Hundreds of torrent sites have been pulled down over the past few years, and the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) is cracking down on more sites, the latest being YIFY (YTS) and Popcorn Time, sending out the alarming signal that more torrent sites could be taken down in future.
Anti-piracy organisations have been hunting torrent sites that provide high-quality films, music videos, television shows, etc, to the public free of cost. It's a fact that thousands of people across the globe download films from these sites, most probably because they can't afford to buy every single film and video they want to watch.
But the issue is that these torrent sites operate illegally as movies and videos available for download are copyrighted content. So, the MPAA got YIFY (YTS) and Popcorn Time shut down a few weeks ago, and more websites like Kickass Torrents, The Pirate Bay and Torrentz could follow suit.
The MPAA has said in a statement that "Popcorn Time fork and YTS, a BitTorrent site and release group that was the primary source of illegal movie content on Popcorn Time, have been shut down" following court orders in Canada and New Zealand.
"Popcorn Time and YTS are illegal platforms that exist for one clear reason: to distribute stolen copies of the latest motion pictures and television shows without compensating the people who worked so hard to make them," said Senator Chris Dodd, Chairman and CEO of MPAA.
"By shutting down these illegal commercial enterprises, which operate on a massive global scale, we are protecting not only our members' creative work and the hundreds of innovative, legal digital distribution platforms, but also the millions of people whose jobs depend on a vibrant motion picture and television industry."
Now, the question is whether torrent sites like Kickass Torrents, The Pirate Bay, Torrentz, RARBG, Lime Torrents, BTN, Can I Stream It?, ISOHUNT.TO and Extra Torrent, which are still live, will die like YIFY (YTS) and Popcorn Time.
It is not easy to pull down these kind of sites owned by anonymous people, as they keep bouncing back with different domains. So the fate of torrent websites is unpredictable.
For the moment, torrent sites may slow down following harsh steps taken by the MPAA on a couple of popular sites.
