The Truth About Suprnova Shutdown 365
Romeo E. Cabrera writes "You might remember it was exactly a year ago when Suprnova, once the most popular BitTorrent search engine went dark. Today, Suprnova's admin Sloncek, reveals the truth and details, about the events occurred then."
Darkness (Score:3, Funny)
Yep. Like the dog, Suprnova was on fire.
Re:Darkness (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Darkness (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Darkness (Score:3, Interesting)
Of course, if they're serious enough, they'll send the Sheriff out to attach the notice to your door, at which time you have to hope and pray for a windstorm or rowdy neighborhood children to make the notice disappear...
Re:Darkness (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Process Servers (Score:3, Funny)
Shoot the sheriff. And don't forget the deputy!
RIP (Score:3, Insightful)
Safe to say that the torrent community has gone downhill since, I'd say.
On the contrary! (Score:4, Interesting)
On the contrary! Torrent sites have split up and decentralized, that is true. But that, in many ways, is a good thing, and the content has in many ways improved in quality; back in the days of Suprnova I still would search for most things via DC++ or IRC because the general level of quality and content was better, even if Suprnova had the quantity. But nowadays, even if they're harder to get into, the torrent sites have precisely for that reason grown more vibrant and connected within themselves. Instead of faceless posts of questionable content, we have tightly knit communities!
Really, look me straight in the eye and argue that places like Demonoid and Dimeadozen aren't stellar examples of what the torrent community can be (each in their own ways; Dimeadozen perhaps the most notable, considering that it works expressly to share media from live music, and in doing so ensures a rather high quality of content, something that just wouldn't happen with stuff of similar subject matter back on Suprnova).
Re:RIP (Score:5, Informative)
TvTorrents [tvtorrents.com],www.tvtorrents.com would be another one, there are plenty of torrent site, thepiratebay, without a doubt, being the largest in the world.
If you wanna have a laugh, take a look at TBP Legal Threats [thepiratebay.org], and then decide how big the chances are that tpb will go down (lawchange in sweden, where TPB is hosted, takes approx. 2 years, and they haven't even started trying to change it yet).
So, to sum it up (Score:5, Funny)
Nothing happened
Case dropped
Suprnova still gone
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:5, Insightful)
In the case of supernova they probably bribed the police into doing all this scaring tactics. As far as I know the police in Eastern Europe is not really interested in piracy and computer fraud, they got other things to worry about and besides, some countries don't even have good laws concerning computers and internet BUT for a large enough bribe the police in those countries will arrest and scare anyone regardless of the crime.
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:2)
But they can hire mercenaries/terrorists to do just that. Alternativly they can have a word with some of their friends in the US Government. You'd need a very well armed small country, only one appears to be a possibility...
In the case of supernova they probably bribed the police into doing all this scaring tactics. As far as I know the police in Eastern Eur
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:5, Interesting)
Actually they don't, and the United States Government really doesn't do much militarily to protect corporate interests these days, not like the Fruit company fun in the 20th century. Yea, War for Oil, War for Kosovo's Tin, the geopolitical ramifications of the US and/or NATO going to war are much larger than Corporate Interests these days.
However, if a Nation-State has a relationship with the United States, there will be treaties and frameworks usually that'll help shut this stuff down. Plus, your ISPs could just block thier domain names.
That all said, if you are really intent on pirating other people's property, and it's not about "Sharing", come on, it's about gettng crap for free, look at Indian Reservations in the United States. The legal issues between a Reservation, County, State and the Federal Governments are a goddamned mess. Plus, theres a whole lot of corruption so with some cash, you might get a Rez to go for this model.*
* - I'm Indian and from a Reservation and have known a fair share of Tribal Council and Chairpeople over the years that I can say they are corrupt for the most part without being a Troll or a Flamer.
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:5, Informative)
EU, efficient as it is, normally takes 5 years to answer a question on how a law is to be interpreted, plus the EU cannot in itself enforce any laws but rely on the member states to do so. In the case of ThePirateBay, Sweden sees itself as having followed the EU directive. If they haven't, well, ask the EU as to how the law is to be interpreted and wait 5 years, at the very least, for an answer
Then ofcourse you need to wait approx. 2 years more for Sweden to make a lawchange and then about another year for the law to be enforced, so I'd say time is on your side!
Ofcourse, DMCA or any other US specific laws do not apply in Sweden so TPB, or any other bittorrent tracker you wish to open, is completly safe and cannot be shutdown or forced to remove material in any way shape or form (as decided by the Swedish Supreme Court in 1996, linking to copyrighted material is not against the law). Hence, you do not need an island or a small (well, not that Sweden is that big but still) country in the middle of nowhere. Simply host the site in Sweden and you're set!
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:3, Informative)
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:3, Insightful)
I call shenanigans. Have you read "The Puzzle Palace"? They have been doing this for decades. Ole George had nothing to do with it (apart from allowing it to happen, just like the last 10 presidents...).
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:5, Funny)
The Vatican?
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:5, Funny)
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:3)
Yeah, I could see it now (Score:3, Funny)
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:4, Interesting)
There are plenty of influences beyond police and the military. The RIAA or MPAA could impose economic sanctions on sales in that country, until the local organizations did something about that.
For example, if I was the ??AA them, I could impose an extra USD $5 surcharge on every piece of media sold to vendors in that country, due to their lack of cooperation, making it clear of why they increased the cost. The local vendors would either need to tack that onto the price of the media, or eat it. If they increase their prices, sales will go down. If they eat it, profit goes down. So in the end, they can (and would) put start pressuring the local government to do something about the crimes.
The next reply suggests invasion or mercenaries. That's not their MO, and it wouldn't be necessary.
The recording industry is huge, no matter where you are. They do have an influence. They showed a bit of force with the initial arrest. They'll show more force next time to get their way.
They still don't understand, bringing the costs down would solve a lot of their problems. If I can get an album (record, tape, cd, or whatever) for $5, why bother pirating it? But, looking at a $20 price tag, that may encourage me to pirate. At $5 each, I'd consider actually going to the store and buying music. If I could buy 5 CD's for $25, that's reasonable. 5 CD's for $100 isn't justifiable to me, even though I do have the money to do it.
For the record, I don't pirate. I have a small collection of store bought DVD's. I listen to broadcast or streaming radio. I watch most movies on DirecTV. We actually find it's more comfortable to watch movies in my home theater, than it is to watch in a traditional movie theater. I'm satisfied. Why bother download songs and burn them to CD? I'd say iPod, but I don't even own one. I'm not the coolest geek on the block, as far as that goes.
I don't use BitTorrent, but I do use other P2P programs to get the occasional piece of software to try out. For example, I wanted to try 'Poser'. I installed it, played with it for abotu 20 minutes, grew bored of it, and uninstalled it. I also downloaded several video editing programs, for editing home movies. I picked one that I liked, and bought the current version from the store.
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:3, Interesting)
Well, in an ideal world, the local vendors would see the loss of sales, and do something about it. You are right though, in the real world, they'll just tack on the extra $5, and more people will start using more various P2P programs.
It's sad, they see P2P as being the evil. They don't realize that they've brought it on themselves.
People don't buy magazines, and photocopy every page so they can share it with their friends. They just tell their friends, "Hey, g
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:4, Interesting)
Everytime we have this discussion, I always say the same thing, and here it is again:
I run a small/medium ISP in Russia. We host tons and tons of copyrighted material. When various bittorrent sites started going down in fear, I spoke with many of the owners on transferring their domain and business to our servers. I was willing to host their content for free! Most of the reason is because I'm not Russian and I don't want to miss the new western movies or latest western television shows (I depend on these sites!).
The problem is: most of these sites are run by teenagers that are unable to see logic through the thick veil of ego and attitude. They think they know everything. I can't deal with people like that. It totally reminds me of the cracking groups back in the heydey of the Amiga. I refused to deal with it then, I refuse to deal with it now.
I have since moved on, and found other membership sites where I can get the latest television shows, etc. I don't miss those old attitude sites one single bit. Good riddance.
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:3, Informative)
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:5, Insightful)
Police raid ISP
Police confiscate servers
Police visit Suprnova operator at home
Police seize two computers and various media from Suprnova operator
Suprnova spends a few months in limbo
Suprnova stresses out over mail from prosecutor
Case dropped
Suprnova still gone
I'd be interested in a translation of the letter that he posted on the site. Specifically, I'm interested in knowing why exactly the prosecutors decided not to pursue the case.
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:5, Insightful)
In other words, it's the same reason why ThePirateBay still operates - only that the latter is hosted in Sweden, where it's probably (I assume!) less easy for the music/movie industry to get the police to investigate things when there is no evidence of an actual crime being committed.
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:5, Informative)
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:5, Informative)
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:3, Interesting)
He just offered the people knowledge how to break copyright, he didn't break it himself. It's the same with gun companies, they don't shoot people, they sell you a weapon to do it.
However i'm still concerned about the ip tracking issues. I luckily sit on a dynamic ip address, so yearz old ip records will not trace back to my computer which did download the movies. But for static ip address users, this is quite a punch. They can come and knock on your door any time now, they
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:3, Insightful)
> He just offered the people knowledge how to break copyright, he didn't break it himself.
> It's the same with gun companies, they don't shoot people, they sell you a weapon to do it.
This is a great example.
BT and other P2P programs do have practical uses. I have two that I use.
Guns do have practical uses. I also have two of these.
So, I have a gun. It doesn't mean that I plan to kill someone. Maybe I want to go hunting. Maybe I want to be able to defend my home and family. Maybe I just like to h
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:3, Interesting)
no isp is giving away such information just like that.
another way to do it would be live near a cafe/hotel/any-other-public-facility with an open wifi network so they'd get the blame. with today's "inventions" of parabol wifi antennas, you can go a f
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:5, Informative)
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:5, Insightful)
Police raiding your home, seizing your property, and dragging you through legal proceedings, when you've done nothing wrong sounds pretty bad to me.
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:2)
You might do something illegal on it, but that act is not a crime.
no, no, and no,.. (Score:5, Insightful)
just providing the means does NOT equate into illegal actions.
napster got in trouble because they kept the master file list on their own servers- and then couldn't filter out content the riaa & others wanted blocked.
Laws concerning morality never fit in with the 'average' views of the citizenry--
Re:no, no, and no,.. (Score:3, Insightful)
just providing the means does NOT equate into illegal actions.
Conversely, just because the Betamax case went our way, doesn't mean that any other instance under consideration would.
Re:no, no, and no,.. (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:no, no, and no,.. (Score:2)
napster got in trouble because they kept the master file list on their own servers- and then couldn't filter out content the riaa & others wanted blocked.
Suprnova contained links to torrents (cant remember if it held the .torrent files itself, pretty sure it did). That in my mind is a direct corollation to the Napster master file list.
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:2)
Re:So, to sum it up (Score:2)
Unprovable intent? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Unprovable intent? (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Unprovable intent? (Score:3, Interesting)
Officially you have the legality principle (no offence is punishable without prior legislation) but in practice anything is punishable. It is just a matter of finding an article that is applicable.
Re:Unprovable intent? (Score:2)
Re:Unprovable intent? (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Unprovable intent? (Score:3, Insightful)
Maybe it's just me, but I always thought that prosecutors were supposed to prosecute people who break the law and not try to find ways to "get people".
I know first hand how cops can be that petty, but thankfully I've never encountered a prosecutor who was that much of an asshole.
LK
15 minutes of fame (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:15 minutes of fame (Score:2)
At a point of time Suprnova probably had the highest traffic among Bittorrent tracker sites.
That hardly makes it a "small site".
Re:15 minutes of fame (Score:5, Funny)
Blogosphere: The "blogosphere" is the new buzz word that has replaced "information super highway." It's what idiots like to call a collection of "blogs," otherwise known as a tragedy.
http:/// [http]http://www.thebestpageintheuniverse.net/cRe:15 minutes of fame (Score:3, Funny)
Now with a correct link!
If these words were people, I would embrace their genocide. [thebestpag...iverse.net]
astonishing. (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:astonishing. (Score:2, Interesting)
Case dropped, all items will be returned (computers). He has 30 days to pick his stuff up or they will 'destory' it (most probably some guy would take it home).
(This is written in Slovenian)
Slyck Disagrees with Sloncek (Score:5, Interesting)
slyck of course being the most prominent file sharing news source on the web.
Re:Slyck Disagrees with Sloncek (Score:5, Interesting)
They go on to say:
A year later, answers for the curious are finally available.
That's not disputing him. That's saying, "we had questions before, but he answered them sufficiently, and it doesn't really matter even if he weren't telling the truth."
Yay.
Re:Slyck Disagrees with Sloncek (Score:2)
Re:Slyck Disagrees with Sloncek (Score:3, Insightful)
Um, did you even RTFA you linked to? I would hardly characterize Slyck's position as disagreement. They include quotes from Sloncek that clear up confusion caused by apparent (but not actual) inconsistencies.
welp (Score:4, Insightful)
Well... (Score:5, Insightful)
Text of the Letter (Score:4, Funny)
Oh hell, anybody here speak Slovenian?
Re:Text of the Letter (Score:5, Informative)
With part 224, ZKP and 6/136 of State pros. order we:
In criminal case against Andrej Preston, (adress omitted), in suspected criminal case of giving help with crime of unauthorized usage of authored (copyrighted) works at. 1/159 with connection 22 in 27 of KZ, are all objects in CD (corpus delicti) entry no ****:
***list of equipment****
to returned to owner, that is Andrej Preston, because criminial case against him was dropped.
LEGAL:
Named (Andrej Preston) can take above mentioned objects at District State prosecutor office in Ljubljana in 30 days from receiving this letter. After 30 days, all objects will be destroyed.
Re:Text of the Letter (Score:5, Funny)
Sure. Here is a helpful translation into icelandic:
"KJa wfoami coliaboa cklembi 224. Anerpicja 13 ZKP 6 opwef nabrioa. 136 Kpentitia. Kpmarij manstani onikapp."
HTH.
Re:Text of the Letter (Score:5, Funny)
Is Suprnova... up again (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Is Suprnova... up again (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Is Suprnova... up again (Score:2)
mininova [mininova.org]
Re:Is Suprnova... up again (Score:3, Insightful)
EU law and Slovenia (Score:4, Informative)
Any of our Euro-dotters care to comment?
I have a feeling this is not a fully-harmonized area, EU-law-wise, since the good folks at the Pirate Bay continue to entertain us with their responses to legal threats [thepiratebay.org].
Re:EU law and Slovenia (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:EU law and Slovenia (Score:3, Informative)
Re:EU law and Slovenia (Score:5, Informative)
For example, for the EU Copyrirght Directive (EUCD) [eu.int], there're the list of all possible "faire use" exceptions, and this is even linked with anti-circumvention articles. At the end, the states are free to take an agressive, DMCA-like legislation, where it is illegal to "break" DRM to make a private copy, while other could choose to allow circumvention of DRM and creation of MP3 for private use (see article 5.2.b and 6.4).
So, it depends, and in this case, you should ask a slovenian
Re:EU law and Slovenia (Score:3, Informative)
Except the whole thing is full of doublespeak in the notes:
(52) When implementing an exception or limitation for private copying in accordance with Article 5(2)(b), Member States should likewise promote the use of voluntary measures to accommodate achieving
Translation (Score:5, Informative)
The legal document basicly says:
Legal case against Andrej P. (his address blacked out), charged with criminal act of helping copyright infrigment by 1. article of 159. of some law with following objects written into log:
- server with serial number
- server with serial number
- server with serial number
- server with serial number
- personal computer
- personal computer
are returned to the owner because legal charges against A. P. are dropped.
And them some more legal talk where he can get his stuff in 30 days.
That is about as much as I can handle at this early hour.
SuprNova may be gone but... (Score:5, Informative)
mininova.org (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:mininova.org (Score:4, Funny)
SHHH!
This episode of "Scare The Living Pants Off Of Internet Users" paid for by the MPAA and RIAA
Welcome to the club. (Score:5, Interesting)
On my end, Adobe lawyers contacted my ISP and sent a short, but curt letter: "Shut him down, or we will." I balked and so did my ISP after some heated conversation. I ran a VERY popular macintosh serial # site and yeah, serial numbers are sort of a grey area as far as I was concerned (and so thought my ISP thought, as well).
Whoops.
Yeah, it was stupid on my part but I enjoyed the money that rolled in from my sponsors. In the long-term I got burned, much like this fellow will. I had to claim bankruptcy, due to my mounting legal bills. I'm basically screwed for the next 7 years. Hooray. Some people can walk that thin grey line between legal and illegal but I found a way to trip over it. Oh well.
Re:Welcome to the club. (Score:3, Interesting)
I always like that part. I'm not sure what people are hoping for:
Police: We're going to raid your house today. Noon good for you?
Raidee: I'm moving some gear then. Would two be OK?
Police: Sure!
I ran a VERY popular macintosh serial # site and yeah, serial numbers are sort of a grey area as far as I was concerned (and so thought my ISP thought, as well).
The "black" area is that you were directly providing the means to circumvent copy
From the article... (Score:4, Funny)
Re:From the article... (Score:5, Funny)
Though I suspect you're really talking about copyright infringement.
(Chuckle: it's amusing, really.)
Re:From the article... (Score:4, Insightful)
I hope I can remember not to facilitate piracy on a massive scale so something like this doesn't happen to me!
And RIAA's job here is done.
like sandtrout (Score:2, Insightful)
The golden rule (Score:2)
sites come and go (Score:4, Insightful)
Now we have sites like thepiratebay.org which is probably one of the best torrent sites on the internet. Heck, they even tout the lawyers and post the threating legal letters on their website for everyone to read http://thepiratebay.org/legal.php [thepiratebay.org]
Quite hilarious if you ask me.
Of course you have other torrent sites as well, like torrentspy.com which is another popular site.
sites come and go, they come and go....
"wait and see" ? (Score:5, Interesting)
His statement strikes me as someone who was simply hoping the problem would go away (as quoted) from the onset. More pressure on both the police and a legal defense from the onset could have both quelled the investigation as groundless and gotten the site back up.
It's an unfortunate truth that law enforcement often only succeeds in setting legal precedent in computer investigations only because people aren't more diligent in defending themselves.
Re:"wait and see" ? (Score:4, Interesting)
And that's in a country with a history of being one of the most free and liberal in the world. What do you think normally happens in Slovenia?
How did the land of the free come to resemble Soviet Russia?
Most telling piece of the article (Score:4, Funny)
In the US, this would probably have said "after taking advice from my lawyer, I have decided not to say anything more".
I wish him luck.
Re:Most telling piece of the article (Score:3, Funny)
-Eric
A proverb (Score:5, Interesting)
-Me
Re:A proverb-Do NOT Step on... (Score:3, Interesting)
You may be right. JGG may have harmed you. JGG may have taken your property or deprived you of assets or income wrongly. But the JGG is so large that one little nudge can spell the end of your life, & (in the U.S.) he can get a legal judgement that goes even beyond bankruptcy. The JGG can get a judgement that locks you out of your field of expertise (unless you want to leave your native country, and even then today that may not help).
Trust me that when they accuse you, it
Misinterpretation (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Next time, try... (Score:4, Funny)
Re:One of the most idiotic stories on /. to date (Score:5, Insightful)
Your remarks would make sense if an original news item was dumbed down for the "general public".
If the guy who got the letter from the prosecutor does not wish to quote verbatim from it, or he thinks it is not relevant, why question it? It's probably not relevant anyway, just some law numbers and dates.
He does provide the original letter [suprnova.org] (in Slovenian), so read it yourself for the gory details. Or, scroll down for helpful translations [slashdot.org] below [slashdot.org].
Re:When your family's talking about torrents... (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:And where's all the donated legal aid money? (Score:5, Informative)