Filesharing sites Torrentz.eu, BitSnoop, ExtraTorrent and FilesTube are set to be blocked by British ISPs from 30 October, according to an unexpected source: US industry body the RIAA. TorrentFreak has bagged a copy of the RIAA’s latest “notorious markets” list submitted to the Office of the US Trade Representative, and reports that the document claims the four sites will all be blocked by ISPs in the UK from tomorrow. That would make them the latest in a line of filesharing sites to face such action, including The Pirate Bay. FilesTube may be the biggest news here: in the last year, Google has received nearly 7.5m URL takedown requests for the site from copyright owners – the most of any filesharing site. While FilesTube has a DMCA takedown policy, the RIAA isn’t impressed. “Industry reports links to infringing materials to the site operator, but any action by the operator is ineffective as the speed of the takedowns cannot match the speed at which new links are added,” suggests its submission to the USTR. Also interesting: the RIAA’s inclusion of Russian social network vKontakte in its report as one of a clutch of sites that “almost single-handedly prevent the development of a legitimate online music marketplace” – despite its plans to launch a licensed service (Bulletin, 28-Oct-13).
Tools: platforms to help you reach new audiences
Tools: Kaiber
In the year or so since its launch, AI startup Kaiber has been making waves,…