‘Free Download Manager’ Removes YouTube Support After Google Complaint

With over a billion users YouTube is the largest video portal on the Internet. The service opens the door to a wealth of information and entertainment, including the latest and greatest music which can be streamed for free. Through YouTube, the music industry generated billions of dollars in advertising revenue. While this sounds great, YouTube...

4h

Hollywood & Netflix Win New High Court Injunction to Block Pirate Streaming Sites

Six major ISPs – BT, EE, Plusnet, Sky, TalkTalk and Virgin Media – control more than 90% of the fixed line broadband market in the UK. This means that when copyright holders want to prevent access to pirate sites in the region, these providers are regularly named in blocking injunction applications. Late Friday, the High Court reported that Columbia...

15h

Bizarre DMCA Takedown Notices Come with Prison Threat

Over the years we have seen our fair share of bizarre DMCA takedown notices, but we continue to be surprised by new schemes. This week we can add another to the list, one that has some serious threats attached. The notices in question were sent to Google but the accompanying message appears to be directed at the targeted sites, many of which offer...

1d

Triller Reportedly Agreed to Settle ‘Jake Paul’ Piracy Claim Then Returned Cash

Earlier this year, people who allegedly offered or even watched the Jake Paul vs. Ben Askren boxing match online without permission were sucked into legal action. Copyright owner Triller filed a wave of lawsuits after the PPV fight aired, targeting various sites and their operators. That included a number of YouTube channels including the H3 Podcast,...

2d

RCN Asks Court to Dismiss ‘Copyright Trolls’ Piracy Liability Lawsuit

Under US copyright law, Internet providers must terminate the accounts of repeat infringers “in appropriate circumstances.” In the past such drastic action was rare but with the backing of legal pressure, ISPs are increasingly being held to this standard. Initially, these lawsuits were mostly initiated by music companies, backed by the RIAA. However,...

3d

RIAA: ‘Refocused’ Yout Stream-Ripping Lawsuit Should Be Dismissed

Yout.com’s legal battle with the RIAA, which was instigated by the YouTube-ripping service in 2020, hasn’t been a straightforward affair. The original complaint hoped to achieve a declaratory judgment that the service operates legally but the RIAA has fought back on every detail. The basis of Yout’s complaint is that it operates an entirely legal service...

3d

RIAA Criticizes ICANN for ‘Hindering’ Its Anti-Piracy Efforts

Tackling online piracy is a complicated endeavor that often starts by identifying the operators of infringing sites and services. This is also where the first hurdles come into play. Most pirate operations shroud themselves in secrecy and do all they can to remain anonymous. This starts with the domain name registration. The owner of every domain...

4d

Mega: 144,000+ Users Have Been Terminated For Repeat Copyright Infringement

Famously founded by Kim Dotcom a year after the 2012 shutdown of Megaupload, Mega has grown to become one of the most popular cloud storage sites online today. Dotcom is no longer involved with the platform but that hasn’t affected its growth. In its launch year Mega hosted just 0.6 million files but just 12 months later, that had grown to an impressive...

4d

YouTube Rippers Oppose RIAA’s Worldwide ‘Blocking’ Injunction & Massive Damages

Earier this month the RIAA secured a major victory in its piracy lawsuit against YouTube-rippers FLVTO.biz and 2conv.com and their Russian operator Tofig Kurbanov. A Virginia federal court issued a default judgment in favor of several prominent music companies after the defendant walked away from the lawsuit. According to Judge Buchanan there is...

5d

Trump Invokes Presidential ‘Absolute Immunity’ in Electric Avenue Copyright Suit

During the 2020 US presidential election campaign, then-President Donald Trump took to Twitter to post an animated video of a speedy train carrying his campaign logo ahead of Joe Biden on a railroad handcar, struggling to keep up. In the background played an unlicensed copy of the 1982 hit ‘Electric Avenue’ by musician Eddy Grant. The British singer-songwriter...

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