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JUST NOW IN SWEDEN: Four indicted in Pirate Bay Case

thelocal.se — Four people involved in the running of file-sharing site The Pirate Bay were indicted in Sweden on Thursday on charges of being accessories to breaking copyright law.

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  • tomtom10, on 01/31/2008, -13/+297this case is lame, they will walk away unharmed
    the prosecutor got nothing
    • cliffski, on 01/31/2008, -86/+4I really doubt that. those 4 guys will get at least 2 years in jail for this. They will probably lsoe the site too, and no doubt the users on there will start getting their letters...
      • thinman1189, on 01/31/2008, -2/+58And you base this on what?
      • FluffyWolf, on 01/31/2008, -3/+60Jail time for assisting to breaking copyright law? Not a chance. You don't even get time for breaking copyright law. They might get some fines though.
        • actorboy, on 01/31/2008, -15/+2+42 on the wrong information. Nothing like people posting and digging without the facts. Google: Elite Torrents Jail See what you come back with.
          • sockpuppets, on 01/31/2008, -1/+14PirateBay is out of Sweden, EliteTorrents was American. Google: I Am Dumb Like Soap. See what you come back with.
          • FogDogg, on 02/01/2008, -1/+2Everyones laughing about this because what the TPB guys are doing is legal where they live and where its hosted.
          • actorboy, on 02/01/2008, -5/+1@ sockpuppets

            The statement Fluffy made was "You don't even get time for breaking copyright law." He never said *In Sweden*. Google: reading comprehension.
          • dOOBiEx213, on 02/01/2008, -1/+3Epic fail....just quit while you're ahead actorboy.
      • fr3nch13, on 01/31/2008, -4/+57But here's the thing. There is no copyrighted material on The Pirate Bay (unless you consider titles and lyrics). A tracker is put up by a user, and distributed by multiple users. The Pirate Bay doesn't put up those trackers. This would be like suing Craig every time someone posts a hit on an ex-boyfriend on his list.
        • mikepictor, on 01/31/2008, -17/+9That's why they are an accessory, not the perpetrators directly.
          • midbc, on 01/31/2008, -1/+16well google better get their asses sued off then cause thats how i first come across the pirate bay

            oh thats right all the music and movie labels make money from google so that makes it ok to have links to places some people think are illegal

            long live file sharing
          • Audacitor, on 01/31/2008, -0/+8Well then, while were at it, why don't we sue the creator of BitTorrent, the makers of Azureus, eradicate the foss Transmission (foss oughta be illegal anyway, shouldn't it?), and start charging people for access to BT.
        • CedEx, on 01/31/2008, -6/+27Would a library be an accessory if it puts a photocopy machine near the book aisles?
          • knetworx, on 01/31/2008, -0/+11Going by the logic of this case, yes. The same reason makers of mod chips get shut down and fined, because mod chips *can* be used to put games on your console that you don't own, even though a lot of people use them just for homebrew stuff and extra functionality, such as movie/music players, and things like that.
          • mikepictor, on 01/31/2008, -8/+6I am making no judgements in terms of how "right" or "wrong" the pirate bay is at a moral level.

            The difference, despite all the statements trying to cloud the issue, is that while at a basic level, the hosting of torrent files can be argued to be legal, their *intent* is to help the distribution of copyrighted material. Craig's list took down the hitman ad, and probably have rules against such material in their terms of service. A library provides a photocopier with the intent that it be used in a legal way. Intent means something, and pirate bay can't argue any other intent.

            They are an accesory.
        • Solkre, on 01/31/2008, -5/+2YES, I'm calling the cops!
        • Treygdor, on 01/31/2008, -8/+1hmm, last time I checked it wasn't takeahitoutonyourexboyfriendlist.org
      • rullingen, on 01/31/2008, -4/+241) There is nothing these guys have done thats Illeagal
        2) The servers now span several countries, they cant be shut down
        • cliffski, on 01/31/2008, -8/+5like oink and demonoid
          • championchap, on 02/01/2008, -0/+2Nothing like OiNK or Demonoid.
            Demonoid was hosted in Canada after it's move, I don't think it has ever been in Sweden.
            OiNK started life in the UK and then moved abroad and ended up in Amsterdam.

            Europe != a country.
        • Bootes, on 01/31/2008, -0/+5Other than being torrent sites, and relatively open ones, Oink and Demonoid have nothing to do with TPB.
    • fkr3, on 01/31/2008, -53/+7They won't walk away unharmed. Either they'll end up in prison, with their bank accounts frozen (thus terminating TPB) or they'll lose the domain. Either way they were only ever in it for the money, not the rhetoric, they'll fold the moment the consequences become real.
      • uberfu, on 01/31/2008, -5/+23Uh - How real do you consider the threats NEED to be before they fold ?

        http://thepiratebay.org/legal
        • fkr3, on 01/31/2008, -31/+6For the threats to be real? I'd rate your ass standing in front of a judge trying to convince him you shouldn't spend the next 2 years being ass-***** as "pretty real" personally. Before they were simply hiding behind a loophole and rejecting DMCA notices.
          • xtraa, on 01/31/2008, -2/+20This is sweden, not death valley. Domain is safe on Sealand, and they won't see jail in a lifetime bcause they did not copied or pasted anything. And DMCA is USA only.
          • sockpuppets, on 01/31/2008, -0/+7Don't mind fkr3, he's just had fantasies of prison ass-***** for a while now. he just likes to fit it in his conversations.
        • cliffski, on 01/31/2008, -18/+4posting sarcasm on the web is easier than reasoning with a police officer holding a gun, so yeah... big difference.
        • infinitiesedge, on 01/31/2008, -1/+24Something not being illegal is a loophole? o O
        • knetworx, on 01/31/2008, -0/+15I only read one email from that list -- their response to Dreamworks' threat for legal action:

          As you may or may not be aware, Sweden is not a state in the United States
          of America. Sweden is a country in northern Europe.
          Unless you figured it out by now, US law does not apply here.
          For your information, no Swedish law is being violated.

          Please be assured that any further contact with us, regardless of medium,
          will result in
          a) a suit being filed for harassment
          b) a formal complaint lodged with the bar of your legal counsel, for
          sending frivolous legal threats.

          It is the opinion of us and our lawyers that you are ....... morons, and
          that you should please go sodomize yourself with retractable batons.

          Please also note that your e-mail and letter will be published in full on
          http://www.thepiratebay.org.

          Go ***** yourself.

          Polite as usual,
          anakata
      • Sabarok, on 01/31/2008, -9/+14What money? Do you even have numbers? The only revenue they'd have from this would be ad revenue, which would barely be enough to cover the operating expenses and their own time. Compare it to those that milk the system legally and look at how much more money those people made. The profiteers are the ones selling physical discs
        • fkr3, on 01/31/2008, -17/+11Riiiiiiiiight, they just "did it for the lulz", the 2.5m visitors a day looking at multiple ad blocks, the merchandise and the donations were just for ***** and giggles. Idiot.
        • cliffski, on 01/31/2008, -11/+8a study showed that through companies like adbrite, TPB earned approx 9 million dollars a year. and like you people keep saying, "they don't host the files", so yeah, its insanely profitable.
        • Zzone, on 01/31/2008, -1/+8"Compare it to those that milk the system legally and look at how much more money those people made."
          The Key word in this sentence is *Legally*.
    • enchantedsky, on 01/31/2008, -39/+3Cut off a snake's head, and the snake will die. The Pirate Bay is going down, but there will always be other torrent sites available.

      I don't see the webmaster laughing at his new legal dilemma: http://thepiratebay.org/legal
      • theaceoffire, on 01/31/2008, -0/+28True, but cut off a string's head and you get two strings!
        They don't control bittorrents, they don't create the torrents. They simplify an already easy process.
        • sweetdeals, on 01/31/2008, -0/+20Step 1: Explain to the judge, in an intelligent and respectful manner, how the torrent system of filesharing works.
          Step 2: Walk out of court.
          • knetworx, on 01/31/2008, -1/+18Step 3: Drive off laughing, as your buddy moons the judge out the back window.
            Step 4: Drive back to court...
          • InSectWar, on 01/31/2008, -1/+10Step 5. ????
            Step 6. Profit!!!!
      • digitalarcanum, on 01/31/2008, -0/+2but the pirate bay, bittorrent, and p2p in general is NOT a snake, it's more like a hydra. No matter how many heads get cut off, they'll grow back. They can't fight piracy and this court case is all show.
      • sarixe, on 02/01/2008, -0/+2the webmaster hasn't posted anything about his new legal dilemma... possibly because it's still going on?
    • SniperZero, on 01/31/2008, -21/+8Sweden and TPB have prob teamed up secretly to fake this trial just to get the riaa/mpaa off their back.
      • Kurlumbenus, on 01/31/2008, -2/+6I doubt they've teamed up, but I could see the trial as Sweeden's plausible deniability.
    • SpaceRibs, on 01/31/2008, -3/+21I just want to quote something from Wikipedia on Accessory as a legal term

      "An accessory must generally have knowledge that a crime is being, or will be committed. A person with such knowledge may become an accessory by helping or encouraging the criminal in some way, or simply by failing to report the crime to proper authority. The assistance to the criminal may be of any type, including emotional or financial assistance as well as physical assistance or concealment."

      I agree with you, it's going to be hard for the proscuter to pin down what that assistance was, just setting up a service that "could" be abused isn't exactly the clearest water to swim in.
      • KraftDinner101, on 01/31/2008, -2/+69Then every ISP is an accessory to breaking copyright law.
        • santafr0g, on 01/31/2008, -1/+16I don't know about Swedish law, but in the US ISP's have immunity from such a prosecution.
          • KraftDinner101, on 01/31/2008, -1/+14It is the same in Sweden, but why should they be treated any differently? They don't host the product, neither do ISPs. They only allow a service for which people can transfer files, basically the definition of an ISP.
          • theblt, on 02/01/2008, -0/+1"basically the definition of an ISP"

            ....except PirateBay doesn't provide Internet access...
        • h4ckler, on 01/31/2008, -0/+34Maybe TPB should get into the ISP business?
        • SpaceRibs, on 01/31/2008, -1/+29I'd rather have TPB than comcast thats for damn sure.
        • swizzcheez, on 01/31/2008, -0/+4Not only would ISPs be complicit in such, but many browsers. Or more to the point, one specific MS based browser that was the largest purveyour of the pirate bay's pages (based on network statistics of course). Hmmm.... never mind, I think the case might have legs after all!
      • i208khonsu, on 01/31/2008, -8/+2Normally I would agree that setting up a torrent index does not make you an accessory. However when you setup a section of your website specifically called "TV Shows" and then have subsections all specifically designated to replicate and distribute copyrighted content, it's kinda hard not to have knowledge that a crime is being or will be committed.

        I'm sorry but the arrogance of The Pirate Bay and it's users is what is numbering it's days. Not to worry however; there are plenty of other torrent indexes that are smart enough to protect themselves.
        • SpaceRibs, on 01/31/2008, -1/+5Pretty circumstantial, there are plently of TV shows which are completely legal to distribute online, not to mention public domain. Of course it's sketchy, but it's not like adding a "Copywritten Content Here!" section.
        • i208khonsu, on 01/31/2008, -6/+3How many TV shows that are legal to distribute which are called StarGate Atlantis, or The Office, or Heroes, or Jericho; and that's only the ones that I can remember are there with out even visiting. The fact of the matter is The Pirate Bay is specifically programmed to help it's users replicate and distribute copyrighted content. If it wasn't I would be the first one to point out that it's not. However the fact of the matter is that it is.
        • SpaceRibs, on 01/31/2008, -1/+5But the point is that they don't have a section called "The Office", "Heroes" or "Jericho".

          This is a thread of reasoning that goes nowhere, especially in legal terms.
          • aywwts4, on 01/31/2008, -0/+5But... The point is... They clearly Do have a section called "The Office" sorted by seasons...

            www.thepiratebay.org/tv

            The Office
            S02, S03, S04

            They wrote "Jericho S02" in html and linked to a static page which is setup to only search for season two of the show.

            So your argument of "they don't have a Copy-written content here section" is based on a complete falsity.

            As a footnote I completely support TPB and hope they win on appeals.
          • JulioChavez, on 01/31/2008, -2/+1Also, the site is called The Pirate Bay. You can't pirate non-copyrighted material. lol.
            Yes, I know this is just the domain name and doesn't 'necessarily' imply the intent of the owners. Also, this is indeed a frivolous case and I hope the prosecutor loses his/her/their job for being jerk-offs.
          • i208khonsu, on 02/01/2008, -0/+1If you actually used TPB, as many people in favor of the site seam not to, There IS a section of the site programmed to link directly to torrents for The Office, or Heroes, or Jericho, etc...

            This is a BIG difference from a site like MiniNova where you have to explicitly search for the shows. The sharing of illegally distributed media is programmed directly into TPB, not an implicit feature gained by a dynamic search engine.
          • SpaceRibs, on 02/01/2008, -0/+0I apologize for not noticing that index. When I saw it I thought it was a tag system, not a static page. I still believe it isn't clear cut, but I agree, it is pretty obvious that they're asking for pirated material. All I'm saying is that generalizing like the way napster was dealt with is destructive and useless, and it leads to things like comcast blocking all torrents (even linux distributions).
        • 80hd, on 01/31/2008, -1/+6Say this out loud. "Torrent files are not illegal"
          TPB indexes torrent files. Torrent files are not copyrighted.
          The day that it's illegal to posses or link to torrent files, thepiratebay will be in deep *****. Until then it's the users that are at fault. And so what if there is an Office section of TPB? Unless NBC owns the copyright on those particular torrent files, no law is broken.
      • Vektuz, on 01/31/2008, -1/+5Its also different in sweedish law.
      • LocalDocal, on 01/31/2008, -0/+2SpaceRibs,

        I don't understand how you posted that and then go on to claim it would be difficult for the prosecutor to pin down what the assistance was. The very first sentence of your excerpt says it all right there: That you know a crime is being committed or will be committed. That's what the prosecutor can claim as the assistance - unless, of course, TPB is planning to argue that it does not know there were torrents of illegal material on its website and that they were being downloaded.
        • SpaceRibs, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1I guess I should have been a bit more clear. They obviously did hear that there was illegitimate material on their site (as evident in the legal page), but they did not offer assistance to those who were pirating (such as aXXo trying to get TPB to kick knockoffs).

          Think of TPB as a phone company. There is someone taking to a hitman on the line and a phone company employee randomly hears it. Should that employee report it to the police even if it was a private conversation that he shouldn't have legally heard?

          I don't think i've ever heard in one of those legal letters that they even checked what the C&D's say is copywritten content, it's a "see no evil" sort of situation.
          • LocalDocal, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1Thanks for the response.

            However, also like your excerpt says, they don't have to actively help in order to be an accessory. They could simply not do anything about it, which is certainly the case here. However, it is also notable that they actually *are* actively helping; they do so by hosting the torrent on their site. Yes, I know, I know, they're still not hosting the actual copyrighted file, but they're hosting the method to get it.
          • SpaceRibs, on 02/01/2008, -0/+0I think we can both agree that it's definitely going to be an interesting conundrum for a judge to understand, and this time with a bit more thought than the US judicial system has put into it.
    • enchantedsky, on 01/31/2008, -18/+11You're basically saying it's not the Pirate Bay's fault, but rather the USER'S fault for posting copyrighted material on their website. However, the Pirate Bay does not even make an effort to remove illegal content from their website..........that in itself makes them guilty of copyright infringement.

      Before digging me down (because I spoke negatively about Pirate Bay, which does not conform to default Digg opinion and therefore should be censored by digging down), please consider another scenario: Rapidshare. There are many terabytes pirated software on it, but they are not getting in trouble because Rapidshare's "official" policy states that copyrighted material will be removed. And then they actually DO sweeps to remove the material (although coding your filenames like absad234.rar your file will not be removed) That is why Rapidshare is still around, and they're not being sued at the moment.

      The Pirate Bay is a BitTorrent tracker site, but if they took some effort to remove "infringing copyright" trackers, I doubt people would be on their case all the time
      • JohnDesmarais, on 01/31/2008, -2/+16There is a distinct difference between Rapidshare and Pirate Bay that your analogy does not take into account. Rapidshare actually has the (potentially offending) content on their servers, Pirate Bay is only hosting a pointer to something stored somewhere else - and pointing to potentially infringing material is not an infringement in and of itself, which means the prosecutor can only focus on being an accessories. However, to be an accessory to a crime it must be proven that you have knowledge of the crime being committed. Since the content is not on their own servers, they have no actual direct knowledge of what the content truly is - only what the poster has named it.

        Right, wrong, or indifferent; the way in which bit torrents work creates enough layers between people who run torrent sites and the actual available content that any attempt to prosecute will probably be futile.
        • WallnutBoy, on 01/31/2008, -1/+8"Pirate Bay is only hosting a pointer to something stored somewhere else - and pointing to potentially infringing material is not an infringement in and of itself, which means the prosecutor can only focus on being an accessories."

          Tell that to the TVLinks guy over here in UK... ='(
          Yes, I'm still not over it...
          • JohnDesmarais, on 01/31/2008, -0/+6The owner was released with no charges filed and could, presumably, restart his site if he chose to. I assume he's waiting for things to calm down before doing so, or maybe he's decided it's not worth the hassle - either way, he wasn't actually "shut down" by the prosecutor.
          • ifknot, on 01/31/2008, -0/+4='( much
        • digitalarcanum, on 01/31/2008, -0/+2this man speaks truth. there's nothing on TPB's trackers and web servers, except a ***** of files that have hash files with a name on it. TPB hosts nothing. all their trackers are doing is moving hash tables around.
      • Kurlumbenus, on 01/31/2008, -2/+4"However, the Pirate Bay does not even make an effort to remove illegal content from their website..........that in itself makes them guilty of copyright infringement. "

        No it doesn't.
        • digitalarcanum, on 01/31/2008, -1/+2they have no copyrighted content on their servers. all they have is hash tables. you can't copyright a hash table, period. This case is moot and will get them nowhere.
    • directrix13, on 01/31/2008, -2/+22So when is Anon going to take on RIAA / MPAA? Probably the same day that Bush says that Anon is a terrorist organization.
      • bagelmaster, on 01/31/2008, -1/+23RIAA/MPAA are more of a terrorist organization if you ask me. Trying to use fear and lawsuits to suppress file sharing... too bad for them it's failing horribly.
        • directrix13, on 01/31/2008, -0/+5Yeah, but since when did anything Bush say actually qualify as reality. I didn't say Anon is a terrorist organization. I just implied that since they would be against a large interest with lots of money, then Bush could see it in his soulless heart to qualify them as terrorists.
      • Section1, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1Being that Bush is a Christian, I expect him to be in support of Anon, though he wouldn't dare say it publicly. Hate Bush or not, one of the pilars of conservatism is free speech. Retard Christian posers protest movies and TV shows which makes people easily forget what conservatism and real Christianity are.
        Sorry, took a (Right) turn there, but anyway, I think your comment was just a joke, and kinda funny too, but I felt compelled to mention that conservatives are about a step and a half away from libertarian which is what it is. I will stop now. . . very unfocused to day, my best wishes to TPB!
        • soomprimal, on 02/01/2008, -0/+3I feel compelled to you remind you that Bush is far from conservative, and light years away from libertarian.
    • enchantedsky, on 01/31/2008, -21/+3I hate Digg. I hate all of you guys.

      " this case is lame, they will walk away unharmed
      the prosecutor got nothing" -tomtom10

      That message got +83 diggs? He doesn't even use punctuation or capitalizations. Yet when anyone posts a message about what the Pirate Bay does might be illegal, I get -17 diggs? And others get buried too. I hate this website. Kevin Rose, either you fix the comment system's censorship, or you will lose valuable Digg members.

      I'm going to setup a boycott-digg.com website to get as many people to boycott Digg. If anyone is interested, please reply to this message.
      • Kurlumbenus, on 01/31/2008, -2/+6Don't be insipid. There are no valuable Digg members.

        And votes are "I agree with this sentiment" or "I disagree with this sentiment", not "I am the ***** grammar police!"
        • LocalDocal, on 01/31/2008, -2/+3Funny you should say that...considering the amount of comments that are digged down daily because someone used "there" instead of "they're" or vice versa.

          Personally, Enchantment, I think your problem is that you care. Seriously, this should be the first lesson anyone on Digg with their own mind learn - to stop caring about diggs. If you care so much that the majority of your comments end up being Internet memes, "***** the RIAA/MPAA" (regardless of the topic at hand), or anything else that usually get diggs, then basically, you might as well put on a coat of wool because you're more a sheep than a man.
          • Ataxia2008, on 02/01/2008, -0/+1When you keep getting banned from digg because of your comments like I have, then you should care what other people think of your comments...

            4th account since September I think :)
        • Nekiruhs, on 01/31/2008, -1/+1*digged down = buried/dugg down
          Buried
      • Acolyte357, on 01/31/2008, -2/+7"Yet when anyone posts a message about what the Pirate Bay does might be illegal, I get -17 diggs? "
        This is because what you said was wrong. You are assuming the DMCA applies or Sweden has a similar copyright law (they don't), and you don't understand how Bittorrent works. Yet you try and speak as if you have great knowledge on the issue.
        By crying in your last comment, you have made yourself a perfect example of how well the comment system can work. If you "hate this website" then please go away,
      • Bilabrin, on 01/31/2008, -1/+2What you mean Digg and it's "algorythm fixing" etc..is all wrong? I'm shocked!

        Look, let's face it, it's free. You may not like the Digg users but you can't fix stupidity (at least not with government run schools) and you get what you pay for.
    • EarlOfLade, on 01/31/2008, -6/+5I wonder if they will indict all the Swedish ISP's too? I mean everything you can find on the PirateBay is also available on your local ISP's News server and it' stored locally too. I bet if they looked at these news servers, they would find all the latest movies, music, games, programs and tons of porn in all shades and I really mean all shades.
      • F1R3DUP, on 01/31/2008, -1/+9The first rule of news server club...
        ...don't talk about news server club.
        • EarlOfLade, on 01/31/2008, -1/+2My bad!
          • Ataxia2008, on 02/01/2008, -0/+2lol, what idiot would DL copyrighted material off of their ISP's newsgroups?
    • Nerfdude, on 01/31/2008, -0/+2they should be fine, they can use all that money people donated to buy sealand to pay for a lawyer.
      • JaggedEdge, on 01/31/2008, -0/+2Good ol Sealand, oh how I love thee.
    • Bilabrin, on 01/31/2008, -0/+3I'm sure this is mostly political. These guys are probably getting a lot of international pressure because Pirates bay has done a pretty good job of sticking it to them and blowing razzberries.

      When things get political, watch out, because anything could happen. This prosecutor could be trying to make a name for himself. High officails in the govenment of Sweden could be behind it in a effort to appear "in control." Bottom line, these people are anything but stupid and they wouldn't be going to trial unless they had a few tricks up their sleeve. This is a "let's send a message" case. There gonna try to make an example outta these kids and scare off others who might try to do the same.

      Unfortunately, I see shenanigans and a conviction happening but then again, this is sweden, not the U.S. so maybe they'll get off but I doubt it.
    • ICSU, on 01/31/2008, -0/+2http://www.bit-tech.net/news/2008/01/31/european_c ...

      "The European Court of Justice decided earlier this week that EU law does not force the disclosure of file sharer’s details in copyright infringement cases."
    • rnreekez, on 01/31/2008, -0/+5They were spanked with a 200k fine. 'Tis a flesh wound.
    • PixelMagic, on 01/31/2008, -6/+2OH NO!! Don't make me pay for goods and services like I'm supposed to!
      • cougar618, on 01/31/2008, -1/+2I'd rather pay nothing and have nothing than to over pay some mediocre artist.
        Because of File sharing, i was able to find artists that I would have never heard on the radio.
        I'm not going to buy a house based of the picture i see and the way the lawn looks: nor will I buy a car because of its looks and because if the commercials I see for it.
      • lowhauler, on 02/01/2008, -2/+5OH NO!! Don't make me pay an inflated price caused by an obsolete artificial distribution bottleneck created by a million talentless middlemen while they ***** the actual creators up the ass like I'm supposed to!
    • max420, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1In this case, I am pretty sure that the four who were indicted, will also be found guilty. The Swedish government has been bowing to international pressure to crack down on internet piracy. So I would be surprised if they are NOT found guilty.
    • dralfonzo, on 01/31/2008, -1/+1bear in mind what happened to tv-links, the guy who ran that got jail time
      • jinxcy, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1Tv-Links was hosted in Britain not Sweden
        Britain's copyright laws are far more similar to the laws in the U.S.
    • Section1, on 01/31/2008, -1/+1Dugg up because you make it sound true, and I hope it is.
      Long Live TPB!
    • leftyourmark, on 02/01/2008, -2/+2***** this court. ***** Jim Lahey. ***** Randy. ***** those two idiot cops right there. ***** suit dummies; as a matter of fact ***** legal aid. ***** Danny and Terry's Buffalo Chicken Wings. ***** all the old wood in here. ***** the moon, ***** corn on the cob, ***** squirrels. ***** me, ***** you, ***** everything!
      • Petzke, on 02/01/2008, -0/+0Trailer Park Boys is Canadia's greatest show.

        No, that's not a typo. I find it to be a catcher name for a country. "Canada" is so boring compared to "The United States of America" or even "Mexicanco" (also my name).
    • bingobongony, on 02/01/2008, -0/+3what law school did you go to?
    • theblt, on 02/01/2008, -0/+1Does anybody remember Napster?

      I agree, this does suck for those who download stuff that they probably wouldn't have paid for anyways. But if someone were to set up ChildPornBay.org, hosting torrents of only child porn, I'm sure you might change your opinion on the "accessory to breaking copyright law".
    • addiktion, on 02/01/2008, -0/+1ChildPornBay.org
      It woudn't change my opinion on the "accessory to breaking copyright law" and the reason why is because child porn isn't copyrighted work and they can't go after your for infringing anyones copyright to this stuff but you get a whole set of different laws that apply to that.
  • charbarred, on 01/31/2008, -47/+6[Edited]
  • isuisorisuaint, on 01/31/2008, -8/+593when 1 goes down, 2 more will take its place.
    • cliffski, on 01/31/2008, -65/+7plenty of room in the jails.
      • thinman1189, on 01/31/2008, -4/+24Any room for fascists?
      • barnett25, on 01/31/2008, -3/+69"plenty of room in the jails."

        Umm... no there's not.
        • kopf1988, on 01/31/2008, -3/+16Agreed.
        • popfrogs, on 01/31/2008, -2/+22Actually there probably is in Sweden. It's the US where everything is criminalized that we have full jails.
          • Bhima, on 01/31/2008, -0/+15No.Doubt. It's amazing, just how many people the US has locked up.
          • skeletorcares, on 01/31/2008, -0/+2one out of every 8 black people. (with no social commentary about how accurate the sentences were or racial profiling, just stating a fact...)
      • fr3nch13, on 01/31/2008, -1/+19Maybe in Sweden, but not in the US.
      • BESTenemy, on 01/31/2008, -0/+5"People don’t want anything near them, even if it’s something they believe in, something they think society needs, like prisons, everybody wants more prisons right? Everyone’s always saying “Build more prisons! ... But not here!” But why not? What’s wrong? What’s the problem? What’s wrong with having a prison in your neighborhood? It would seem to me that it would make it a pretty crime free area, don’t you think? Do you think a lot of crackheads, and pimps, and hookers, and thieves are going to be hanging around the front of a ***** prison?! *****! They ain’t coming anywhere near it!"

        - George Carlin
    • jeriqo, on 01/31/2008, -17/+4Even if you jail them?
    • CookieTrain, on 01/31/2008, -1/+80This is Sweden you saddlebags, this is Scandinavia, Socialism is a good word in this part of the world, and justice murder is not an everyday event.

      The will NEVER EVER get jailed.

      Mc Cain is more likley to change his campaign slogan to "Legalize it!" than anyone getting jail time over this.
      And if they get fined and the servers are taken, It wont matter, wont change a thing. It will only make community more militant and aggressive.

      This whole thing is a ***** court case brought forward by American lobbyist organizations pressuring the Swedish government. It will not stick.
      Good Luck next time Riaa/mpaa/axis of evil..

      • Pixelante, on 01/31/2008, -22/+10Sweden is a member of the EU, of the WTO, it signed the Bern Convention.
        TPB is exploiting a legal loophole that is about to be closed. This has nothing to with socialism (which is going away anyway because the Swedish economy can't afford it anymore now). This has nothing to do with US cartels threatening Sweden. It has everything to do with the fact that a country cannot be a member of a global market while at the time ignoring IP laws that the market strongly wants enforced.
        You cannot leave TPB operate and then have business with a world that is becoming more and more copyright protection-friendly.
        • alecks, on 01/31/2008, -9/+7Parent makes a very good point. Why's he getting dugg down?
          • theaceoffire, on 01/31/2008, -6/+6Because it is pushing the arguments for the RIAA, and we don't listen to terrorists.
          • bennovw, on 01/31/2008, -3/+12He got Dugg down cuz we the geeks are just about copyright protection's worst enemy! Everything Pixelate said was true until he dropped the bomb: "You cannot leave TPB operate and then have business with a world that is becoming more and more 'copyright protection-friendly'."
          • KyleGoetz, on 01/31/2008, -0/+2denial is a powerful motivation
        • ChefAnubis, on 01/31/2008, -0/+8socialism going away in scandinavia? are you nuts, their economy is like 10 times stronger than the US economy, what the ***** are you talking about?
        • LocalDocal, on 01/31/2008, -1/+3Jesus Christ, you made an excellent argument, Pixelante.
    • GhostM, on 01/31/2008, -0/+55"If you kill me, somebody will take my place. And if you kill him, somebody will take his place. And if you kill him... ... that's pretty much the end of the story, we are finished and the town is yours..."
      -Homer J Simpson
    • synapseattack, on 01/31/2008, -6/+9Hail Pirates!
      Immortal Pirates!
      We shall never be destroyed!
      Cut off one limb and two shall take its place!
      We serve the Supreme Pirates, as the world shall soon serve us!
    • CrackaPleeze, on 01/31/2008, -6/+1Just like tv-links.
      • jinxcy, on 01/31/2008, -0/+2Britain! Tv-Links was hosted in BRITAIN!

        Why do I have to point this out again?
    • FeargusMcDuff, on 01/31/2008, -0/+22If TV links is anything to go by, 1 will go down, 100 crap substitutes will fill the place, then 3 months later someone will clone and launch SWASHBUCKLING BAY, and everything will be back to normal.
      • bagelmaster, on 01/31/2008, -0/+9The only problem with this one case is that TPB claims to have servers all over the world in many different countries. So even if Sweden does win and take their servers away in Sweden, TPB will still be up and operational
      • antigenesis, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1What is the new tv-links anyway? I heard videolemon, but I am always too busy gaming to ever give enough of a damn and really find out.
      • jinxcy, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1Streaming Sites SUCK
        I refuse to watch anything on my TV below 500 width and 400 KB/s
      • JoeRW, on 02/01/2008, -0/+1Hmm I think Ill set up a torrent site like this on FreeNet. If this pisses you off, add your pc to the freenet network as a node. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freenet
    • postalblowfish7, on 01/31/2008, -1/+6*****. everyone says this, but since OiNK and demonoid went down all i have left is TPB. i was damn lucky enough to get invites to those two former champions, and i haven't been lucky enough to find anything even close to that level of reliability since.
      • i4mt3hwin, on 01/31/2008, -0/+4Agreed and even the two that spawned off of oink -- what/waffles aren't even close to the original.
    • BigLLamasHouse, on 01/31/2008, -1/+3filesharing = the hydra
    • airstrike, on 01/31/2008, -0/+6HAIL HYDRA!
    • Chritto, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1"when 1 goes down, 2 more will take its place." That's nice and all, but what about these guys who have been fighting for our freedom of information; does anybody else give a ***** about them? Once someone is indicted of this sort of thing, they're fined some huge amount, ***** up their life from that point forward.
    • AngelBunny, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1what? you want some waffles and jam?

      oink oink oink
    • Section1, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1True statement, but I would rather have this one, than two mininova type torrent sites. TPB is perfect imo, and I hope it continues undamaged.
    • addiktion, on 02/01/2008, -0/+1People who claim to be supporters don't seem to be true supporters in my book. If you support Piratebay because it offers you goodies thats fine and all but are you doing anything to support these guys that risk their lively hood? Do you vote to protect privacy when congress comes around? The point is these guys are willing to go to jail for everyone to enjoy their service and thats heroic in my book, even if they are deemed as doing something illegal but what are you doing about it?
  • burymeup, on 01/31/2008, -12/+82How many times has this already happened? Is this even news anymore?
    • tomtom10, on 01/31/2008, -0/+18this is the first time TPB is officially charged with anything
      and the first time a bittorrent site is tried (at least in sweden)
    • Scira, on 01/31/2008, -1/+19Do what you want cuz a pirate is free!
      Crap is that song coppyrighted?
  • Narcism, on 01/31/2008, -3/+325The indictments! They do nothing!
    • uberfu, on 01/31/2008, -6/+17Fancy speak:
      indictment - "to bring charges against"
      impeachment - "to bring charges against [government offficial]"

      Gotta love courts - can't they just use common language and say that TPB was charged with...blah blah blah?
      • Kurlumbenus, on 01/31/2008, -1/+13No. Courts use legal terms because legal terms are very specific, and you don't want legal rulings leaving things open to interpretation.
        • SpykerSpeed, on 01/31/2008, -1/+1I think "brought charges against" is just as specific as indict. Correct me if I'm wrong.
          • Kurlumbenus, on 02/05/2008, -2/+1You're wrong. Look up the words, and see that indict has a specific meaning.
      • po43292, on 01/31/2008, -0/+11Learn words, don't dumb them down.
        • SpykerSpeed, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1Orwell would disagree. Every trade has its terminology, but simplifying those terms for the public (who live under the legal system) should be a priority.
          • nakani, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1just simplify the # of laws and their complexity
      • RockinRoel, on 02/01/2008, -0/+1All those law people have to study laws like crazy to be able to apply some unclear gobbledygook laws made by a bunch of monkey-brained politicians.
    • Sunsetter, on 01/31/2008, -10/+4My eyes, the goggles...

      !!!
      • wedges, on 01/31/2008, -0/+7as if nobody else got the reference... congratulations.
    • ThreeDee912, on 01/31/2008, -1/+1I see what you did there...
    • FadieZ, on 01/31/2008, -2/+1http://gogglesdonothing.ytmnd.com/
  • thinman1189, on 01/31/2008, -4/+206The charges won't stick. The Pirate Bay guys know what they're doing..remember the raid? Yeah, because so much came from that. Besides, there's growing support for them amoung Swedish lawmakers.
    • CookieTrain, on 01/31/2008, -1/+53And the general population. A Swedish politician supporting this "war against piracy" are likely to loose over it elections.

      That my friends, Is democracy:)
      • jeremyjudkins, on 01/31/2008, -6/+18lose*
        • wild, on 01/31/2008, -1/+6I understand things like "teh" or "youre."

          I will never understand why the internet has suddenly forgotten how to spell "lose."
        • Kakemonster, on 01/31/2008, -2/+5wild, Maybe because not everyone is from an English speaking world, like myself, I'm from Norway but I don't demand 100% fluent Norwegian on the internet...
          • miles32, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1it would never work anyway
          • nakani, on 01/31/2008, -0/+6it's worth correcting if 1 person learns from it
          • CookieTrain, on 02/01/2008, -0/+1Hehe, hehe Kakemonster, Det blir fort en skrive feil Hær og dær om man når man veksler språk hele tide dagen lang :P

            Good thing, a community should moderate itself, not to bring out support for the spelling nazis, but lets not accept that online English deteriorates to: I jst wnt to say tha kthx bai, lolz.
      • RockinRoel, on 02/01/2008, -0/+1In Sweden, they even have a pirate party. I suppose they should win then? Apparently, they're not too popular.
    • Bhima, on 01/31/2008, -3/+22*THIS* is what came from the raids. Not saying that this is going anywhere just saying that part of your comment didn't make much sense.
    • Pixelante, on 01/31/2008, -7/+2Wishful thinking.
      • Acolyte357, on 01/31/2008, -0/+5What happened last time? Where are their servers?
    • carrtoonist, on 01/31/2008, -8/+3These current charges are what came from that raid.
    • donttaseme, on 01/31/2008, -1/+3i heard democracy is rule by mob
      • Kurlumbenus, on 01/31/2008, -0/+6I heard your mom is ruled by knob
      • KyleGoetz, on 01/31/2008, -0/+5"[It's] two wolves and a sheep deciding what to have for dinner." --James Bovard
  • Roger, on 01/31/2008, -4/+22I'm not surprised.
    • cliffski, on 01/31/2008, -27/+7me neither, they had it coming.
      • thinman1189, on 01/31/2008, -6/+9Yes, because they're way worse than, oh say, child molesters and, oh say, fascists...or any combination of the two.
        • cliffski, on 01/31/2008, -17/+5sure, we should only ever prosecute child molesters. thieves should be given free resign to do what they like. what *****. these guys are big time criminals and thieves, with good PR so you dumb schmucks think they are on your side. hahahahahaha.
          • MWeather, on 01/31/2008, -6/+15Thieves? Did they steal the servers or something? Wait, no, that was the cops.
          • uberfu, on 01/31/2008, -3/+6You used the word "thieves" - explain this - elaborate?

            Seeing as how a bank robber might steal a car made by Toyota to leave the scene of the crime_ Does this make Toyota liable for being an accessory since they inadvertently provided a vehicle for them to escape?

            Maybe the prosecutors should find out who made the servers and charge that company_ Maybe they should find out who made the Hard Drives and other components and charge those companies as well_ Maybe they should find out who the ISP is and charge them as well_ Oh wait - technically TPB was acting as a service provider_ Yep - that ISP is in big trouble_
          • artisresistance, on 01/31/2008, -0/+2You're dumb.
      • barnett25, on 01/31/2008, -2/+6Your comment history goes beyond a simple moral choice against piracy, to a point of being fanatical. I'm curious to know your motivation for the repeated jabs in any discussion involving piracy.
        • MWeather, on 01/31/2008, -2/+8The motivation is his astroturfing check.
  • bbrasky, on 01/31/2008, -53/+12I really wish the Swiss would remain neutral.
    • beardsauce, on 01/31/2008, -4/+86The Swiss have nothing to do with this, seeing as they are from SWITZERLAND, and this is taking place in SWEDEN.
      • phauwn, on 01/31/2008, -0/+2Hey, don't bash Sweden. Bern is a fantastic city, and if you've ever skied the Alps, you've know it's a beautiful place.
        • Bilabrin, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1Don't forget Zurich as well, Highest quality of life in the world! Ah Sweden!
      • beardsauce, on 02/01/2008, -0/+1Who's bashing Sweden? I'd love to live there! I was pointing out the difference between Switzerland and Sweden, as apparently "bbrasky" never studied world geography or cared to.
    • Awall, on 01/31/2008, -4/+30The Swedish are different from the Swiss.
    • tman84, on 01/31/2008, -2/+20Yeah but what about the Swedish?
      • ScottyWH, on 01/31/2008, -1/+3my bum is on the swedish... swedish
      • cvh™, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1Swedish is the language we speak in Sweden...
        The people who live in Sweden are swedes.
        • SayaSe, on 02/01/2008, -0/+0You fail at understanding English grammar.
    • NightVortez, on 01/31/2008, -2/+22What makes a good man go neutral? Lust for gold? Power? Or were they just born with a heart full of neutrality?
      • popfrogs, on 01/31/2008, -1/+9They figured that not getting involved in other morons' business is much more beneficial to their own peace and well-being. It's not a bad policy actually. Plus it goes way back to the days of them being a trading hub for Europe and the Mediterranean, in that case it's also beneficial to be neutral.
        • fkr3, on 01/31/2008, -9/+3You fail Futurama. GTFO of digg.
        • GhostyBoy, on 01/31/2008, -2/+1^I don't come to digg to hear lame television quotes (this one was funny, though), and they mostly get ***** buried, so if you want to be a futurama expert go turn on your t.v. This cat made a well-informed, relevant and historically accurate post and that's why I come here...to read people's thoughts, ideas and opinions.

          Clever quotes, like above, are *sometimes* funny, but mostly annoy me because I dislike the massive part of our culture that his been defined by hideously bad television programming. Go repeat some lame catch phrases if you want, dude, but don't expect people to respect your idiotic mainstream media idols.

          An informative thought is greater than a lame television catch phrase.
      • thefandango, on 01/31/2008, -0/+6By having your DM make you do an Alignment test
    • Nougat, on 01/31/2008, -0/+14That made me laugh, whether you were serious or not.
    • bbrasky, on 01/31/2008, -0/+9It is my personal belief that US Americans do not have proper access to maps, like the people in the Iraq.
    • KLowD9x, on 01/31/2008, -3/+4Your comment makes me angry.

      Angry enough to want to punch you in the face.

      'tard.
    • SideShowMel0329, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1If only this comment can be dugg down to (negative) infinity
    • Bilabrin, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1EPIC FAIL!
  • hextic, on 01/31/2008, -54/+3T|-|!RD P05T
    • thinman1189, on 01/31/2008, -10/+2Troll.
      • bosssmiley, on 01/31/2008, -0/+8Perhaps fitting, considering this is Scandinavia we're talking about.
      • hextic, on 01/31/2008, -5/+2It was an XKCD reference, DUH.
        • Phatt138, on 01/31/2008, -0/+3Way to catch these things at the height of their popularity...
    • P5ycHo, on 01/31/2008, -16/+1Did your dad's ***** hurt much?
      • CrimsonFate, on 01/31/2008, -3/+6That's not funny. My brother died that way.
    • sammypai, on 01/31/2008, -1/+3sw33t p0st dud3
  • entrophize, on 01/31/2008, -5/+23Attrition is to be expected. They can't possibly 'indict' everyone involved with TPB.
  • weside, on 01/31/2008, -120/+10It's about time this kind of crap gets shut down. Kudos to the prosecutor.
    • thinman1189, on 01/31/2008, -10/+27I'm curious, do you have a soul? What does a soul mean? Does it mean you're a douche? ...yes, yes it does.

      Just for good measure, a douche who apparently likes Huckabee.
      • cliffski, on 01/31/2008, -33/+5wow what a cutting and intelligent debating point you raised there. typical of the freeloading kids who aspire to be arrogant thieves like those swedish idiots.
        • zeusthemoose, on 01/31/2008, -4/+10Go kill yourself, now. The world has no place for fascists like yourself. More importantly, why are you here on digg? Oh thats right, you are not only a fascist, but also a troll.
          • weside, on 01/31/2008, -10/+4Interesting, as I don't see a single fascist statement made in this entire thread. Perhaps you replied to the wrong comment someone made?
      • weside, on 01/31/2008, -37/+5Yes, I have a soul, and both that and whom I choose for President has little to do with the fact that websites like these help to break international copyright laws. And I know that PirateBay replies to its threatening emails with the demeanor of "haha screw you, we're untouchable." Well, apparently they aren't, and I am glad to see that.
        • cliffski, on 01/31/2008, -18/+3agreed
        • zeusthemoose, on 01/31/2008, -2/+13Care to prove that they are violating international copyright law? Thats right, you have no standing. Hosting a file pointing to the location where copyrighted material resides is not akin to breaking copyright law. If you claim this, then you must also go after google and every other search engine that indexes copyrighted material. You sir are nothing but a fascist pig.
          • weside, on 01/31/2008, -12/+2Once again, not sure where the facism comes in. And, as I said in the post you replied to, "websites like these HELP to break international copyright laws."
            Nice try, however.
          • zeusthemoose, on 01/31/2008, -2/+9And how do they "help" sir? You should also claim that google is helping pirates by indexing torrents. I can find plenty of copyrighted material using google only. What do you have to say about this?
          • weside, on 01/31/2008, -12/+3Google and other search engines aren't primarily used for finding pirated content. It's merely accidental that it would show up, due to the very nature of the engines - they scrape everything by default.
    • keozen, on 01/31/2008, -4/+10Dude, you know you said that out loud right?
    • orangefly, on 01/31/2008, -3/+27you sir....are off my christmas card list....
    • kopf1988, on 01/31/2008, -4/+12I would love to cover you in spaghetti right now, you're very rude.
    • cliffski, on 01/31/2008, -34/+5agreed 100%
    • luchid, on 01/31/2008, -3/+17Wow, tons of MAFIAA shills on Digg lately.
      • actorboy, on 01/31/2008, -5/+2No, just adults. You might also know us as grownups or big people.
    • uberfu, on 01/31/2008, -1/+10It won't ever be shut down_ Maybe TPB will go away - but file-sharing is reality and you might as well shut down the entirety of what is the internet_ BUT the backlash of people NOT wanting the Internet shut down - would completely out-weigh any complaints of piracy_
      • alecks, on 01/31/2008, -2/+6UGh,... i'm so tired of people saying piracy won't go away.... Sure, maybe IRC or usenet won't go away soon, and you and your circle of friends will always be able to share files on pownce or whatever, but if all countries make it illegal to pirate/host BT files/ etc.... what owner in their right mind, would willingly host such a site knowing he'll get busted as soon as the site gets popular enough to become a blip on these agencie's radar?

        The only reason we still have these torrent sites now is because A) It's still legal for whatever reason in whatever country they're in or B) They're too small and there's bigger sites worthy of the immediate attention. With so much awareness on piracy and so many countries already against it, there's simply too much pressure on any one country that refuses to comply.

        I will be watching Sweden very closes, because what happens here will set an important precedent.
        • zeusthemoose, on 01/31/2008, -1/+4You cannot make hosting bittorrent files illegal because their are legal ways that bittorrent is used. If you make one protocol illegal, another will fill its place. This is what happened when napster went down after all. Piracy cannot be stopped. Its here to stay. If the ISP's start monitoring the information flowing over their networks for copyrighted material, encrypted channels will take its place. Good luck monitoring encrypted traffic!
      • nontitle, on 01/31/2008, -1/+1Dude, if the internet would be shut down (which is pretty much impossible at this point), chances are that people and businesses would re-create an equivalent for the internet.
    • glock22ownr, on 01/31/2008, -5/+8Dude you are dumber than a box of effing rocks. All these nutsacks don't understand one thing. Folks that use TPB would probably not have spent any money on going to see a movie, buy a CD, software ... whatever. If you aren't a complete moron you may happen to know that the MPAA and company inflated it's statistics on their "losses" for example. All these "kids" downloading copyright stuff are broke anyway. If you want to combat that you have to find a new profit model, otherwise you are just playing whack-a-mole with these sites.

      I have never downloaded a movie, some music sure, but guess what I wouldn't have paid for that regardless... WHY ? Because at that time I was broke. I now pay for a music service because I have money. I don't have a problem with criminals being apprehended, but I do have a problem with US based organizations strong arming other countries governments, suing grandmas, college kids, whatever... I have a problem with GREED! If you read the news you may have heard that Mexico won't extradite anyone back to the US if the death penalty is an option. People here in NC are outraged because of one such case and cannot understand why Mexico is dictating what we in the US should do! How do you think Canadians, Sweeds, Brittons and so on feel when the MPAA/RIAA tries to interfere with their political/governmental processes.

      I suspect that TPB has so much support not because "there are kids downloading copyright stuff", I believe the support is there because the people of those nations don't want any offshore based organization dictating their governments actions.
      • weside, on 01/31/2008, -4/+4You lost me at "All these "kids" downloading copyright stuff are broke anyway."
        If that's the case, then they don't have the right to the media they are accessing. There shouldn't be a sense of entitlement.
        I also tried reading your second paragraph, but you went into Mexican policy, way off topic, and again lost me.
        Good try though.
        • cliffski, on 01/31/2008, -3/+4nice the way the kids who are broke have 8MB broadband and kick ass PCs too... ***** hypocrites.
          • Travelsonic, on 01/31/2008, -2/+2...that the parents could have gotten for them/that they use?

            dumb argument.
          • homeagain1, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1Then I don't think they would have big problems getting them some movies and music either.
          • actorboy, on 01/31/2008, -2/+1@ Travel

            Then they should ask mommy and daddy to buy them some music, movies and software too.

            no excuse.
      • cliffski, on 01/31/2008, -3/+3wow, how is it that all the people who have become millionaires creating content that hundreds of thousands of people enjoy are 'dumb as rocks' whereas a few 12 year old kids on digg are WAY SMARTER.
        maybe your huge abilities in the way business should work are wasted on your paper round?
      • catalysis, on 01/31/2008, -2/+5Are you kidding? I would have spent tons of money on movies and music if I couldn't download for free. Lets not kid ourselves here.
    • anononon, on 01/31/2008, -2/+1Randy Saaf? Is that you?
    • GenericJoshman, on 01/31/2008, -0/+7***** you *****.
  • rhylan, on 01/31/2008, -3/+42This could turn out to be important....
    • thinman1189, on 01/31/2008, -0/+19This case will set precedence for the entire pirating....industry?
      • uberfu, on 01/31/2008, -0/+2very true_
      • counterplex, on 01/31/2008, -0/+11They prefer to call it non-profit content distribution industry thank you :)
      • Bilabrin, on 01/31/2008, -0/+2Pirates tend to adapt quickly whereas the law.....
    • mianus230, on 02/01/2008, -0/+1that's a lame statement because the opposite is equally true, that it could be unimportant, for the lame
  • iidestined, on 01/31/2008, -11/+4WEAK!
  • atomicwedgie, on 01/31/2008, -2/+82An indictment just means they can charge them... it does not mean the charges will stick. These guys know what they are doing and how to use the law. Soon enough they'll be drinking a beer at the local pub, pointing at the prosecution members and laughing.
    • Sabarok, on 01/31/2008, -1/+7Not even that, but from what I read, it's an accessory charge where the worst that can happen is a fine and confiscation of their hardware
      • aladrin, on 01/31/2008, -1/+7Yeah, and if they continue, they can get fined again, and lose their hardware again. And again. And again. If the charges stick, they're out of business.
    • Rijnzael, on 01/31/2008, -0/+4No, an indictment is the formal presentation of charges by the prosecutor to both the court and the defendant.
      • atomicwedgie, on 01/31/2008, -0/+3Correct but it does not mean they are or will be found guilty. I should have worded my post more intelligently. As in, "An indictment just means they are charged but does not mean the charges will stick." Getting an indictment is the "easy" part and only the beginning. Thanks for the correction though.
    • DeFex, on 01/31/2008, -0/+2dont you mean a "bottle of rum"
    • Kr1ngle0, on 01/31/2008, -1/+1The prosecutions' members?
  • neoform, on 01/31/2008, -22/+4"JUST NOW"

    translation: "BREAKING"...
    • Drood, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1Breaking has always sounded so retarded. Just Now sounds far more dramatic.
  • cliffski, on 01/31/2008, -40/+7you would have to be insane not to realise these guys are guilty as *****. there is a money trail, and anywhere that internet traffic can be traced to can be physically located. they are on serious drugs if they think the site cannot be shut down.
    • luchid, on 01/31/2008, -2/+15Guilty of what? Hosting 10 KB files that merely point to something? That's like accusing gun manufacturers for murders, brewers for liver malfunctions, car makers for drunk driving deaths and McDonald's for obesity. Or in PC terms: Windows for allowing you to have copyrighted files, iTunes and WMP for allowing you to rip and copy CDs, every single OS maker, etc.
      • zeusthemoose, on 01/31/2008, -3/+3And once again there is no response from cliffski. He has his head so far up his ass that he has lost sight of reality. I truly pity irrational individuals such as cliffski.
      • Drood, on 01/31/2008, -1/+4This is the argument that has always ***** me right off. If torrent sites, that don't actually link to any illegal content, can be taken to court, then why the ***** don't Smith and Wesson get taken to court. After all they don't provide anything illegal, but what they do can be used for illegal purposes. It's absolute *****. And it's at the point now where you can't say "It only exists for piracy" as a ton of stuff I've downloaded recently of TPB has been perfectly legal. AMV Hell DVD's etc...
    • Bhima, on 01/31/2008, -1/+10Guilty of breaking what law?
      • mcduckov, on 01/31/2008, -1/+1I dunno, maybe the ones they were charged with? Will they get off again? Maybe, maybe not.

        I don't have a lot of sympathy for high profile pirate sites anymore. I don't think the reasons to pirate are nearly as compelling as they used to be. Between Amazon and Netflix and content providers making things available for free there just isn't any really strong justification left. When it was just iTunes and a bucket of DRM-fail then I could see the justification.

        I know I'll be dugg down but I'd like to hear some reasons why. What has the music/TV/movie industry not done that you have demanded?
        • init100, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1"When it was just iTunes and a bucket of DRM-fail then I could see the justification."

          Sounds like you are an American. Be happy that DRM-free music stores and online video services are available. They aren't here in Sweden yet. We only have iTunes with Apple DRM and other music stores with WMA-DRM. As usual this is because the media companies only care about the United States, letting the rest of the world wait for months or years for the same services.

          Then ignorant Americans come along and say that nobody has any reason to complain any more because music is now available without DRM.
          • mcduckov, on 02/01/2008, -0/+1Digg is an American site, deal with it.
          • init100, on 02/02/2008, -0/+1@mcduckov

            Last time I checked, the internet was international. No national borders exist here. That the site resides on servers in the US and is developed by an American is pretty irrelevant.
    • liquidhalcyon, on 01/31/2008, -10/+2Besides you can't trace money in Sweden. Why do you think Drug dealers use SWEDISH bank accounts?
    • uberfu, on 01/31/2008, -1/+1hypothetical:
      ...except that if their servers are in Australia and they are in Sweden and their bank is in Germany...

      Yes there are tails - but if it's directly linked and completely traceable is another question_
    • snatchmstr, on 01/31/2008, -1/+1They can shut down the part of the operation in Sweden but not if the server is in .................
  • protogenxl, on 01/31/2008, -5/+273Why are they stopping there? The Swedish government should also charge every Personal Electronics, Computer, Photocopier, and Media manufacture in the world with "being accessories to breaking copyright law".
    • blackmage439, on 01/31/2008, -2/+37I've thought about this for a long time. If copying CDs only as a backup on your personal computer is illegal, than Microsoft is guilty of copyright infringement for making it so damn easy to rip a CD in Media Player. I understand that there is a disclaimer the first time you rip a CD in WMP, but in the RIAA's eyes, it doesn't matter.
    • MWeather, on 01/31/2008, -1/+38Well it would take like $20,000 to legally fill up an iPod. 80GB/4mb = 20,480 * .99 = $20,275.2
      • Boondoggle, on 01/31/2008, -0/+9unless you have video on there
      • alecks, on 01/31/2008, -0/+9It'd be cheaper to legally fill it with movies
      • Bigheadaus, on 02/01/2008, -0/+2I am pretty sure the Law in Australia still means if you buy a song from the iTunes store ($1.69) then it must stay on your computer and cannot be moved to the ipod as that would be changing its original place.
        I don't know if they ever changed that bit, but Apple, Google and others all wrote to the Australian Government urging them to change the laws before being implemented in February of last year.
    • uberfu, on 01/31/2008, -0/+35I totally agree_

      Also - the following is a list of advertisements that came up during a random search at TPB:

      Blue Lithium
      Equifax
      Adult Friend Finder
      Verizon
      Shopping.com
      Hydroderem facial cleanser
      Alltel
      Argosy University
      Capital One
      TaxAct
      eBAY
      Lasik Vision Institute

      I searched for the generic term "office" - it came up with 34 pages of results_ As I cliked from one page to another these banner ads displayed_

      Since they are ALL potentially gaining revenue from people who frequent TPB maybe they should be charged as well - the CEOs jailed and the companies fined for contributing to piracy_
      • magicaltrevor, on 01/31/2008, -0/+5I dugg you up for using underscores as full stops in a cool yet original fashion.
    • Jemulov, on 01/31/2008, -0/+3You forgot to put paper and pencil in that list.
    • Bilabrin, on 01/31/2008, -0/+2Agreed, and I'm glad someone finally said it! We need to take these scofflaws to task!
      Now, if you'll excuse me I have to go turn myself in....
    • Kakemonster, on 01/31/2008, -0/+3Lets just ban music all together, can't pirate what ain't there right?

      /sarcasm (if you need it...)
    • addiktion, on 02/01/2008, -0/+1Add GOOGLE to the list.

      After all it caches just about every web page out there. Thats what we need to do make a CacheBay.org. But make it in a way that its a search engine specifically caching trackers. In which case if they ever take our CacheBay.org to court then we have grounds to bring Google into the picture of being sued as well. Nobody can destroy GOOGLE! muhahaha.
    • hilanderiam, on 02/01/2008, -0/+0ISP's profits most from ""facilitating copyright infringement” don't they?

      Why not charge them? They have tons of $$$.
  • Dolomite, on 01/31/2008, -19/+6We diggers need to do something. Anyone game for starting an online petition stating our position on the matter?
    • ileftfark, on 01/31/2008, -0/+16...because online petitions are so effective.

      However, utilizing the collective nerd-rage of Digg isn't a bad idea, but we've got to put down the Doritos, and make some phone calls or mobilize the troops, dude. Online petitions are *****.
    • Bhima, on 01/31/2008, -1/+4Go buy a T-Shirt
    • ebob9, on 01/31/2008, -0/+2I think Dolomite's sarcasm was hard to notice...
    • Pixelante, on 01/31/2008, -2/+0We can also cry on MySpace and threaten to hurt ourselves.
    • fandyboy, on 01/31/2008, -6/+0"Preserve our right to be illegal"

      Yeah sure, that'll work. Morons.
    • uberfu, on 01/31/2008, -1/+1Except that "we diggers" seem to be split pretty well here on the subject_
    • Gutterpunk, on 01/31/2008, -0/+0Yes, lets all put our names and address on a petition that will probably end up in the hands of the RIAA! We should also include a description of everything we got from TPB!
  • Digger1123, on 01/31/2008, -53/+7FINALLY!!!! These guys will finally face partial justice for a few of the laws they have broken.
    • arrrapirate, on 01/31/2008, -4/+11you're kidding, right?
      • cliffski, on 01/31/2008, -18/+2believe it or not not everyone in the universe thinks its ok to take someone else's hard work and give nothing in return.
        • liquidhalcyon, on 01/31/2008, -0/+9Well that's *****. If that was true, God wouldn't have invented the internet.
    • outkaster, on 01/31/2008, -1/+14And what swedish laws would those be?
    • Bhima, on 01/31/2008, -1/+9Which Laws??
    • ShootTheCore, on 01/31/2008, -1/+7His name is "Digger1123"!? Obvious shill, try harder next time...
    • moonlessrat, on 01/31/2008, -0/+4troll.
  • keozen, on 01/31/2008, -6/+18*Crosses fingers for those guys*
  • dougerdo, on 01/31/2008, -15/+6We all know if you do the crime-blah-blah you do the time. This is not news. This is normal corporate bs.
  • IphtashuFitz, on 01/31/2008, -1/+9If nothing else it certainly will be interesting to see the outcome of this case. I know nothing about Swedish law other than what I've read in the press, but if all the claims/bluster by TPB admins turns out to be accurate then it'll be interesting to see how the Swedish authorities react.
    • leexy, on 01/31/2008, -0/+2Not to bash, but there seems to be a lot of coercion going on. Washington is leaning heavily on Stockholm, and the Swedish authorities are just reacting to that. Makes you wonder who they are supposed to be serving...
  • pigfister, on 01/31/2008, -7/+111American law is not global YET.

    a way to stop them is to boycott all their products, only purchase 2nd hand music and films ppl until their onslaught of controlling media has ended with the death of anti consumer tactics such as global price fixing(region coding) and DRM.

    The BPI Are: SONY, UNIVERSAL, WARNER GROUP, EMI.

    The RIAA Soundexchange Are: SONY, UNIVERSAL, WARNER GROUP, EMI.

    The MPAA Are: SONY, UNIVERSAL, WARNER GROUP, DISNEY, PARAMOUNT, FOX.
    • IphtashuFitz, on 01/31/2008, -21/+3You post this same drivel on sites like engadget, boingboinb, etc. Enough already with the blogspam. Burried.

      http://www.google.com/search?q=%22The+MPAA+Are%3A+ ...

    • richardiscool, on 01/31/2008, -8/+22Err... that list misses quite a lot off.
      Here's a list of BPI members: 1 RECORDS 33 RPM LTD 7 WORLD MUSIC LTD 7DIGITAL MEDIA LTD* 7Hz RECORDINGS A LIST RECORDS LTD A+E RECORDS LTD A2 RECORDS A3 MUSIC ABSOLUTE MARKETING & DISTRIBUTION ABUNDANT LIFE RECORDING & ENTERTAINMENT CO. LTD ACADEMY RECORDS(MUSIC TUITION LTD) ACE RECORDS LTD ACROBAT MUSIC LTD ADASAM LTD ADLABS FILMS (UK) LTD* ADVENTURE RECORDS LTD AEGON UK** AIR MUSIC AND MEDIA GROUP INC. MUSIC BOX LEISURE ALAMO MUSIC LTD ALBERT PRODUCTIONS ALL AROUND THE WORLD PRODUCTIONS LTD ALPHASONIC MUSIC LTD ANGEL AIR RECORDS ANGELIC MUSIC LTD APOLLO SOUND APPLE CORPS LTD AQUARIAN NATION AQUI ENTERTAINMENT LTD ARIWA SOUNDS LTD ASHIKA ASIA TV LTD ATLANTIC UK LTD AWAKENING RECORDS AWARD RECORDS BACK2FORWARD RECORDS BAILEY PROMOTIONS LTD BAKER TILLY* BASELINE RECORDS BEAT GOES ON RECORDS BEULAH BEYOND REALITY MUSIC LTD BEYOND THE SEA LTD BIG BEAR RECORDS BLACKROSE PROJECTS BLUEPRINT SOFTWARE LTD* BMP - Broken Music Publishing (UK) Ltd BOSS MUSIC BOX MUSIC LTD* BRAZEN RECORDS LTD BRIGHT NEW DAY RECORDS LTD BRIXTON URBAN COLLECTIVE LTD BRONZE RECORDS LTD BROWN MOOSE LTD BT RETAIL* BUCKS MUSIC GROUP BUT! RECORDS BUTTERCUTS LTD CAKE GROUP LTD* CAPITAL MUSIC UK LTD CAPITOL MUSIC UK CARITAS RECORDS CENT RECORDS LTD CHANDOS RECORDS LTD CHERRY RED RECORDS LTD CHRYSALIS GROUP PLC CIRCLE RECORDS LTD CLEAR SOUND AND VISION* CLICK RECORD PRODUCTIONS LTD CODA DISTRIBUTION LTD COLLEGIUM RECORDS COLUMBIA PUBLISHING WALES LTD COMPADRES IN CHAOS LTD CONCEPT HOLDINGS LTD CONCRETE RECORDINGS LTD CONGO MUSIC LTD CONSOLIDATED INDEPENDENT* COPYRIGHT GROUP COUTTS & CO* CRASH RECORDS CREATIVE MEDIA CELEBRITY PRODUCTION LTD CRIMINAL RECORDS INC. D I MUSIC DA RECORDINGS LTD DAVE CLARK INTERNATIONAL DDJ'S PRODUCTIONS LTD DECLAN COLGAN MUSIC LTD DEEPER SUBSTANCE LTD DELIGHT RECORDS DELTA MUSIC PLC DEMOLITION RECORDS LTD DEMON MUSIC GROUP LTD DIGITAL RIGHTS MANAGEMENT LTD DIGITIZE VENTURES LTD DISKY COMMUNICATIONS LTD* DIVINE ART LTD DIVING DUCK RECORDINGS DJM LTD DOCdata UK Ltd* DORADO RECORDS LTD DORIGEN MUSIC LTD DRAMATICO LTD DT PRODUCTIONS LIMITED* DULCIMA RECORDS DUTTON LABORATORIES LTD E3 RECORDS EAGLE ROCK ENTERTAINMENT LTD EAR CANDY RECORDS LTD EDC BLACKBURN LTD* EDJ RECORDS EFFIN RECORDS EG RECORDS LTD ELECTROMODE MUSIC LTD ELEGIAN RECORDS LTD EMI MUSIC UK & IRELAND EMI RECORDS LTD ENTERPRISE RECORDS ENTERTAINMENT MEDIA RESEARCH LTD* EROS INTERNATIONAL LTD* ESSENTIAL MUSIC GROUP ESTALOKA MUSIC LTD ETHER MUSIC LTD EVANGELINE RECORDS LTD EVERYDAY RECORDS FALCON EDITIONS LTD FDM RECORDS LTD FEELER-HEAD RECORDS FICTION RECORDS LTD FIRST NIGHT RECORDS LTD FLAIR RECORDS FOLK HERITAGE FOXI DE MUSIC MANAGEMENT LTD FOXY RECORDS LTD FREE2AIR RECORDINGS FREUDIANA RECORDS LTD FRUIT PIE RECORDS FURRY TONGUE RECORDS G-MAN ENTERTAINMENTS GIMELL RECORDS GLASGOW RECORDS LTD GLASSHOUSE PRODUCTIONS LTD GLOBAL MUSIK GLOBAL TALENT GROUP GOLD MANSION RECORDS GOLDMAN SACHS INTERNATIONAL** GOTHAM RECORDS GOTTDISCS LTD GPS MUSIC UK GRAMOPHONE PUBLICATIONS LTD* GREEN DRAGON MEDIA LTD GREEN PEPPER JUNCTION GREENSLEEVES RECORDS LTD GREENTRAX RECORDINGS LTD GRIDLOCKAZ GRONLAND LTD HALO UK RECORDS HANDLEMAN UK LTD* HARMONIA MUNDI (UK) LTD HARMONY DEPOT RECORDS HEADROOM RECORDS LTD HEC LTD HERMANEX LTD* HG CAPITAL* HIGH BARN RECORDS HIGHNOTE LTD HOLLYWOOD ON AIR HOMECHOICE* HONEY RECORDS LTD HOOJ CHOONS HORUS MUSIC HOSPITAL RECORDS LTD HUX RECORDS LTD HYPERION RECORDS LTD IMMTECH* INDEPENDENT MASTERS LTD* INDEPENDIENTE INDIE MEDIA* INIGO RECORDINGS LTD INSTANT KARMA LTD INTEGRA RECORDS UK INTERNAL MUSIC INVISIBLE HANDS MUSIC ISLAND UNIVERSAL RECORDS LTD IVOLUTION RECORDS LTD JAM CENTRAL RECORDS JAZ2 CREATIVE JEDBRAH MUSIC JET STAR PHONOGRAPHICS LTD JFC RECORDS/METHOD RECORDINGS LTD JIVE RECORDS JOANNA EDEN JUNK TV JUSIC INTERNATIONAL K-TEL ENTERTAINMENT (UK) LTD KAMLEE RECORDS LTD KICKIN MUSIC LTD KILLSOUND RECORDINGS LTD KINETIX KIZMET RECORDS UK LTD KML RECORDINGS LTD KRAZY EIGHT RECORDS KRL KUDOS RECORDS LTD LABRADOR RECORDS* LANDOR RECORDS LTD LEVELSOUND MUSIC LTD LIBERTY BELL PRODUCTIONS LTD LINN RECORDS LTD LOBSTER POT RECORDS LOCK LOGIC/BMG LONDON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA LTD LOVING MONKEY PRODUCTIONS LTD LYRITA RECORDED EDITION MACROVISION UK LTD* MADAM MUSIC LTD MADISON MANAGEMENT MAESTRO MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT MAGNET RECORDS LTD MARATHON MEDIA INTERNATIONAL MARIONET RECORDS MARKET SQUARE MUSIC LTD MAXROCK LIMITED MEASURED RECORDS LTD MEEM MUSIC MEGABOP RECORDS LTD MELTING ICE LTD MERCURY RECORDS MERRION CAPITAL GROUP** MERRION STOCKBROKERS** METRONOME RECORDINGS LTD MILESTONE DESIGN SERVICES LTD MILITANT ENTERTAINMENT LTD MOBIX INTERACTIVE* MOHICAN RECORDS LTD MONUMENTAL MANAGEMENT LTD MOSHI MOSHI RECORDS LTD MOST RECORDS LTD MOVIEBOX BIRMINGHAM LTD MOYST MUSIC LTD* MPL COMMUNICATIONS LTD* MULTIVERSE LTD MUSIC COMPANY (LONDON) LTD MUSIC FACTORY ENTERTAINMENT GROUP MUSIC MERCIA MUSIC OF LIFE MUSIC WEST MIDLANDS* MUZE EUROPE* MVINE LTD MVLS RECORDS LTD NACHURAL RECORDS NAIM AUDIO LTD NAPSTER UK LTD* NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC CHANNEL** NERVOUS RECORDS NEW WORLD MUSIC LTD NMC RECORDINGS LTD NOKIA UK** NOKIA* NOMADIC MUSIC LTD NOMURA INTERNATIONAL** NOVA SALES AND DISTRIBUTION (UK) LTD* NSMA RECORDS NUFF MUSIC LTD ODS BUSINESS SERVICES LTD* OFW ENTERTAINMENT OMNIFONE LTD* ON THE RUN PRODUCTIONS ONE FIFTEEN LTD ONE MEDIA PUBLISHING LTD ONE NATION EXPORTS LTD* ONE RECORDS OPERA RARA ORIENTAL STAR AGENCIES LTD OSMOSIS (UK) REORDS LTD OUTER RECORDINGS LTD PARADISE MUSIC PAVILION RECORDS LTD PETE WATERMAN LTD PICKWICK GROUP LTD PINNACLE ENTERTAINMENT PLASTIC HEAD RECORDS PLAYBOX MEDIA LTD* PLAYGROUND ENTERTAINMENT UK LTD POLLYTONE RECORDS POLO RECORDS POLYDOR RECORDS POLYPHONIC REPRODUCTIONS LTD PORTALSPACE RECORDS LTD* POSITIVE THINKING** POWER RECORDS PRESIDENT RECORDS LTD PRISM LEISURE CORPORATION PLC PROPER MUSIC DISTRIBUTION LTD* PURE MINT RECORDINGS LTD RADIANT RECORDS RADIO COMPUTING SERVICES UK LTD* REALLY USEFUL RECORDS REALTONE RECORDS LTD REBELLION RECORDS LTD RECORDSTORE.CO.UK* RED GRIFFIN RECORDS LTD RED KITE RECORDS LTD RED WHITE AND GREEN RECORDS REDEMPTION LTD REGIS RECORDS LTD REPLAY MUSIC RETROSPECTIVE RECORDINGS REVOLVER MUSIC LTD RIVA DIGITAL MEDIA LTD* RIVERSIDE RECORDS LTD ROADRUNNER RECORDS LTD ROCK ACTION RECORDINGS LTD ROLLING CUBE RECORDS LTD ROSC RECORDS LTD RSK ENTERTAINMENT LTD* RUBICON RECORDS RUFFA LANE LTD RUMOUR RECORDS LTD SADLER DALE RECORDS SAFESELL LTD* SANCTUARY RECORDS GROUP SAREGAMA PLC SBI GLOBAL LIMITED SCOTTISH WIDOWS** SECRET RECORDS LTD SELECT MUSIC & VIDEO DISTRIBUTION LTD* SEND THE LIGHT LTD* SEVEN THINGS I DAREN'T EXPRESS LTD SHALIT GLOBAL MUSIC LTD SHAZAM ENTERTAINMENT SHRINE SOUNDS LTD SIDDHI ENTERTAINMENTS AND PRODUCTIONS(UK) SIGNUM RECORDS SILVA SCREEN RECORDS SILVER STREAK RECORDS LTD SILVERTONE RECORDS SIMPLYRED.COM LTD SIX THIRTY RECORDS LTD SKANDIA** SNAPPER MUSIC PLC SOMM RECORDINGS SONGPHONIC RECORDS LTD SONIC VISTA RECORDINGS LTD SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT (UK) LTD SONY UK LTD SOS RECORDS LTD SOUNDBYTES MEDIA SOUNDS SCARY LTD SPARK WORLDWIDE LTD SPLIT RECORDS LTD SQUEAKY RECORDS LTD STAGE THREE RECORDS STARRIFY STATE RECORDS LTD STATE51 STEVE MARRIOTT LICENSING LTD STILLWATER LTD STREAM** STREAMLINE MUSIC LTD SUBURBAN SOUL (MUSIC) LTD SUNDAY BEST RECORDINGS SUPREME MUSIC LTD SURVIVAL RECORDS LTD SWINGLEHURST LTD* SYMPOSIUM RECORDS TANTRUM RECORDS TBRL Music TEMA INTERNATIONAL LTD TEN (The Entertainment Network)* TENON GROUP* THAT'S ENTERTAINMENT RECORDS LTD THE BACON EMPIRE PUBLISHING LTD THE BANK* THE CARPHONE WAREHOUSE** THE DECCA MUSIC GROUP THE FLYING MUSIC GROUP LTD THE INDEPENDENT RECORD COMPANY THE ORCHARD* THE PRODUCT EXCHANGE LTD THE READER'S DIGEST ASSOCIATION LTD THE SIXTEEN PRODUCTIONS LTD THE SOUND FOUNDATION THE STORM PETRELS THE WYE RECORD COMPANY THE* THE24 LTD* THERE'S A RIOT GOING ON (TARGO) THUNDERCLAP LTD TIP TOP VIDEO TKO LICENSING LTD TOOLROOM PRODUCTIONS LTD TOUCHWOOD RECORDS TRINITY RECORD COMPANY LTD TRIPLE A RECORDS LTD TSYT MUSIC LTD TUNETRIBE* TWOPOINTNINE LTD U-MYX LTD* UBC MEDIA GROUP PLC* UBS** UK NEW SOUND LTD/NEW SOUND RECORDS UNDERDOGG ENTERTAINMENT LTD UNICORN-KANCHANA RECORDS UNION SQUARE MUSIC UNIVERSAL MUSIC (UK) LTD UNTOUCHABLES RECORDS UPBEAT RECORDINGS URBAN PRECINCT V2 MUSIC LTD VANTIS NUMERICA* VIDZONE DIGITAL MEDIA VIP RECORDS VIRGIN RECORDS VITAL SALES AND MARKETING LTD* WANDERING STAR RECORDS LTD WAP WARNER BROS RECORDS UK WARNER MUSIC (UK) LTD WEA/London Records WELSH MUSIC FOUNDATION LTD* WGIC WHATMUSIC HOLDINGS WHITE ROOM RECORDS LTD WICKED RECORDS (WALES) LTD WIENERWORLD WIGMORE HALL WILDCARD RECORDS WILDSTAR RECORDS LTD WINDSONG INTERNATIONAL* WITCHWOOD MEDIA LTD WOODEN HILL RECORDINGS LTD WURDAMOUTH RECORDS LTD WYASTONE ESTATE LTD XKman UK LTD XTASTER LLP* YAHOO! MUSIC** YASH RAJ FILMS INTERNATIONAL LTD ZOMBA RECORDS LTD ZTT RECORDS LTD *Associate members **Corporate Members
      • Pixelante, on 01/31/2008, -3/+8You can't even *breathe* without giving money to those critters.
      • pigfister, on 01/31/2008, -1/+4the big four are who have the say in laws and the lobby, to collect royalties ect you have no choice but to be a member.
        • richardiscool, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1That's not true, at least in the UK, BPI membership is not a requirement to collect royalties from the licensing agencies (PPL, PRS etc.).
    • Nightfall, on 01/31/2008, -0/+11I agree with you. In my opinion though, a true boycott is to abstain from any MPAA or RIAA affiliation. This means, no going to movies. Only go to live concerts. Don't purchase any new movies or music. Most importantly, don't even download it, watch it, or share it. Don't give the record companies or movie companies anything to stand on. If you are going to boycott these companies, do it the right way by going all the way. The problem is that people like to selectively boycott, especially the file sharers who can get this stuff for free and not spend a dime for it.
      • GhostyBoy, on 01/31/2008, -0/+4I've been doing this for a while, now. It's not as hard as one might think. Live shows are awesome, there are a lot of independant films and music that is really ***** great too.

        Take an interest in your own comunity, guaranteed there is a small theatre or a band that could really use the support and might be really good.
    • fandyboy, on 01/31/2008, -7/+0You can't boycott those cos then you'd have no music to listen you moron. These guys pay to RECORD the music.
      • JohnDesmarais, on 01/31/2008, -0/+2Nonsense. I have lots of music to listen to - years and years worth of accumulated CDs. I don't NEED to buy any more music unless I want to.
        • fandyboy, on 01/31/2008, -2/+0OK, so we'll just not have any new music and rely on the last 40 years? Are you serious?!

          What about people who want new music?
      • JohnDesmarais, on 01/31/2008, -1/+1There are scads of independent (ie. non-RIAA affiliated) artists out there who would love to sell their music to you.
      • niceyuk, on 01/31/2008, -2/+1Have you ever heard of something called a RADIO moron, its free to listen to if you still want to hear RIAA produced crap without buying it. If/when the big labels go bankrupt, the musicians will still be there to produce music.

        As the poster above said, theres plenty of independent music, internet music streams, second hand CDs sales, etc. I havent bought anything the RIAA has produced in years and yet I still hear music every day.
        • fandyboy, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1Who's gonna pay for the recording of music if labels dont, answer me that. Radio stations won't, internet streams won't, second hand cd sales won't.
          • Boondoggle, on 01/31/2008, -1/+1venture capital. I'd invest 50k to record a multi-million dollar album.
    • uberfu, on 01/31/2008, -0/+9"American law is not global YET"

      Thank god for that_ [non-religious reference] Sorry - but tthe US [and I live here] has some ***** up laws that contradict themselves_
      • Kakemonster, on 01/31/2008, -1/+1And I hope for all of mankind that the US (not whole of America) don't expand anymore, cause that will be the day that dooms us all.
    • KyleGoetz, on 01/31/2008, -1/+1If you buy 2d-hand CDs, you give money to people who buy 1st-hand CDs. Those people then go and buy directly from RIAA members. If you want your boycott to be truly effective, you should even STOP LISTENING TO THE ***** RADIO AND PIRATING THEIR *****. Every MP3 you download, you addict yourself further to their brand of music, and if you talk about it with people who don't pirate, you subconsciously encourage them to go out and listen/buy it as well.
      Lrn2economics.
    • coreyb, on 01/31/2008, -0/+1How about we just ban our old out of date parents from voting again and vote in a couple dozen righteous politicians that will put some hurt on the RIAA and MPAA? Then we don't have to stop listening to or watching anything...

      Problem solved.
    • ThreeDee912, on 01/31/2008, -0/+2SoundExchange are same ones that wanted to increase net radio station's royalty fees by over 500%...
    • RockinRoel, on 02/01/2008, -0/+1Sony is in charge of… everything!
      Films, game consoles, music, TVs,…
      It's a Japanese conspiracy!
  • macwac, on 01/31/2008, -7/+58Should we sue google for being a bigger search engine to pirated content? These guys did nothing wrong. Its unacceptable.
    • orangefly, on 01/31/2008, -5/+9no kidding....you couldn't get to the torrent without TPB(or another torrent site) but you can get to all the torrents on all the torrent sites through google....so you have access to exponentially more torrents through google....let's see them take on google then....
    • Pixelante, on 01/31/2008, -4/+0In some instances Google has removed links to sites that allowed DMCA-circumventing software. One day they may not bother to warn you. Maybe it has already happened.
      There will come a day when if it's not on Google, it will not exist. The perfect form of censorship.
    • uberfu, on 01/31/2008, -1/+2Exactly_

      If you can get on Google and find similar results [albeit a little mroe complicated] then what is the difference between TPB having a dedicated search mechanism and Google having the ability other than what i just pointed out?

      Let's also go after Yahoo and ASK and Lycos for being contributors_
      • shark72, on 02/01/2008, -0/+1Easy: it's all about intent. Google responds to DMCA requests. Send a similar request to TPB, and they'll mock you.

        The guys at TPB promote, support, and encourage piracy. Everybody already knows this. Google is a general-purpose tool. Intent's the real sticking point.
    • nikipedia, on 01/31/2008, -2/+4Actually, they should sue Google for providing access to TPB/torrent sites, sue Microsoft, Apple, Dell, etc. for building machines that allow you to access Google, sue Comcast etc. for providing internet access to access torrents...
    • yonis, on 01/31/2008, -0/+5Let's be fair here. Google and other search engines aren't primarily used for finding pirated content. It's merely accidental that it would show up, due to the very nature of the engines - they scrape everything by default.
      • DavidGX, on 01/31/2008, -0/+3What it's primarily used for depends on who's using it. Google has far more pirated content than the pirate bay could ever DREAM of having. There are also plenty of legal things on the pirate bay.