible port as a C64 disk image file, playable on hardware or emulators. The reception it received was amazing, with many fans heaping praise on ZeroPaige for completing a task many believed couldn&#8217;t be done.</p>



<p>But of course, the mighty Nintendo was watching too.</p>



<p>Links to the image squirreled away on hosting platforms started to go down, with the suspicion that the Japanese gaming giant was behind the deletions. Seven years of hard work taken down with a few lines of text.</p>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter is-resized"><img src="media/2a54ebf9.smb-down2.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/smb-down2.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171538" width="600"/></figure></div>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter is-resized"><img src="media/65c284e1.smb64-down.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/smb64-down.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171535" width="600"/></figure></div>



<p>Early this morning, the Commodore Computer Club revealed that it too had been hit with a copyright notice, effectively confirming that Nintendo was behind the action against Super Mario Bros. 64.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-embed-twitter aligncenter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Good times. Due to a DMCA takedown notice we had to remove the Super Mario Bros 64 download from our website blog post from 4 days ago. Hopefully everyone enjoys the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Commodore?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Commodore</a> 64 <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/C64?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#C64</a> game who was able to snag it.</p>&mdash; PDX Commodore Club (@c64club) <a href="https://twitter.com/c64club/status/1120463081908391936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 22, 2019</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
</div></figure>



<p>It doesn&#8217;t really come as a surprise that Nintendo has targeted the project. The company has been extremely busy in recent months <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/nintendo-wins-12-million-from-pirate-rom-site-operators-181112/">taking down</a> sites that offer ROMs that infringe on its copyrights.</p>



<p>Furthermore, Super Mario Bros. is also available on its Game Boy, Wii U, and Switch platforms, so the &#8230;.erm&#8230;.Commodore 64&#8230;is also a market threat.</p>



<p>But while this takedown will have C64 fans shaking their heads, it will prove impossible to delete Super Mario Bros. 64 from history. As things stand, the disk image is available for download in a number of places and for those who want to play it, a few minutes searching will yield results.</p>



<p>The other factor is that the people most interested in this project will already have plenty of connections in the emulator scene, so much of the sharing will go on behind closed doors. This is perhaps a fitting tribute to the distribution that took place in the 1980s, when hobbyists began pushing the C64 to perform tricks its creators never envisioned.</p>



<p>While Nintendo&#8217;s lawyers clearly see Super Mario Bros. 64 as just another threat to be countered, the company&#8217;s programmers are probably sitting quietly at their desks, smiling quietly at the impressive work of ZeroPaige. </p>



<p>After all, they&#8217;re all striving for the impossible. <style>.embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; }</style></p>



<style>.embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; }</style><div class="embed-container"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed//XIwlhQpC0-k" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171508
uri: Malibu-Media-Wants-to-Dismiss-Piracy-Case-Against-IT-Experts-Says-The
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/tSPvr9OHIIc/
title:
Malibu Media Wants to Dismiss Piracy Case Against IT Experts, Says They Can Hide Infringing Activity

content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-147326" src="media/3d6122ae.courtorderjustice.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/courtorderjustice.jpg" alt="" width="256" height="171">In recent years, file-sharers around the world have been pressured to pay significant settlement fees or face legal repercussions.</p>
<p>These so-called “copyright trolling” efforts have been a common occurrence in the United States for roughly a decade, and they still are.</p>
<p>Malibu Media, the Los Angeles-based company behind the ‘X-Art’ adult movies, is behind many of these cases. The company has filed&nbsp;<a href="https://torrentfreak.com/us-online-piracy-lawsuits-hit-a-record-high-last-year-190104/">thousands of lawsuits</a>&nbsp;in recent years, targeting Internet subscribers whose accounts were allegedly used to share Malibu’s films via BitTorrent.</p>
<p>These cases generally don&#8217;t make it to trial and there are several examples where the rightsholder opted to voluntarily dismiss a case when a defendant pushed back. This is also what happened in a lawsuit that was filed against Tim McManus.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The adult entertainment company named McManus in a complaint last year and later added his company Greenwood Digital as well. However, these defendants were not intent on settling and fought back. They filed a counterclaim for &#8220;abuse of process&#8221; against Malibu Media and requested discovery.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The defendants were ready to fight the case on its merits as that would help them to clear their names. However, Malibu Media then decided that it would no longer pursue the case.&nbsp;</p>
<p>While we have seen such voluntary dismissals in the past, in this case, the adult entertainment company gave a rather unique explanation. It informed the court that it chose not to continue because the defendants are &#8220;IT professionals&#8221; who know how to hide infringing activity.</p>
<p>&#8220;Plaintiff has elected not to pursue its claim against Defendants as present evidence does not support the time and expense that would be incurred in an attempt to bear out Defendants’ infringer status as a direct or contributory infringer as it appears the Defendants are sophisticated IT professionals with the knowledge to hide infringing activity.</p>
<p>&#8220;For this reason, and to conserve judicial resources and prevent unnecessary expense for the parties, Plaintiff respectfully requests that this Court dismiss with prejudice Plaintiff’s claim against Defendants,&#8221; Malibu Media added.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/9f36aa79.sophis.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/sophis.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171568"/></figure></div>


<p>In essence, Malibu argues that it&#8217;s not financially feasible to pursue the matter because the IT company can, presumably, hide any infringing activity despite the evidence it has collected.&nbsp;</p>
<p>McManus and his IT company deny these accusations and believe that the rightsholder didn&#8217;t have any proper evidence to begin with.</p>
<p>They are not happy with this request for a dismissal, as it will make it harder for them to clear their name and get compensated for the costs they have incurred thus far in their defense. They made this clear in a filing submitted to the District Court of New Jersey yesterday.&nbsp;</p>
<p>According to the defendants, the allegations made by Malibu Media have led to both financial and reputational damage. They request the court to deny the motion to dismiss, allowing the case to be fought on its merits.</p>
<p>&#8220;Defendants have been severely prejudiced by being forced to expend substantial sums of money and time to defend against plaintiff’s claims and pursue their Counterclaims.&nbsp; In addition, by the mere existence of plaintiff’s lawsuit against defendant Tim McManus, Mr. McManus’s reputation and ability to secure business have been negatively affected,&#8221; the defendants argue.&nbsp;</p>
<p>In an additional certification, defendant Tim McManus writes that the case has harmed his reputation. Among other things, he says that the false accusations were brought up by one of his students at Fordham University.&nbsp;</p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">&#8220;It is a challenge explaining to the students that I did not download the titles outlined in the plaintiff’s Complaint. These accusations have harmed my reputation since I cannot say (yet) that I won a favorable judgment in the case,&#8221; McManus writes.</span></p>
<p>McManus stresses that his company is also harmed by the case and wants to fight the allegations in court so he can properly refute the claims. If the case was simply dismissed, as Malibu wants, that wouldn&#8217;t be an option.&nbsp;</p>
<p>It is now up to the court to decide whether this case will be dismissed or whether McManus and his company will have the chance to clear their names and request compensation.&nbsp;</p>
<p><em>&#8212;</em></p>
<p><em>A copy of the defendant&#8217;s opposition is available <a href="media/ccd9d92a.mcmanus.pdf" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/mcmanus.pdf">here (pdf)</a>. The matter is currently scheduled to be discussed in a court hearing later this week.</em></p><p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171565
title: Piracy Tracking Firm MUSO Secures Additional £3.5m in Funding
uri: Piracy-Tracking-Firm-MUSO-Secures-Additional-3-5m-in-Funding
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/bomOEVCJBwY/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-171589" src="media/b336cef1.musonew.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/musonew.png" alt="" width="272" height="110">Anti-piracy firms often portray copyright infringers as thieves that must be stopped or eradicated.</p>
<p>However, the people at UK firm&nbsp;<a href="https://www.muso.com/">MUSO</a> have a different take on the piracy problem. The company offers its clients classic takedown tools but prefers to frame piracy as an opportunity rather than a threat.</p>
<p>MUSO believes that piracy audiences are great untapped pools of wealth. This is also a message it communicates to its clients, which include major players such as Sony Interactive, IMG, Entertainment One, and the European Union Intellectual Property Office.</p>
<p>In its early years, the startup received funding from the <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/uk-government-funds-anti-piracy-outfit-with-taxpayer-money-131031/">UK Government</a>, but more recently it received backing from the more traditional venture capital firm Harwell Capital.&nbsp;</p>
<p>This week MUSO announces that it has raised an additional £3.5 million in funding from Harwell. This is in addition to a £2.5 million investment it received from the same company two years ago, bringing the total for its Series A funding round to £6 million.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The UK-based anti-piracy outfit says it will use the money to expand the company&#8217;s sales and marketing, so it can increase its market share in the digital media, gaming and live broadcast sectors.&nbsp;</p>
<p>MUSO&#8217;s main goal remains unchanged. It will continue to focus on the more positive approach of converting pirates into paying customers, instead of disregarding this audience as &#8216;criminals.&#8217;</p>
<p>&#8220;Unlike other anti-piracy or content protection outfits, MUSO focuses on pointing out to rights holders and media distributors that piracy audiences are actually untapped opportunities, rather than enemies, or the criminals that we perceive them to be,&#8221; the company explains.&nbsp;</p>
<p>MUSO founder and CEO Andy Chatterley, who&#8217;s a Grammy-nominated music producer, is happy with the continued support.&nbsp;</p>
<p>“Harwell has been a hugely supportive investment partner, who provide far more than cash alone to the company. They understand our vision and objectives and bring significant advice and acumen to ensure we can execute on our continued growth plans in a most exciting market,” Chatterley notes.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Aside from providing piracy takedown services and insights to its clients, MUSO also regularly publishes piracy-related data. Last week, for example, it revealed that the first episode of Game of Thrones was pirated <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/game-of-thrones-season-premiere-pirated-54-million-times-in-a-day-190417/">more than 50 million</a> times in 24 hours.&nbsp;</p>
<p>In addition, the company has also <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/the-u-s-remains-top-traffic-source-for-pirate-sites-research-shows-190321/">helped to document</a> the changing interests of the pirate audience, which has moved from torrents and direct downloads to streaming-based services in recent years.</p>
<p>There have been <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/music-group-celebrates-millions-of-pointless-piracy-takedown-notices-180918/">critical notes as well</a>, of course. Last year MUSO and music outfit AIM announced that they managed to issue five million takedowns in just a few months, labeling their partnership as a great success.&nbsp;</p>
<p>However, on closer inspection, it appeared that pretty much all these requests were sent to Google and that the vast majority of the reported URLs were not removed because they were not indexed by the search engine.&nbsp;</p>


<p></p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171364
title: Avengers: Endgame Leaks Online in China, Begins to Spread
uri: Avengers-Endgame-Leaks-Online-in-China-Begins-to-Spread
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/MgEuEEo4t3M/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/aeb3d3f1.image-29.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/image-29.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171615"/></figure></div>



<p>Avengers: Endgame is being tentatively billed as the biggest box office hit the world has ever seen.</p>



<p>The movie is set for release in the United States in two days&#8217; time, when millions of Marvel fans will descend on cinemas nationwide to view the spectacular.</p>



<p>Interestingly, the companies behind the movie chose to release the movie in China first and as of 5pm local time today, it had already raked in around $90m in sales. That&#8217;s hugely impressive by any standard.</p>



<p>The decision to release in China, it was previously reported, was to help combat rampant piracy in the region. However, with millions of citizens hitting cinemas around the country of 1.3 billion people, there was always likely to be one here and there equipped with technology capable of recording the blockbuster once inside.</p>



<p>In anticipation of this somewhat inevitable event, TorrentFreak sources put systems in place to check for the movie being shared on BitTorrent. Between 4:00pm and 5:00pm local time, those triggers went off, indicating the jewel in Marvel&#8217;s crown had already hit the Internet.</p>



<p>Within minutes of the initial seed appearing, dozens of exclusively China-located users began sharing a 1.2GB torrent of the movie. There are also other variants, around the 2GB mark. We are currently unable to confirm the quality of those releases. </p>



<p>Data obtained by TF indicates that most initial sharers were using variants of the popular Chinese-market &#8216;Thunder&#8217; torrent client, which can usually be identified via its client code beginning 7.10.35.XXX in newer variants. A sole uTorrent user from Vietnam (highlighted below) was one of the early seeds on one torrent.</p>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/2b5a303c.avengers4torrentdata-1.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/avengers4torrentdata-1.png" alt="" class="wp-image-171625" srcset="https://torrentfreak.com/images/avengers4torrentdata-1.png 600w, https://torrentfreak.com/images/avengers4torrentdata-1-220x130.png 220w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px"></figure></div>



<p>The only good news for Marvel is that the version detailed above is of terrible quality.</p>



<p>&#8220;The image flickers constantly throughout. It&#8217;s semi-rotated and is littered throughout with watermarks for a gambling site that spin around the screen,&#8221; our source explains.</p>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/be63622b.endgame-title1.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/endgame-title1.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-171626"/></figure></div>



<p>Due to the concerns about spoilers, we have no intention of posting additional screenshots (other than the above) that have the potential to ruin the movie for fans. However, we can confirm that the audio on this particular release is poor too.</p>



<p>Despite the release being touted in China as a TS (which should have direct audio) we are informed that there are plenty of crunching noises and intermittent coughing throughout. This version has English audio with Chinese subtitles.</p>



<p>If ever there was a case for viewing a movie how it should be seen in the cinema, this pirated copy reinforces that, with bells on. Whether improved versions are standing by is currently unknown.</p>



<p><strong><em>Update:</em></strong><em> What appears to be the same copy has now begun circulating on some English-language sites, albeit in different file sizes.</em></p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171577
title: BREIN Goes After ‘Pirate’ Plex Share With Thousands of Movies and TV-Shows
uri: BREIN-Goes-After-Pirate-Plex-Share-With-Thousands-of-Movies-and
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/hmv9RfGD0-Y/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-171610" src="media/9e3ff7a3.plexs.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/plexs.png" alt="" width="273" height="178">Plex is a multifunctional media server that allows users to easily organize all their entertainment in one place.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Whether it&#8217;s movies, music, TV-shows, or photos, <a href="https://www.plex.tv/">Plex</a> can organize and index, making the content ready to stream on a wide variety of supported devices.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The technology itself is content-neutral, which means that it can be used both legally and illegally. In this case illegally, due to the often copyright infringing content. Much like the Kodi platform, Plex seems to be rather popular among pirates.&nbsp;</p>
<p>There are a variety of places where access to &#8220;Plex shares&#8221; are being offered, sometimes in exchange for a small fee. Those who sign up can then stream from a library of movies and TV-shows that&#8217;s regularly updated by the owner.&nbsp;</p>
<p>While sharing a small Plex library privately with a few friends isn&#8217;t going to be noticed easily, things change when access to a treasure trove of pirated videos is offered in public places. This is what a Dutch Plex user learned the hard way.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Earlier this week the man in question <a href="https://gathering.tweakers.net/forum/insert_bookmark/1656098/58640926">informed</a> fellow Plex users on Tweakers that he was approached by local anti-piracy group BREIN, which had become aware that he was running a Plex share with 5,700 movies and 10,000 TV-shows.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Since these were offered without permission, BREIN requested a €750 settlement plus an additional €500 for each day the share remained online. The user in question, who publicly stated that he downloaded the videos through Usenet and torrents sites, admitted his wrongdoing and swiftly complied.</p>
<p>This is the first time we&#8217;ve seen this type of settlement with the owner of a Plex share, but it may not be the last. According to <a href="https://stichtingbrein.nl/">BREIN</a> Director Tim Kuik, his organization keeps an eye on all kinds of piracy-related activity, also on Plex.&nbsp;</p>
<p>&#8220;BREIN and its participants are alert on any kind of server being used to give unauthorized public access to content. In this matter we received information from a third party which enabled us to determine widespread infringement by the person in question,&#8221; Kuik informs TF.</p>
<p>Interestingly, the audience of the Plex server, as described by BREIN, differs quite a bit from the user&#8217;s own account.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The Plex user, who has removed his initial posting, said he shared with two friends and his parents. However, BREIN, which had an informant with access to the server, said the audience was substantially larger. In addition, it was being advertised in public places such as Discord and Reddit.</p>
<p>&#8220;The customer base consisted of visitors who &#8211; for a fee or not &#8211; were given access to the media server&#8217;s library to view films and/or series,&#8221; the anti-piracy group wrote in an announcement.</p>
<p>&#8220;Customers were also given the opportunity to submit requests for films and/or series that they would like to see, which were subsequently made available,&#8221; BREIN added.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/13f53814.plexsc.jpg" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/plexsc.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-171657"/></figure></div>


<p>BREIN&#8217;s statement is backed up by readers from <a href="https://tweakers.net/nieuws/151904/tweakers-gebruiker-haalt-plex-server-offline-na-schikking-met-brein.html">Tweakers</a>. In response to a news report, they posted links to Reddit posts that suggest that the user in question, or someone linked to this person,&nbsp; indeed offered his share with a much larger group. However, the user in question denied this.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Whether the owner had just a few users on the Plex share or many more is ultimately irrelevant. The person in question admitted to downloading the files through torrents and Usenet, which in itself is against the law.</p>
<p>The question remains how BREIN obtained the personal details that were used to send the registered letter.</p>
<p>According to the user, the address in the letter contained a typo he made in his PayPal account. He also used a different name with PayPal, which was mentioned in the letter as well. This suggests that BREIN somehow received this information via the payment provider, but this remains unconfirmed.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Plex doesn&#8217;t appear to be directly involved in the matter, as it generally <a href="https://www.plex.tv/nl/about/privacy-legal/plex-copyright-policy/">informs users</a> following copyright complaints, which hasn&#8217;t happened. We reached out to the company, which informed us that it respects user privacy as well as rightsholders&#8217; rights.</p>
<p>&#8220;We take our customers&#8217; privacy extremely seriously. Per our terms of service and privacy policy, libraries are owned and managed by our customers, and we have no access to the contents of their files,&#8221; a Plex spokesperson informed TorrentFreak.</p>
<p>&#8220;Our terms of service are very clear that we respect copyright holders&#8217; rights and customers agree that they must have rights to the content in their libraries,&#8221; the company added.</p>
<p>Finally, BREIN itself stresses that there&#8217;s nothing wrong with using Plex, as long as people do so legally. That is, using it to access files for which they have obtained permission.</p>
<p>&#8220;It is permitted to use Plex with legally obtained material,&nbsp; as long as it&#8217;s for your own use,&#8221; the anti-piracy group notes.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Those who share thousands of movies and TV-shows and share these in public, on the other hand, risk being caught at one point or another.</p><p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171680
title: Mobdro Pirate Streaming App Slammed in Malware Report
uri: Mobdro-Pirate-Streaming-App-Slammed-in-Malware-Report
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/DwFmuw7Jsn8/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/73fb44da.Mobdro-APK.jpg" data-original-source="https://mobdro.vip/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Mobdro-APK.jpg" alt=""/></figure></div>



<p>In recent years, millions of users around the world have turned to Android-based applications for their piracy fix. </p>



<p>They&#8217;re mostly free and easy to install, quickly providing access to the latest movies, TV shows, live sports, and PPV events.</p>



<p>Entertainment industry groups have long insisted that users of these applications are putting themselves at risk of malware and similar issues, but it&#8217;s fairly uncommon for them to go into much detail.</p>



<p>That changed today with the publication of a study carried out by the <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/tag/digital-citizens-alliance/">Digital Citizens Alliance</a> in conjunction with network security company Dark Wolfe Consulting. Some of the key findings concern the popular live streaming application known as Mobdro.</p>



<p>The researchers say that after installing the Android application, it forced an update and then forwarded their Wi-Fi name and password to a server that identified as being located in Asia. Mobdro then started to seek access to media content and other legitimate apps on the researchers&#8217; network.</p>



<p>&#8220;Researchers observed that the app that sent the user’s wireless name and password up to an external server in Indonesia then began probing the network and talking to any file-sharing services on the Local Area Network. It also &#8216;port knocked,&#8217; a process to look for other active malware,&#8221; they write.</p>



<p>&#8220;[A]fter the initial update, the device accepted commands from a threat actor. Those commands may come from the app itself or from the movie streams. With each selection of content, the user opens the door to a new set of commands and malicious payloads from a threat actor to a device in use.&#8221;</p>



<p>It&#8217;s not explained how the video streams themselves could contain malware. Mobdro is believed to scrape the web for content, much like Kodi add-ons do, and security experts haven&#8217;t seen <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/rampant-kodi-malware-its-time-to-either-put-up-or-shut-up-190610/">malware in video streams</a>. </p>



<p>However, the researchers state that the &#8220;commands in the apps or from the movie streams&#8221; were &#8220;either encrypted or encoded, making it difficult to analyze for infection.&#8221; It&#8217;s a vague statement that the study builds on, noting that encrypted commands <em>could</em> perform an update, retrieve malware, take part in a DDoS attack, or obtain files stored on the device or network &#8211; such as images, movies or documents.</p>



<p>There&#8217;s little doubt that the behavior highlighted above is not something the average person would expect from a video streaming app. However, it should be noted that the Mobdro software actually asks the user to grant permission to their photos, media, files and device location.</p>



<p>Most will blindly grant those permissions instead of declining, of course, and it sounds like the researchers followed that lead.</p>



<p>Furthermore, in view of the researchers&#8217; findings, it&#8217;s also worth highlighting the chaotic situation that surrounds Mobdro and many similar apps that facilitate access to illicit streams of movies and TV shows. Crucially, these aren&#8217;t allowed on official platforms like Google Play.</p>



<p>So, where it was once pretty obvious where the &#8216;official&#8217; app could be obtained, there are now a large number of &#8216;fake&#8217; sites also offering &#8216;hacked&#8217; variants of the software, any one of which could have experienced tampering. The researchers do not reveal the source of their installation files.</p>



<p>Another point of interest is raised when the researchers note that the software they installed also makes it possible for a &#8220;threat actor&#8221; to log in to a user&#8217;s device and then navigate away from the device to the Internet, effectively posing as the user online. </p>



<p>While this initially seems like a shocking claim, anyone who reads the official app&#8217;s EULA before installing the software will see for themselves that Mobdro is pretty upfront about this unpopular &#8216;feature&#8217;. Users of the software that choose not to see adverts find themselves <a href="https://www.mobdro.sc/eula">agreeing</a> to become peers on the (in)famous <a href="https://luminati.io/">Luminati network</a>, meaning that their bandwidth and IP address can indeed be used by others.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s far from ideal (who wants their connections used by others apart from <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/hola-vpn-sells-users-bandwidth-150528/">Hola users</a>?) but the site that hosts the software makes this clear, to those who bother to read the small print at least. Which is probably very few people indeed, sadly.</p>



<p>TorrentFreak requested comment from the operators of the official Mobdro client but at the time of publication, we were yet to hear back.</p>



<p>The full report, <em>&#8216;Fishing in the Piracy Stream: How the Dark Web of Entertainment is Exposing Consumers to Harm&#8217;</em> also contains information previously covered in earlier TorrentFreak articles. It can be found here <em>(<a href="media/31747ed8.DCA_Fishing_in_the_Piracy_Stream_v6.pdf" data-original-source="https://www.digitalcitizensalliance.org/clientuploads/directory/Reports/DCA_Fishing_in_the_Piracy_Stream_v6.pdf">pdf</a>)</em>  </p>



<p> </p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171670
title: LaLiga & Rights Alliance Win Dynamic Football Piracy Blocking Order
uri: LaLiga-Rights-Alliance-Win-Dynamic-Football-Piracy-Blocking-Order
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/5r4oz-ghagM/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/c74c42c9.laliga.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/laliga.png" alt="" class="wp-image-156904"/></figure></div>



<p>Movies, TV shows, and music have all proven popular with online pirates for years but with fast Internet connections now widespread, streaming live television is on the increase.</p>



<p>This presents a unique problem for football leagues hoping to generate large revenues from fans keen to catch the big game on TV. </p>



<p>There are dozens of pirate sites available today willing to provide that content for free, a point not lost on Danish anti-piracy group Rights Alliance (RettighedsAlliancen). Figures provided by the group indicate that between February 2018 and February 2019, locals made 18 million visits to the most popular illegal live sports services.</p>



<p>To help counter this threat, Rights Alliance teamed up with Spanish top-tier football league LaLiga in legal action designed to prevent local Internet users from accessing the sites.</p>



<p>In a case filed on February 8, 2019, LaLiga demanded that local ISP Telenor should prevent its subscribers from accessing 10 sites (list below) that infringe its copyrights by showing live matches. LaLiga suggested DNS blocking as a possible method but Telenor asked for the whole injunction to be denied.</p>



<p>LaLiga stated that that previous rulings from the European Court of Justice found that the English Premier League owned copyright in its broadcasts, which included videos, music, highlights of previous matches and graphics. </p>



<p>When these are made available to the public, it is only the rightsholder that holds an exclusive license to do so. The same holds true when such broadcasts are made available to a &#8220;new audience&#8221; &#8211; i.e one that the rightsholder hadn&#8217;t initially taken into account, such as unauthorized streaming over the Internet of an otherwise terrestrial broadcast. </p>



<p>As is becoming typical in similar cases, the local court referenced other important rulings from the EU Court, including <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/eu-court-not-for-profit-hyperlinking-usually-not-infringement-160908/">GS Media</a>, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/block-the-pirate-bay-within-10-days-dutch-court-tells-isps-170922/">BREIN v Ziggo</a> and <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/selling-piracy-configured-media-players-is-illegal-eu-court-rules-170426/">BREIN v Filmspeler</a>, to determine if the protected works were being made available to the public in contravention of EU law.</p>



<p>Nine of the &#8216;pirate&#8217; services listed in the complaint were ultimately deemed to be infringing due to them offering copyrighted works and generating revenue via advertising. The tenth, Spain-based RojaDirecta, requested more time to respond to LaLiga&#8217;s complaint, so the site will be dealt with at a later date.</p>



<p>On April 15, 2019, the Court of Frederiksberg handed down its order, which requires Telenor to block the listed sites using a &#8220;technical solution&#8221; such as DNS blocking. The provider is also required to block other domains that appear in future which facilitate access to the same sites. These will be advised by Rights Alliance under strict rules laid down by the Court.</p>



<p>Under the Danish ISP Code of Conduct, other major ISPs in Denmark will also implement the blocks against the sites in the complaint.</p>



<p>This is an important case in Denmark for both LaLiga and Rights Alliance, one that paves the way for blocking of unlicensed live sports and general TV portals in general.</p>



<p>LaLiga&#8217;s Audiovisual Director Melcior Soler welcomed the decision.</p>



<p>&#8220;Audiovisual Piracy is illegal and has great consequences, not only for us, but for the league and the future of the game, so we are very happy that RettighedsAlliancen has joined us in the fight. We know that Denmark is at the forefront of the development of digital tools to fight online piracy, and this is a big issue for us,” Soler said.</p>



<p>&#8220;We are now looking forward to seeing the effects of the blockings and hope that they can serve as an example for other countries, so that we can stand together in the fight against online piracy.&#8221; </p>



<p><em>The full order (supplied to TF by Rights Alliance) can be found here (</em><a href="media/0148cf12.Danish-LaLiga-order.pdf" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/Danish-LaLiga-order.pdf"><em>pdf</em></a><em>)</em>.</p>



<p><em>The site names, which are partially redacted in the order, are as follows:</em></p>



<ul><li>livetv*****</li><li>tvron*****</li><li>ronaldo7****</li><li>kora-star****</li><li>live.harleyquinnwidget****</li><li>myfeed2all****</li><li>stream2watch****</li><li>jokerlivestream****</li><li>kora-online****</li></ul>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171738
title: Zippyshare Shows ‘Forbidden’ Message to German Visitors
uri: Zippyshare-Shows-Forbidden-Message-to-German-Visitors
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/WPmbTRLSARA/
content:
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img src="media/d46a0e91.zippylogo.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/zippylogo.png" alt="" class="wp-image-169483"/></figure></div>



<p>File-hosting site Zippyshare has been online for more than 12 years, serving millions of users every day.</p>



<p>Stats from SimilarWeb indicate that traffic to the site has remained stable for some time, hovering around the 100 million visits per month mark. That positions the site well within the top 500 sites on the whole Internet, making it a major player in the file-hosting market.</p>



<p>The site is utilized by users all over the world but last month those in the UK suddenly <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/zippyshare-is-blocked-for-uk-visitors-but-why-190315/">found the platform inaccessible</a>. At least initially, there was speculation that local Internet service providers had blocked the site but given the circumstances, that seemed unlikely.</p>



<p>The error messages received by users when attempting to access the site&#8217;s domain indicated that ISPs weren&#8217;t to blame and Zippyshare itself had probably begun blocking UK visitors. Even those using some UK-based VPN servers couldn&#8217;t access the platform either.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s been more than month since that unexplained problem first raised its head and the situation doesn&#8217;t appear to have changed for those in the UK since. Indeed, a new problem seems to have raised its head elsewhere in Europe.</p>



<p>This week, users of Zippyshare attempting to access the site from Germany began reporting that they too are experiencing the same issues, with visitors seeing the same &#8220;403 Forbidden&#8221; notice, as shown below;</p>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img src="media/53b5723c.forbiddenzippy.png" data-original-source="https://torrentfreak.com/images/forbiddenzippy.png" alt=""/></figure></div>



<p>Tips received by TorrentFreak from users in Germany indicate that the site cannot be reached from several ISPs including Vodafone, Deutsche Telekom, M-net, Pyur, Unitymedia, and others.</p>



<p>Changing DNS settings to point to other providers (such as Cloudflare or Google) doesn&#8217;t seem to help matters but we did manage to access the site using VPN servers located in Berlin and Frankfurt. </p>



<p>Zippyshare did not respond to our earlier request for comment and the site hasn&#8217;t made any announcements that would explain the &#8216;forbidden&#8217; errors now being displayed across the EU&#8217;s most powerful countries.</p>



<p>While that&#8217;s a strange situation for a platform of Zippyshare&#8217;s scale and reach, stats provided by SimilarWeb reveal that the highest volume of visitors to the site are from Indonesia (13%) followed by Japan (9%), the United States (8%), Brazil (7%) and then India (4%). </p>



<p>This data suggests that countries in the EU are fairly insignificant in terms of traffic, which could explain the apparent apathy. Or, of course, Zippyshare might simply not want to talk about the problem in public, either voluntarily or otherwise, for a number of reasons.</p>



<p>Until the platform comments, speculation will continue.</p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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feed_id: https://torrentfreak.com/?p=171714
title: US Govt Identifies Top Pirate Sites and Other ‘Notorious Markets’
uri: US-Govt-Identifies-Top-Pirate-Sites-and-Other-Notorious-Markets
url: http://feed.torrentfreak.com/~r/Torrentfreak/~3/_ntsn8OoXYA/
content:
<p><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-132637" src="media/7b941d96.ustrb.jpg" data-original-source="http://torrentfreak.com/images/ustrb.jpg" alt="ustrb" width="277" height="172">In its yearly “Out-of-Cycle Review of Notorious Markets”, the United States Trade Representative (<a href="https://ustr.gov/">USTR</a>) lists a few dozen websites said to be involved in piracy or counterfeiting.</p>
<p>The overview is largely based on input from industry groups including the RIAA and MPAA, who submitted their recommendations late last year.</p>
<p>The USTR stresses that the list isn&#8217;t exhaustive, nor is it meant to reflect legal violations. The goal of the review is to motivate owners and foreign Governments to take appropriate action and reduce piracy.</p>
<p>&#8220;In the absence of good faith efforts, responsible government authorities should investigate reports of piracy and counterfeiting in these and similar markets and pursue appropriate action against such markets and their owners and operators,&#8221; the USTR writes.</p>
<p>This year there appears to be a stronger focus on counterfeiting and offline markets than in previous years. There is also a focus on free trade zones, for example, mostly in relation to counterfeiting. However, pirate sites are also highlighted in the report.</p>
<p>First off, the Government reports that there have been some recent successes on the anti-piracy front.&nbsp; The 123movies websites have been shut down <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/123movies-was-shut-down-following-a-criminal-investigation-181005/">following a criminal investigation</a> in Vietnam and, more recently, the&nbsp; <span class="fontstyle0">FAB IPTV</span> service <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/fab-iptv-says-it-has-shut-down-following-europol-led-raid-180920/">was taken offline</a> following a Europol-led raid.</p>
<p>Still, many piracy-related challenges remain. According to the USTR&#8217;s report, The Pirate Bay remains one of the primary offenders, despite some significant downtime issues.</p>
<p><span style="font-size: inherit;">&#8220;While The Pirate Bay websites have experienced periodic downtime over the past year, right holders continue to report high levels of infringing activities taking place on this platform,&#8221; the USTR writes.</span></p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">&#8220;As one of the first BitTorrent indexing websites and one of its most vocal in openly promoting piracy, The Pirate Bay continues to be one of the most frequently visited websites in the world,&#8221; the report adds.</span></p>
<p>Other prominent torrent sites mentioned in the review are RuTorrent and RARBG. Interestingly, 1337x.to, which was included previously, no longer gets a mention.</p>
<p>The USTR has also included the stream ripping sites Flvto.biz and 2Conv.com, which are currently involved in a <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/stream-ripper-operator-rejects-record-labels-piracy-hysteria-in-court-190412/">US court battle</a> with several record labels. Another popular stream ripping site highlighted by the USTR is MP3juices.cc, and the music-related sites Mp3va.com and Newalbumreleases.net also get a mention.</p>
<p>The latest overview of notorious markets further lists a selection of game-related websites. <span class="fontstyle0">Firestorm-Servers.com and Warmane.com, for example, which host unauthorized World of Warcraft servers with thousands of players.<br>
</span><br>
Another game-related site is Mpgh.net, which offers a wide variety of hacks and cheats.</p>
<p>&#8220;Mpgh.net is an example of a site that provides “cheats” and reportedly offers several hundred thousand free cheats to over 4 million users. The site generates revenue through advertisements and by offering premium accounts, <span class="fontstyle0">and Internet browsers reportedly detect and warn of malicious content on the site,</span>&#8221; the USTR writes.</p>
<p>The malware angle is brought up more often by the USTR, which references various reports which found that pirate sites are often linked to the spreading of malicious content.</p>
<p>The USTR report continues with mentions of popular cyberlockers such as Openload, Uploaded, and Rapidgator. Streaming sites and apps such as Fmovies, TVPlus, and TVBrowser also make the list.</p>
<p>The pirate broadcaster BEOUTQ gets a mention as well, as do the academic pirate sources Sci-Hub and LibGen, as well as Russia&#8217;s social network VK.com. The latter keeps being mentioned, despite a long list of anti-piracy actions it has taken in recent years.</p>
<p>In addition to individual sites and services, the USTR notes that some hosting providers have also become problematic players. This includes so-called bulletproof hosters such as FlokiNET.</p>
<p><span class="fontstyle0">&#8220;FlokiNET is an example of the growing problem of hosting providers that do not respond to notices of infringement or warning letters that the provider is hosting and supporting known infringing websites,&#8221; USTR writes.</span></p>
<p>The USTR hopes that by highlighting these problematic sites and companies, their operators or local law enforcement will take action to prevent copyright infringing activity going forward.</p>
<p><em>&#8212;</em></p>
<p><em>A copy of USTR&#8217;s 2018 overview of notorious markets (published yesterday) is <a href="media/f3d5905f.2018_Notorious_Markets_List.pdf" data-original-source="http://feed.torrentfreak.com/images/2018_Notorious_Markets_List.pdf">available here (pdf)</a>. The full list of highlighted online sites/service, including those focused on counterfeiting, is as follows:</em></p>
<p><em>-1Fichier.com</em><br>
<em>-BEOUTQ</em><br>
<em>-Bukalapak.com</em><br>
<em>-Carousell.com</em><br>
<em>-Chomikuj.pl</em><br>
<em>-DHgate.com</em><br>
<em>-Firestorm-Servers.com and Warmane.com</em><br>
<em>-FlokiNET</em><br>
<em>-Flvto.biz and 2Conv.com</em><br>
<em>-FMovies.is</em><br>
<em>-Hosting Concepts B.V.</em><br>
<em>-Indoxx1.com</em><br>
<em>-Kinogo.cc</em><br>
<em>-MP3juices.cc</em><br>
<em>-Mp3va.com</em><br>
<em>-Mpgh.net</em><br>
<em>-Newalbumreleases.net</em><br>
<em>-Openload.co</em><br>
<em>-Pelispedia.tv</em><br>
<em>-Pinduoduo.com</em><br>
<em>-Private Layer Hosted Sites (e.g. Torrentz2.eu)</em><br>
<em>-Rapidgator.net, Rutracker.org, and Seasonvar.eu</em><br>
<em>-RARBG.to</em><br>
<em>-Sci-Hub and LibGen</em><br>
<em>-Shopee.ph</em><br>
<em>-Taobao.com</em><br>
<em>-Thepiratebay.org</em><br>
<em>-Tokopedia.com</em><br>
<em>-Turbobit.net</em><br>
<em>-TVPlus, TVBrowser, and Kuaikan</em><br>
<em>-Uploaded.net</em><br>
<em>-Uptobox.com</em><br>
<em>-VK.com</em></p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://torrentfreak.com/">TF</a>, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/top-10-most-popular-torrent-sites-of-2018-180107/">torrent sites</a> and more. We also have <a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-services-keep-anonymous-2018/">VPN reviews, </a><a href="https://torrentfreak.com/vpn-discount-coupon-offer-torguard-nordvpn-expressvpn-pia/">discounts, offers and coupons</a>.</p>
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