IFPI: Stream-Ripping Fuels Generative AI From Which Existential Threats Emerge
For the past several years, the recording industry has branded stream-ripping services the leading piracy threat. On the near horizon, the industry claims that the rise of generative AI presents a new and rapidly evolving challenge for the music ecosystem that threatens its long-term sustainability. According to global industry group IFPI, stream-ripping is likely fueling this secondary threat. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2024-12-30 03:28:17 READMORE
Top 10 Most Pirated Movies of The Week – 12/30/2024
Every week we take a close look at the most pirated movies on torrent sites. What are pirates downloading? 'Gladiator II' tops the chart, followed by 'The Order'. 'Venom: The Last Dance' completes the top three. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2024-12-29 07:09:40 READMORE
Danish Court Greenlights Copyright Protection for Live Sports in Landmark Blocking Case
The final verdict in a Danish site blocking battle, involving LaLiga and Rojadirecta, confirms that live sports broadcasts are protected copyright works. This marks a significant victory for rightsholders, who believe that this landmark decision paves the way for increased blocking of pirate streaming services across Europe. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2024-12-27 18:51:00 READMORE
Bogus Pirate IPTV Portals Run By Law Enforcement “Entrap Hundreds”
According to a phrase popularized by Carl Sagan, extraordinary claims should be supported by extraordinary evidence. A new piracy scare story published on Sunday takes a different approach. The extraordinary claim is that fake IPTV portals run by law enforcement are entrapping "ordinary users" to obtain evidence of their crimes. Supported by exactly zero evidence, the report claims that hundreds of internet users have already been identified. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2024-12-26 18:17:32 READMORE
‘House of the Dragon’ Is The Most Pirated TV Show of 2024
'House of the Dragon' is the most-pirated TV show released on torrent sites in 2024. The popular 'Game of Thrones' prequel replaces 'The Last of Us', which topped the chart last year. Amazon's 'The Boys' takes the second spot at a respectable distance, while Disney's Shōgun is the hottest newcomer. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2024-12-26 05:07:53 READMORE
Cloudflare Must Block ‘Piracy Shield’ Domains and IP Addresses Across its Service
In a landmark ruling, the Court of Milan has ordered Cloudflare to block pirate streaming services that offer Serie A football matches. The court found that Cloudflare's services are instrumental in facilitating access to live pirate streams, undermining Italy's 'Piracy Shield' legislation. The order, which applies in Italy, affects Cloudflare's CDN, DNS resolver, WARP and proxy services. It also includes a broad data disclosure section. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2024-12-24 18:16:44 READMORE
Rojadirecta & Site Operator Hit With $33m Piracy Damages Judgment
Around 2016, sports streaming site Rojadirecta closed its doors to visitors from Spain after losing its legal battle with Mediapro. Despite the win, the broadcaster was disappointed that the court had found the company behind Rojadirecta liable, but not company owner Igor Seoane. After the Supreme Court held that Seoane could be held liable, last Friday a court confirmed total damages of $33 million, with Seoane and the company jointly liable for half of that amount. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2024-12-23 23:13:44 READMORE
‘Destroyed’ Usenet Provider Sues Anti-Piracy Group for Millions in Damages
Once-thriving Usenet provider NSE was targeted by Dutch anti-piracy group BREIN many years ago. Under legal pressure, the provider felt forced to shut down its successful business. Though NSE ultimately triumphed in court, that victory came years later. NSE is now demanding millions of euros to compensate for the alleged damage to its business. BREIN, however, sees things differently. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2024-12-23 18:49:38 READMORE
Domain Seizures and German ISP Blockade Add to Libgen’s Troubles
Popular shadow library LibGen continues to face trouble. In addition to ongoing technical problems, a U.S. lawsuit resulted in several domain suspensions and seizures in recent weeks. To top it off, the shadow library was just added to Germany's pirate site blocking list, making it harder to access the remaining domains. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2024-12-22 21:43:07 READMORE
Sky’s Enhanced High Court Pirate IPTV Blocking Order Closes Loopholes
Sixteen well-known suppliers active in the UK pirate IPTV market have been selected by broadcaster Sky to star in a new phase of the company's ISP blocking program. A new order obtained at the High Court is technically an extension of an existing order won last year. However, with significant tweaks, upgrades and an extremely determined opponent, pirates may be about to face their toughest challenge yet. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2024-12-21 17:54:20 READMORE
EU and NL Domain Registries Take Down Piracy-Linked Domains
The easiest way to hurt a pirate site, at least temporarily, is by taking away its domain name. Historically, domain name registries have been hesitant to take action but with the right approach, progress can be made. This week, anti-piracy group BREIN reported that following their complaints, the .nl and .eu registries took action against several 'pirate' domains. On closer inspection, it appears that copyright has little to do with it. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2024-12-21 02:01:57 READMORE
Dismantling a 22m User Pirate IPTV Service Led to Big Rise in ISP Blocking
Coordinated by Italy last month, a huge law enforcement operation reportedly 'dismantled' a pirate IPTV service with 22 million users. That's an extraordinary number and shows why countries like Italy have adopted mass site blocking measures. Logic suggests that the removal of such a huge player from the market might reduce the need for blocking measures, if only temporarily. The data shows that in the wake of the action, blocking demands significantly increased. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2024-12-20 17:04:50 READMORE
Suprnova’s Founder Speaks: 20 Years, Many Lessons, and a YouTube Empire
Two decades ago, the torrenting world lost a legend: Suprnova.org. This pioneering file-sharing site, once a hub for millions of users, was abruptly shut down on December 19th, 2004. Today, we revisit the Suprnova story and speak with the site's founder about its lasting impact and the YouTube empire he built in recent years. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2024-12-19 18:11:02 READMORE
Judges Acquit a Total of 23 Pirate IPTV Subscribers: Personal Use is Not a Crime
Italians who simply view pirate IPTV via illicit subscriptions have been warned for months that their activities could be reported to the judicial authorities for potential prosecution. As part of an investigation into a pirate IPTV subscription seller, a total of 23 people have appeared in court in recent months for simply buying a pirate package. Judges in two separate proceedings have now acquitted all 23 after concluding that this type of piracy isn't actually a crime. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2024-12-18 16:43:26 READMORE
Netflix and Hollywood Obtain Canadian Site Blocking Order Against Pirate ‘Brand’ Soap2Day
The Federal Court of Canada has issued a new site blocking order requiring major ISPs to block access to Soap2Day domains. The order was issued in response to a lawsuit filed by Netflix, Bell, and several major Hollywood studios alleging copyright infringement. The operators of the associated Soap2Day domains must pay millions of Canadian dollars in damages. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2024-12-18 04:59:06 READMORE
LaLiga Isn’t ‘Fining’ IPTV Pirates For Viewing Streams, But For Providing Them
Suing people for consuming content illegally can be a risky endeavor for companies with brands to protect. Nevertheless, sports rightsholders now seem prepared to put brand integrity on the line in their fight against IPTV pirates. Spain's LaLiga is already mailing out 'fines', ostensibly to people who simply watched pirate streams. Predictably, there's more to it than that. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2024-12-17 19:50:23 READMORE
The Pirate Bay’s Million-Dollar Bitcoin Donations: Hidden Goldmine or Spent Treasure?
For over a decade, The Pirate Bay has been accepting Bitcoin donations. In dollar terms, this provided a relatively modest but consistent revenue stream. However, if the torrent site had held onto its early Bitcoin, it could have amassed a small fortune, worth $14 million today. The same applies to BitcoinTorrentz, which once charged today's equivalent of $8,000 per gigabyte transferred. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2024-12-17 04:01:39 READMORE
Japanese Anime Companies Shut Down Another 15 Pirate Sites in Brazil
Japan-based anti-piracy group CODA is reporting new successes in its overseas efforts to disrupt access to pirate sites. Earlier this month, operators of pirate anime sites in Brazil received in-person visits from CODA, acting on behalf of three major Japanese anime producers. CODA reports that Bakashi.tv, the third most-visited anime site in Brazil, shut down among 15 in total. No other sites are officially named, but our unofficial list provides a few pointers. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2024-12-16 15:35:19 READMORE
Canada’s First Pirate Site Blocking Order Quietly Expires
The first pirate site blocking order in Canada was 'discontinued' this week. The plaintiffs, including rightsholders Bell and Rogers, won't request an extension of the landmark blocking measures against IPTV service GoldTV. Interestingly, many of the targeted domains are still online. No reason was provided for the discontinuation, but costs and changed priorities likely play a role. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2024-12-14 22:21:12 READMORE