Administering an indexing server or website is becoming an increasingly stressful job, especially for those residing in the United States. Outside of the jurisdiction of the powerful entertainment lobby the job is less risky, yet the potential for copyright enforcement action nevertheless exists.

DutchNova learned this lesson two days ago, when BREIN pressured the BitTorrent indexer offline. BREIN, which functions as the Netherlands’ copyright enforcement organization, has been busy targeting small scale indexing sites. Most large scale indexers left the country several months back as news of a potential copyright enforcement sweep surfaced. Those remaining - mostly small, fledgling communities - have garnered BREIN criticism for targeting the small fish while allowing the big ones to get away.

The increased pressure placed on indexing sites spilled over to include Usenet. Last month, the MPAA surprised many in the file-sharing and technology community when they decided to file lawsuits against NZB-Zone.com, BinNews.com and DVDRs.net - all Usenet indexing sites.

The news came as a surprise, considering Usenet (or the Newsgroups) was considered a minor player compared to BitTorrent or eDonkey2000. However the increasing simplicity associated with obtaining files from Usenet compelled the MPAA to launch their preemptive strike.

Although only affecting those sites based in the United States, it appears Newzbin.com, which is based in the United Kingdom, is taking no chances. Newzbin.com is very similar in nature to NZB-Zone.com, BinNews.com and DVDRs.net, as it too is an Usenet indexing site. To facilitate the search for information residing on Usenet, Newzbin.com indexes NZB files. Often times, these NZB files reference material which is inconsistent with authorized doctrine. And many times this questionable material is discussed on the Newzbin.com forums.

In an effort to mitigate any potential legal action, Newzbin.com has eradicated its user forums per the advice of legal council. From the Newzbin.com forum:

Official Newzbin Forums - Now Closed. Following recent legal advice, the Newzbin Administration have decided to discontinue the official Newzbin forums. To replace them, unofficial forums, not run by Newzbin, will appear shortly. They will not be run on Newzbin servers nor will the Newzbin Administration have any control over them.

Whether the move will deter any future legal action is unclear. Totally eliminating the forums may distance the administration from their users and eliminate evidence, but it’s dubious whether simply replacing one forum with a third party will achieve the same result.

This story is filed in these Slyck News categories
Newsgroups/Usenet :: Indexing Sites

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