Friday, March 29, 2024

UK copyright police hit piracy sites where it hurts: their wallets

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One of the downsides of watching Game of Thrones or The Soup via a nefarious website is that you’re bombarded with pop-ups for everything from porn to sandwiches. Now, however, you’re just as likely to see ads from the City of London Police’s Intellectual Property Crime Unit, telling you to have a long hard think about what you’re doing. Unlike other paid-for advertising, these ads won’t send cash to the torrent site owners, eroding the revenue that helps the services continue their operations.

Once a site has been tagged by copyright holders, the team at the IPCU give them two choices: become a legitimate enterprise or face the full force of the law. The cops are working with Project Sunblock, a business that helps big brands keep their adverts away from the less legitimate corners of the internet. If the site owners don’t change their ways, of course, then as well as going on the Infringing Websites List, the police can request the domain registrar to suspend its registration. So, unless Eat24 is planning to broaden its sponsorship policy, it looks like it won’t be long before you’ll just have to wait to catch your favorite TV show.

Filed under: Internet

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Via: TNW

Source: City of London Police

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