The MPAA Hacks Into TorrentSpy

How are we supposed to believe that the MPAA are the "good guys" when they break the laws, too? Recently, it has been revealed that the MPAA hired a hacker to steal email correspondence and trade secrets from TorrentSpy.com, a search engine that directs users to links for downloading BitTorrent content. The hacker was paid $15,000 to collect "non-public information" about TorrentSpy and their related websites. "We don’t care how you get it," said one MPAA executive. After turning in copies of "private emails between Torrentspy employees, detailed information on the company’s servers, and billing information," to the MPAA, the informant had a change of heart and contacted TorrentSpy, who is now suing the MPAA.

TorrentSpy doesn’t host illegal content — it points to it. It’s a SEARCH engine, not a host. Still, it does make it that much easier for people to find illegal content, so no wonder the MPAA wants to take them out. However, the MPAA has clearly broken the law, so why should we listen to their pleas asking people to stop all the illegal downloading? If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times, it’s a digital age — people want their content when they want, in whatever format they want, & on any device they want to use. The MPAA & the RIAA should have embraced technology, hired programmers and developers to build websites to house their extensive collections, and offered legal, protected downloads to the masses. Instead, they fought and fought and kicked and screamed, and iTunes had to come to the rescue.

Luckily for us, TV stations seem to be learning from the mistakes of those that went before, and are beginning to offer all kinds of ways to watch TV, according to TechCruch. Bring it on!

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One of the new features of Windows Vista will be the Windows Sidebar. In preparation for the release, a gadget gallery has already been created. Though sparse right now, the call is out to any developers interested in submitting a gadget for the sidebar. Of course, the gadget gallery website looks awful in Firefox! However, I have to admit, the Windows Sidebar looks pretty hot.