Spotify Dismantles ‘SpotifyDL’ Track Download Extension via DMCA Notice
Spotify has come a long way since it openly appealed to music pirates in its early days. This week, the streaming giant targeted "SpotifyDL," a browser extension enabling users to download tracks, playlists and albums, by bypassing its protections. Following a DMCA notice filed with GitHub, Spotify successfully forced the developer to strip the tool's core functionality. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2025-04-29 21:08:59 READMORE
DRM-Free OnlyFans Downloads See Widevine Project Nuked From GitHub
Used by major video platforms including Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video, and Hulu to name just a few, Google content protection system Widevine can be found in leading browsers, games consoles, and most mobile devices. Circumvention has been ongoing for years, but after OnlyFans sent a complaint to GitHub, a Widevine decryption project has been ejected from GitHub. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2025-04-29 03:57:34 READMORE
Pirate Site Blocking Demands Shelved as Filmmakers Settle With U.S. ISP
A pending settlement between movie companies and ISP Frontier has significantly altered the scope of an upcoming copyright trial. The movie studios are expected to withdraw their claims, including their demand for pirate site blocking, leaving Frontier to face only major record labels in court. With the music companies seeking potentially over a billion dollars in damages for subscribers' piracy activities, the stakes remain exceptionally high. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2025-04-28 15:34:41 READMORE
Top 10 Most Pirated Movies of The Week – 04/28/2025
Every week we take a close look at the most pirated movies on torrent sites. What are pirates downloading? 'Havoc' tops the chart, followed by 'Captain America: Brave New World'. 'A Working Man' completes the top three. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2025-04-28 08:09:40 READMORE
DMCA Notices Can Silence Critics But Complaints By The Public Put All at Risk
What began this week as research into an abuse of the DMCA to silence this publication, led to an unsettling world where bogus copyright complaints are just the tip of the iceberg. Waves of takedown notices, many filed by members of the public and various businesses, shine an unflattering light on the human condition. Whether hiding the truth, gagging rivals and critics, or simply telling tales; takedown notices sent by the public put us all at risk. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2025-04-27 17:13:42 READMORE
Seekee Browser App is a Magnet for Movie, TV Show, and Anime Pirates
Technically speaking, any modern web browser can stream pirated movies and TV shows, but some make it easier than others. The Seekee app, available on iOS and indirectly on Android, markets itself as a browser with AI capabilities and fast video streaming. The latter stands out, as pirated content is surprisingly easy to find and is organized for optimal viewing pleasure. But at what cost? From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2025-04-26 17:09:06 READMORE
Pirate CDNs Fueling 1,400 Russian Sites “Use EU & US CDN Infrastructure”
A new report offers a rare glimpse into the world of pirate CDNs. The report suggests that the largest players in Russia together service around 1,400 third party pirate sites, whose operators draw on massive libraries of pirated content offered by the CDNs. A single CDN reportedly controls around 60% of the Russian market, using CDN infrastructure in the Netherlands, the United States, Ukraine, Germany, and France. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2025-04-25 15:57:05 READMORE
“You Wouldn’t Steal a Car”… But Would You Pirate a Font?
Twenty years ago, the statement "You Wouldn't Steal a Car" launched one of the most iconic anti-piracy campaigns. Through a memorable commercial, the movie industry forcefully equated digital piracy with physical theft. While the PSA became instantly recognizable, spawning countless parodies, it also attracted its own controversy. New revelations suggest that the campaign's distinctive font may have itself been copied, or dare we say 'stolen'. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2025-04-24 22:28:46 READMORE
Pirate IPTV Users Largely Face No Risk of Arrest, UK’s Top Piracy Cop Concedes
Since October 2023, relentless high-profile media reports have warned that UK-based users of pirate streaming services run a serious risk of arrest. Those claims sit in contrast to comments made by the head of the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) in a recent interview. Detective Chief Inspector Emma Warbey concedes that people who use pirate devices are largely able to do so "without risk of arrest." That doesn't mean entirely without risk, however. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2025-04-23 21:05:52 READMORE
MPA and RIAA Want to be Heard in Crucial DMCA Subpoena Appeal
The MPA and RIAA want to have their say in a crucial third-party Ninth Circuit appeal about the use of DMCA subpoenas against alleged online pirates. Fearing a ruling that could limit their enforcement options, the groups requested speaking time at an upcoming hearing. This intervention, as well as previous commentary from the EFF, which is backed by a new party, underscores the high-stakes nature of the case. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2025-04-23 05:21:21 READMORE
Vercel Slams LaLiga Piracy Blocks as “Unaccountable Internet Censorship”
Cloud-based web application platform Vercel is among the latest companies to find their servers blocked in Spain due to LaLiga's ongoing IPTV anti-piracy campaign. In a statement, Vercel's CEO and the company's principal engineer slam "indiscriminate" blocking as an "unaccountable form of internet censorship" that has prevented legitimate customers from conducting their daily business. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2025-04-22 16:27:31 READMORE
Nintendo Seeks Damages & Broad Injunction Against ‘Pirate’ Game Streamer
Nintendo is hoping to wrap up its lawsuit against gamer Jesse Keighin, aka EveryGameGuru, after he failed to answer the complaint. The game giant seeks $17,500 in damages for copyright infringement, including streaming pre-release games and sharing links to emulators. In addition, Nintendo requests a broad global injunction to prevent future infringements, even for games that do not yet exist. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2025-04-21 20:14:44 READMORE
The Piracy Pandemic: COVID-19 Led to a Surge of New Pirates
New research published in the Journal of Cultural Economics documents how the COVID-19 pandemic created a surge in "new pirates". Contrary to simple narratives, increased online piracy during the pandemic isn't always associated with less legal consumption. In fact, the relationship between piracy and legal markets is far from straightforward. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2025-04-21 02:26:26 READMORE
ACE & MPA Quietly Seized Dozens of Pirate Domains in Q1 2025
Since it's launch in 2017, the Alliance for Entertainment and Creativity has established itself as the most powerful coalition of its type on the planet. In the first three months of 2025, ACE welcomed new members to its ranks but reported just two successful outcomes concerning online enforcement operations. ACE has a track record of underreporting progress, the first quarter of 2025 was no exception. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2025-04-19 22:38:49 READMORE
Reddit’s Copyright Removals Drop to Multi-Year Low
Reddit's latest transparency report reveals a notable reversal in copyright takedown trends. After years of increases, the platform removed just over 550,000 items last year due to copyright complaints, down sharply from roughly 1.2 million removed in 2023. Notably, Reddit keeps an eye on potential overreach; it declined to remove an AI-generated sports parody, deeming it transformative fair use. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2025-04-18 19:59:18 READMORE
MPA & ACE Subpoenas Target Dozens of Potential ‘Burner’ Pirate Streaming Sites
A new batch of DMCA subpoenas obtained by ACE and the MPA target dozens of pirate streaming sites, some with a few thousand visits per month, others with up to 90 million. The presence of a few established names shows that tradition isn't dead just yet, but there are clear signs that pirate sites are becoming disposable. Here today yet easily burned to the ground tomorrow, few are built to last like they used to. Yet there's no waste; a recycled site performs like new. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2025-04-17 23:23:31 READMORE
Alleged Anna’s Archive Operator Dropped from U.S. ‘Scraping’ Lawsuit
American nonprofit OCLC sued Anna's Archive last year for alleged hacking and unauthorized publishing of its WorldCat database. The sole named defendant in the case, an archivist from the Seattle area, denied any involvement with the site. After the court referred several scraping-related questions to the state Supreme Court, OCLC has now agreed to drop the alleged operator from the lawsuit. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2025-04-17 17:00:23 READMORE
OpenDNS Quits Belgium Under Threat of Piracy Blocks or Fines of €100K Per Day
In a brief statement citing a court order in Belgium but providing no other details, Cisco says that its OpenDNS service is no longer available to users in Belgium. Cisco's withdrawal is almost certainly linked to an IPTV piracy blocking order obtained by DAZN; itt requires OpenDNS, Cloudflare and Google to block over 100 pirate sites or face fines of €100,000 euros per day. Just recently, Cisco withdrew from France over a similar order. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2025-04-16 16:12:02 READMORE
Nhentai Operators Ordered to Expose Themselves in U.S. Copyright Lawsuit
The operators of Nhentai.net, a popular adult site with dozens of millions of monthly visits, have been ordered to identify themselves in a California court. Recent court rulings denied both the site's bid to dismiss the case early, and its request for a protective order to hide the identities of its operators. The case will now move forward, with all copyright claims intact. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

Posted On:2025-04-16 04:34:54 READMORE