Andre Yoskowitz
20 Mar 2008 16:49
Torrent.is, the largest torrent Tracker in Iceland, is facing a permanent shutdown and the probability that it will have to pay restitution to copyright owners.
In November of 2007 Torrent.is received a preliminary injunction which eventually led to a shutdown of the site and a massive 50 percent drop in overall internet traffic in Iceland. Earlier this week, at the public hearing of the case, the plaintiffs asked for the monetary damages as well as a permanent shutdown of the site.
Snæbjörn Steingrímsson, an executive with SMAIS (the Icelandic MPAA) led the investigation and said his clients had lost "a few hundred million ISK" because of the site. At its peak, the site had 26,500 active users, all in Iceland to ensure fast connectivity between peers and seeds.
Svavar Kjarrval, the head administrator of Torrent.is feels he has a strong case though. “The plaintiffs are making an outrageous claim. They argue that website and domain owners should always be responsible for copyright violations of third parties. The case could set a dangerous precedent if the court agrees with their claims.”
We will keep you updated.