BitTorrent file-swapping networks face crisis

Found on CNet News on Sunday, 19 December 2004
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Last week, the Motion Picture Association of America launched a series of worldwide legal actions, aimed at people who ran the infrastructure for BitTorrent networks being used to distribute movies and other copyrighted materials without permission.

Hollywood officials said last week that legal actions had already been filed against BitTorrent tracker operators in several countries and that they would continue to pursue other copyright infringers online.

"Our message is this: If you are running an infringing server, stop," John Malcolm, the MPAA's director of worldwide antipiracy operations, said last week. "There are more enriching ways to use your talents. Take down your servers immediately, or face the consequences."

There's no question that the disappearance of SuprNova and others will be felt widely around the Net, but file-swapping community insiders said it won't dramatically change behavior.

Did those torrent sites host any copyrighted material? No. You can even find torrents in Google. What now, planning to sue them too? And that's another reason for my CD/DVD boycott.