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{{About|the TorrentSpy website|the TorrentSpy software application|TorrentSpy (software)}}

{{Infobox website
{{Infobox website
| name = TorrentSpy
| name = TorrentSpy
| logo =
| logo =
| screenshot = [http://File:TorrentSpyScreenshot.PNG 280px]
| screenshot = TorrentSpyScreenshot.PNG
| screenshot_size = 280px
| caption =
| url = [http://www.torrentspy.pe.hu]
| caption =
| url = [http://www.torrentspy.com/ TorrentSpy.com]
| alexa = {{IncreaseNegative}} 567,896 ({{as of|2014|4|1|alt=April 2014}})<ref name="alexa">{{cite web|url= http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/torrentspy.com |title= Torrentspy.com Site Info | publisher= [[Alexa Internet]] |accessdate= 2014-04-01 }}</ref><!--Updated monthly by OKBot.-->
| commercial =
| alexa =
| type = Torrent index
| commercial =
| type = Torrent index
| language =
| language =
| registration = Optional
| registration = Optional
| owner =
| owner =
| author =
| author =
| launch date =
| launch_date =
| current status = Active
| current_status = Closed
| revenue =
| revenue =
| slogan =
| content_license =
| content license =
}}
}}
{{fsb}}
⚫
'''TorrentSpy''' is a popular [[BitTorrent (protocol)|BitTorrent]] indexing [[website]]. It provided [[.torrent]] files, which enabled users to exchange data between one another.

⚫
'''TorrentSpy''' was a popular [[BitTorrent (protocol)|BitTorrent]] indexing [[website]]. It provided [[.torrent]] files, which enabled users to exchange data between one another.


It also provided a forum to comment on them and integrated the user-driven content site [[ShoutWire]] into the front page. In August 2007, there were more than 1,000,000 torrents indexed with thousands of new torrents indexed every day.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}
It also provided a forum to comment on them and integrated the user-driven content site [[ShoutWire]] into the front page. In August 2007, there were more than 1,000,000 torrents indexed with thousands of new torrents indexed every day.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}
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The [[Motion Picture Association of America]] filed a lawsuit in February 2006 for TorrentSpy facilitating copyright infringement as many torrents on its site were linking to copyrighted films. In December 2007 the court ruled against TorrentSpy.
The [[Motion Picture Association of America]] filed a lawsuit in February 2006 for TorrentSpy facilitating copyright infringement as many torrents on its site were linking to copyrighted films. In December 2007 the court ruled against TorrentSpy.


On March 24, 2008 facing further fines for not cooperating with the court, TorrentSpy shut itself down.
On March 24, 2008, facing further fines for not cooperating with the court, TorrentSpy shut itself down.


==History==
==History==
In February 2006, the [[MPAA]] filed lawsuits against TorrentSpy, [[isoHunt]], and others for "abusing technology to facilitate infringement of copyrighted works."
In February 2006, the [[MPAA]] filed lawsuits against TorrentSpy, [[isoHunt]], and others for "abusing technology to facilitate infringement of copyrighted works."


On May 29, 2007, A United States federal judge ordered that TorrentSpy begin monitoring its users' activities and to submit these logs to the [[Motion Picture Association of America]]. The TorrentSpy attorney, Ira Rothken, stated that TorrentSpy would rather deny access to U.S. users before it started monitoring anyone, since such monitoring is in violation of TorrentSpy's own privacy policy.<ref name="Monitoring">{{cite web|work=TorrentFreak|title=TorrentSpy Ordered by Federal Judge to Become MPAA Spy|url=http://torrentfreak.com/torrentspy-ordered-to-spy-on-its-users-on-behalf-of-the-mpaa/|accessdate=9 June 2007 }} {{dead link|date=May 2014}}</ref>
On May 29, 2007, A United States federal judge ordered that TorrentSpy begin monitoring its users' activities and to submit these logs to the [[Motion Picture Association of America]]. The TorrentSpy attorney, Ira Rothken, stated that TorrentSpy would rather deny access to U.S. users before it started monitoring anyone, since such monitoring is in violation of TorrentSpy's own privacy policy.<ref name="Monitoring">{{cite web|work=TorrentFreak |title=TorrentSpy Ordered by Federal Judge to Become MPAA Spy |url=http://torrentfreak.com/torrentspy-ordered-to-spy-on-its-users-on-behalf-of-the-mpaa/ |access-date=9 June 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070611154957/http://torrentfreak.com/torrentspy-ordered-to-spy-on-its-users-on-behalf-of-the-mpaa/ |archive-date=June 11, 2007 }}</ref>


In August 2007, TorrentSpy began denying access to United States users and international users using US-based ISPs. In response, the MPAA filed documents calling TorrentSpy's denial of access "another illegitimate attempt by defendants to evade authority of this court and the May 29 order", and asking for sanctions.<ref name = "DefyingCourtOrder">{{cite web | title = Movie studios to judge: TorrentSpy defies court order | first = Greg | last = Sandoval | publisher = CNet | date = 2007-10-11 | url = http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9795571-7.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20 | accessdate = 2007-10-12 }}</ref> The ability for users to make comments on individual torrents was also disabled at this time.
In August 2007, TorrentSpy began denying access to United States users and international users using US-based ISPs. In response, the MPAA filed documents calling TorrentSpy's denial of access "another illegitimate attempt by defendants to evade authority of this court and the May 29 order", and asking for sanctions.<ref name = "DefyingCourtOrder">{{cite web | title = Movie studios to judge: TorrentSpy defies court order | first = Greg | last = Sandoval | publisher = CNet | date = 2007-10-11 | url = http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9795571-7.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20 | access-date = 2007-10-12 }}</ref> The ability for users to make comments on individual torrents was also disabled at this time.


On October 2007, a former TorrentSpy associate, Robert Anderson, said that the MPAA paid him $15,000 for inside information about the website. He was also able to hack into TorrentSpy's e-mail system and hand over confidential information to the MPAA. Even though MPAA admitted in the court having bought the inside e-mails, justice ruled that they contained no business secrets, nor that there would have been anything illegal in the procedure.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.wired.com/politics/onlinerights/news/2007/10/p2p_hacker | work=Wired | title=Exclusive: I Was a Hacker for the MPAA | date=October 22, 2007}} {{dead link|date=May 2014}}</ref>
In October 2007, a former TorrentSpy associate, Robert Anderson, said that the MPAA paid him $15,000 for inside information about the website. He was also able to hack into TorrentSpy's e-mail system and hand over confidential information to the MPAA. Even though MPAA admitted in the court having bought the inside e-mails, justice ruled that they contained no business secrets, nor that there would have been anything illegal in the procedure.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/politics/onlinerights/news/2007/10/p2p_hacker |magazine=Wired |title=Exclusive: I Was a Hacker for the MPAA |date=October 22, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100731084212/http://www.wired.com/politics/onlinerights/news/2007/10/p2p_hacker |archive-date=July 31, 2010 }}</ref>


[[File:Torrentspy Shutdown Notice.png|thumb|TorrentSpy after the shutdown.]]
[[File:Torrentspy Shutdown Notice.png|thumb|TorrentSpy after the shutdown.]]


On March 24, 2008, TorrentSpy's servers were shut down, shortly after a message was posted commenting on the end of TorrentSpy:<ref name="Goodbye">{{cite web |url=http://www.torrentspy.com/ |title=Goodbye Torrentspy |accessdate=2008-03-30 |work=}}</ref>
On March 24, 2008, TorrentSpy's servers were shut down, shortly after a message was posted commenting on the end of TorrentSpy:<ref name="Goodbye">{{cite web |url=http://www.torrentspy.com/ |title=Goodbye Torrentspy |access-date=2008-03-30 }}</ref>


<blockquote>
<blockquote>
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</blockquote>
</blockquote>


On May 7, 2008, a federal judge ordered TorrentSpy to pay the Motion Picture Association of America $110 million for alleged infringement of thousands of copyrighted film and TV shows. In a four-page final ruling, U.S. District Court Judge Florence-Marie Cooper entered the multimillion-dollar judgement against TorrentSpy parent company Valence Media as terminating sanctions for destroying User IP Address evidence related to the case. Cooper also issued a permanent injunction against the Web site. "This substantial money judgment sends a strong message about the illegality of these sites," MPAA chairman and CEO Dan Glickman said. "The demise of TorrentSpy is a clear victory for the studios." Whether the MPAA will collect the $110 million from TorrentSpy remains to be seen.<ref name="Final Court Ruling">{{cite news|work=Reuters|title=Studios win $110 million in TorrentSpy suit |url=http://www.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUSN0831061320080508|accessdate=8 May 2008 | date=May 8, 2008}}</ref><ref>[http://www.dailytech.com/Court+Finds+TorrentSpy+Liable+for+110+Million/article11724c.htm DailyTech - Court Finds TorrentSpy Liable for $110 Million]</ref>
On May 7, 2008, a federal judge ordered TorrentSpy to pay the Motion Picture Association of America $110 million for alleged infringement of thousands of copyrighted film and TV shows. In a four-page final ruling, U.S. District Court Judge Florence-Marie Cooper entered the multimillion-dollar judgement against TorrentSpy parent company Valence Media as terminating sanctions for destroying User IP Address evidence related to the case. Cooper also issued a permanent injunction against the Web site. "This substantial money judgment sends a strong message about the illegality of these sites," MPAA chairman and CEO Dan Glickman said. "The demise of TorrentSpy is a clear victory for the studios." Whether the MPAA will collect the $110 million from TorrentSpy remains to be seen.<ref name="Final Court Ruling">{{cite news|work=Reuters|title=Studios win $110 million in TorrentSpy suit |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUSN0831061320080508|access-date=8 May 2008 | date=May 8, 2008}}</ref><ref>[http://www.dailytech.com/Court+Finds+TorrentSpy+Liable+for+110+Million/article11724c.htm DailyTech - Court Finds TorrentSpy Liable for $110 Million]</ref>


==See also==
==See also==
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* [[BitTorrent (protocol)#Indexing|Torrent Search Engine]]
* [[BitTorrent (protocol)#Indexing|Torrent Search Engine]]
* [[Bitcomet]]
* [[Bitcomet]]
* [[Peekvid]]
* [[Showstash]]


==References==
==References==
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==External links==
==External links==
* [http://www.torrentspy.com/ TorrentSpy.com]
* [http://www.torrentspy.com/ TorrentSpy.com]
* [https://www.facebook.com/groups/111588598862740/ IRC/TorrentSpy Forum Veterans on Facebook]


{{BitTorrent}}
{{BitTorrent}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Torrentspy}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Torrentspy}}
[[Category:Defunct BitTorrent websites]]
[[Category:Defunct BitTorrent websites]]
[[Category:Defunct websites]]
[[Category:BitTorrent websites]]
[[Category:Internet properties disestablished in 2008]]
[[Category:Internet properties disestablished in 2008]]

Latest revision as of 09:55, 1 October 2023

TorrentSpy
Type of site
Torrent index
URLTorrentSpy.com
RegistrationOptional
Current statusClosed
Part of a series on
File sharing
Technologies
Video on demand sites
BitTorrent sites
Academic/scholarly
File sharing networks
P2P clients
Streaming programs
Anonymous file sharing
Development and societal aspects
By country or region
Comparisons

TorrentSpy was a popular BitTorrent indexing website. It provided .torrent files, which enabled users to exchange data between one another.

It also provided a forum to comment on them and integrated the user-driven content site ShoutWire into the front page. In August 2007, there were more than 1,000,000 torrents indexed with thousands of new torrents indexed every day.[citation needed]

The Motion Picture Association of America filed a lawsuit in February 2006 for TorrentSpy facilitating copyright infringement as many torrents on its site were linking to copyrighted films. In December 2007 the court ruled against TorrentSpy.

On March 24, 2008, facing further fines for not cooperating with the court, TorrentSpy shut itself down.

History[edit]

In February 2006, the MPAA filed lawsuits against TorrentSpy, isoHunt, and others for "abusing technology to facilitate infringement of copyrighted works."

On May 29, 2007, A United States federal judge ordered that TorrentSpy begin monitoring its users' activities and to submit these logs to the Motion Picture Association of America. The TorrentSpy attorney, Ira Rothken, stated that TorrentSpy would rather deny access to U.S. users before it started monitoring anyone, since such monitoring is in violation of TorrentSpy's own privacy policy.[1]

In August 2007, TorrentSpy began denying access to United States users and international users using US-based ISPs. In response, the MPAA filed documents calling TorrentSpy's denial of access "another illegitimate attempt by defendants to evade authority of this court and the May 29 order", and asking for sanctions.[2] The ability for users to make comments on individual torrents was also disabled at this time.

In October 2007, a former TorrentSpy associate, Robert Anderson, said that the MPAA paid him $15,000 for inside information about the website. He was also able to hack into TorrentSpy's e-mail system and hand over confidential information to the MPAA. Even though MPAA admitted in the court having bought the inside e-mails, justice ruled that they contained no business secrets, nor that there would have been anything illegal in the procedure.[3]

TorrentSpy after the shutdown.

On March 24, 2008, TorrentSpy's servers were shut down, shortly after a message was posted commenting on the end of TorrentSpy:[4]

"Friends of TorrentSpy,

We have decided on our own, not due to any court order or agreement, to bring the Torrentspy.com search engine to an end and thus we permanently closed down worldwide on March 24, 2008.
The legal climate in the USA for copyright, privacy of search requests, and links to torrent files in search results is simply too hostile. We spent the last two years, and hundreds of thousands of dollars, defending the rights of our users and ourselves.
Ultimately the Court demanded actions that in our view were inconsistent with our privacy policy, traditional court rules, and International law; therefore, we now feel compelled to provide the ultimate method of privacy protection for our users - permanent shutdown.

It was a wild ride,

The TorrentSpy Team"

'Big Brother in the form of an increasingly powerful government and in an increasingly powerful private sector will pile the records high with reasons why privacy should give way to national security, to law and order [...] and the like.' - Justice William O. Douglas"

On May 7, 2008, a federal judge ordered TorrentSpy to pay the Motion Picture Association of America $110 million for alleged infringement of thousands of copyrighted film and TV shows. In a four-page final ruling, U.S. District Court Judge Florence-Marie Cooper entered the multimillion-dollar judgement against TorrentSpy parent company Valence Media as terminating sanctions for destroying User IP Address evidence related to the case. Cooper also issued a permanent injunction against the Web site. "This substantial money judgment sends a strong message about the illegality of these sites," MPAA chairman and CEO Dan Glickman said. "The demise of TorrentSpy is a clear victory for the studios." Whether the MPAA will collect the $110 million from TorrentSpy remains to be seen.[5][6]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "TorrentSpy Ordered by Federal Judge to Become MPAA Spy". TorrentFreak. Archived from the original on June 11, 2007. Retrieved 9 June 2007.
  2. ^ Sandoval, Greg (2007-10-11). "Movie studios to judge: TorrentSpy defies court order". CNet. Retrieved 2007-10-12.
  3. ^ "Exclusive: I Was a Hacker for the MPAA". Wired. October 22, 2007. Archived from the original on July 31, 2010.
  4. ^ "Goodbye Torrentspy". Retrieved 2008-03-30.
  5. ^ "Studios win $110 million in TorrentSpy suit". Reuters. May 8, 2008. Retrieved 8 May 2008.
  6. ^ DailyTech - Court Finds TorrentSpy Liable for $110 Million

External links[edit]

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=TorrentSpy&oldid=1178057197"