Technology, Movie Piracy | featured news

A New Zealand court has granted bail to two associates of the founder of online file-sharing website Megaupload, accused of being involved in a $175 million Internet piracy scheme.

The Department of Justice announced Thursday that it has conducted a major action to shut down MegaUpload, a popular file-sharing site widely used for free downloads of movies and television shows.

January 18 is a date that will live in ignorance, as Wikipedia started a 24-hour blackout of its English-language articles, joining other sites in protesting pending U.S. legislation aimed at shutting down sites that share pirated movies and other content.

Congress began debating Wednesday another controversial effort by the movie industry and other content makers to stem Internet piracy through federal legislation.

The movie industry is widening its anti-piracy net as it asks Sky, Virgin Media and TalkTalk to block Newzbin2.

The number of illegally downloaded films in the UK goes up nearly 30% in five years, new figures seen by Newsbeat suggest.

The file-hosting service Rapidshare is seeking major entertainment industry partners for an online store where links to infringing material will redirect to.