Whirlpool

Swedish software company
Global Gaming Factory X AB said on Tuesday it had agreed to buy file-sharing website The Pirate Bay for 60 million Swedish crowns ($7.7 million).

The Pirate Bay requires a new business model, which satisfies the requirements and needs of all parties, content providers, broadband operators, end users, and the judiciary. Content creators and providers need to control their content and get paid for it. File sharers' need faster downloads and better quality" continues Hans Pandeya.

http://www.neowin.net/news/main/09/06/30/swedish-software-firm-agrees-to-buy-pirate-bay-go-legal

Wow. I know there was talk about TPB being bought but I didn't think it would happen anytime soon. Very interesting. Thoughts?

A bit weird seems they were planning their exit all along that why they were so cocky.

Peter S Kolmisoppi:
@ danielg0ldberg Internet Project in the form of political activism, etc. TPB changed hands in 2006 already to not be sued.

http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20090630/0104135410.shtml

Lol although I have a feeling it may be some prank by them.

chaosmaster writes...

Lol although I have a feeling it may be some prank by them.

Yeah, first thing I did was check the calendar and make sure that it wasn't April 1.

Oh. I See. Interesting...

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

ed: thanks heaps for the post mate – this is devastating news. This is karma for not crying when MJ died. I've been punished by the lord himself.

On another note... damn, why didn't RIAA just do this before?

OK, so it costs $7.7million, then you can buy them and shut them down.

Heck, you could even make them sign "non competition" clauses so you'd have a clear bit of legislation to stop them re-appearing.

nooooooooo EPIC FAIL. FAIL!!!! :( :( :( :( :( :([quote he Pirate Bay requires a new business model, which satisfies the requirements and needs of all parties, content providers, broadband operators, end users, and the judiciary. Content creators and providers need to control their content and get paid for it. /quote]

Pay????????????? NOooooooo

Damn shame.

Will just turn into napster.

They are either sell outs or really smart.

If this isn't a prank which i believe it is, what's stopping those creator (by other hands) to create another .torrent distribution site?

This is very odd... Very sudden and unexpected...

However engadget had this to say:
"It's true, The Pirate Bay has agreed to being purchased by Global Gaming Factory (owner of a network of Internet cafes and gaming centers) for 60 million Swedish Krona or roughly $7.8 million. According to a press release, "GGF intends to launch new business models that allow compensation to the content providers and copyright owners." In a post on TPB's blog, the rogue file sharing site says that the project has been in the works for many years and should help evolve the site while trying to stay the same."

If it says that it allows compensation... Then does this mean that they will keep the torrent scene happening?

I can't how a company will run it.
Seems like the end is near...
Maybe just a prank..?

I was thinking if Global Gaming Factory X AB had any under the table dealings with RIAA or any copyright organisations... looks like there will be a flood of pirates moving to another Torrent site soon.

Gotta be fake. Seems like an unbelievably stupid business decision but 7mil isnt really that much for a shot.

So another site goes the way of Napster and downloaders simply sidestep to the next big thing.

Mr Gates buying through a third party? Gets to track IP addresses I suppose, but also slows down piracy for 6 months which will save him more than 7 million.

It has to be a hoax – $7.7 million isn't a lot of money for one of the top 100 sites on the internet. Makes me wonder what they are playing at.

Pirate Bay’s Peter Sunde has informed TorrentFreak that the site will soon decentralize and stop running a BitTorrent tracker of its own. Instead they will encourage their users to use a yet to be launched third party tracker for their torrents.

To decentralize even further, the torrents that will be listed on the site wont be hosted on The Pirate Bay’s servers anymore. In the near future the site will use a new torrent hosting service that will store the torrents for them. This new hosting service will be open to other torrent sites as well and can be accessed through an API.

In the end The Pirate Bay is making these changes to ensure that the BitTorrent ecosystem stays intact no matter what happens, Peter Sunde told TorrentFreak. By decentralizing the different aspects they hope that BitTorrent users will be less reliant on the uptime of The Pirate Bay’s servers alone. The burden will now be spread among several independently operated services.

From a site that cannot be named....

TheDave writes...

TheDave...
Mr Gates buying through a third party? Gets to track IP addresses I suppose, but also slows down piracy for 6 months which will save him more than 7 million.

Pirate bay isn't the only option for torrents u know lol!

In fact i never use pirate bay

I've been following the court case. So is this like a get out of jail free card.

This article is interesting. Part of it says.

if it’s to remain popular with users, cautioning the new owners not to “screw around” with the site.

If Global Gaming buys TPB how will it still be popular and be legal. Are Global Gaming some how going to make all those illegal torrents legal.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/scienceandtechnology/technology/5698211/Is-The-Pirate-Bay-the-new-Napster.html

User deletion

We are going to build a user deletion interface later today. Many people have asked about having their account removed and we will not force anyone to stay on of course.......

More on the site.

R.I.P. TPB

ILovesApathy writes...

It has to be a hoax – $7.7 million isn't a lot of money for one of the top 100 sites on the internet. Makes me wonder what they are playing at.

We dont know how much profits it made via ads, 7.7 million could be 5 years of revenue.
Which is a decent sell price.

what happened to them going into goverment for their fight---i guest after pulling 1 million u.s. per year for many years the offer of another 7.7.million was too much for them---have they been pulling the wool over our eyes for years for the sake of money---that would make them liars and greedy so and so's.
the rich get richer and the fools give them their hard earnings.
if this is the case i hope they rip into them in their trials as they have ripped every member with their fake fight.
remember what they had said in the pass--we will buy an island--we will buy an oil rig---now i guest they will--and maybe never heard from again--unless the greed strikes again and another way to milk lots of cash.

I have no idea how they can say that the site won't change when, once it is sold, they have relinquished control. Seems terribly naive to me and just a cash grab.

My take on this is that it is a backup plan that has been in the works for a while.

TPB will move to compensate the copywrite holders by paying them from thier income stream, probably the ads on the site that got the owners in jail in the first place. Hence, nothing changes for the users, as the new owners have indicated, and the copywrite owners get paid from the income from the site.

Welcome to the new digital world, free copywrite content via torrents and copywrite owners get paid from advertising and associated web site income (ala NIN). Is this the win:win situation everyone has been looking for?

They sold it to split the site up, so there will be 2 uniquely different sites that are legally sound proof essentially. If my post gets un-deleted you'll see a couple stories about what they are up to and why they did it.

SuperDude writes...

that would make them liars and greedy so and so's.
the rich get richer and the fools give them their hard earnings.

Just when you think TPB 4 couldn't get anymore malodorous, they do.

*sigh* It has NOTHING to do with making a fortune. They did it to keep the site going.

http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2009/06/30/pirate-bay-sold-gaming-company.html (surely this link won't get deleted as well)

The site is being split into 2 different and distinct parts that make them free & clear of any current legal issues.

Why am I even bothering to repeat it, your mind is obviously made up.

Interview with Peter Sunde regarding sale:
http://www.whatsnext.se/podcasts/podcast_peter%20sunde.mp3

J3d1 writes...

TPB will move to compensate the copywrite holders by paying them from thier income stream, probably the ads on the site that got the owners in jail in the first place. Hence, nothing changes for the users, as the new owners have indicated, and the copywrite owners get paid from the income from the site.

Welcome to the new digital world, free copywrite content via torrents and copywrite owners get paid from advertising and associated web site income (ala NIN). Is this the win:win situation everyone has been looking for?

If the copyright holders were accepting of this model they would just do it themselves. The trouble is they are greedy and want more money for the content than can be generated through advertising.

I can imagine the conversation going something like this...
New owners: "We will pay you x amount per download of content y"
Copyright holder: "No. We want x+lots more"
New owners: "We can't generate that much revenue with this model"
Copyright holder: "Too bad. Pay us what we want or stop sharing our content"

= end of piratebay

Fanboi writes...

it had agreed to buy file-sharing website

The pirate-bay is not a file sharing website ... it links you to files much like google does ....

To be honest i am surprised they got sued when you can just look up torrents via google the court had no right to do this....

Sue google? no they won't it is to big sue the TPB yes its run by a few people ...

nick68 writes...

The trouble is they are greedy and want more money for the content than can be generated through advertising.

Why do we get a say in how much money their business should be making? Do we truly understand the costs associated with this business or are we just fixated on the pretty numbers on paper each year?
I think we the public take an extremely simplistic view of the big picture without any real understanding of what really happens behind the scenes.

Uradox writes...

Why do we get a say in how much money their business should be making? Do we truly understand the costs associated with this business or are we just fixated on the pretty numbers on paper each year?

lol good point. Surprisingly, running a website is a BUSINESS. Every business, every single one, needs to turn a profit. How much profit doesn't matter, every company is started to make money and fill a niche. These guys filled a huge niche and became #1, why shouldn't they make more money than you think they deserve?

For those saying they are greedy etc, do you know how many staff there are? How many servers they need? How powerful they are, the cost of colocation, their bandwidth costs, office space if they need it? Do you know anything about their revenue vs expenses?

Uradox writes...

Why do we get a say in how much money their business should be making?

We don't... but as customers we do get to influence it by what we buy and how much we buy it for. Either they stop being greedy and change their business model to suit the times, or we all move to another illegal source.

nick68 writes...

but as customers we do get to influence it by what we buy and how much we buy it for.

What was the last torrent you paid for? Your only voice is using or not using their site, that's it.

Splitting Heads writes...

What was the last torrent you paid for? Your only voice is using or not using their site, that's it.

I'm not talking about the current model... I am talking about a system where copyright holders are paid for their content... in which case I would be paying somehow. Looking at advertising is a form of payment.

I haven't read much about it but wasn't that the plan with Video Bay? They were going/will be offering major TV shows etc in a legitimate & legal way for a fee and sending royalties and whatnot to the copyright owners? Or should I go do more reading lol, I only took a quick glance at an article on the CBC yesterday.

in The Age just now...
http://www.theage.com.au/technology/biz-tech/the-pirate-bay-sold-to-swedish-gaming-group-20090701-d4m1.html

'GGF said in the statement that it wanted content providers and copyright owners to get paid for content downloaded from The Pirate Bay, which is currently free of charge and does not pay copyright fees.

New technology would require users to pay to download films, games and music, but "they will be able to make money" by sharing their files with other users, GGF chief executive Hans Pandeya said.

"And if you earn money by sharing your files, then maybe it's not that hard to pay for top quality," he told Swedish news agency TT.

One of The Pirate Bay founders, Peter Sunde, said it was time for the site to get fresh impetus from new owners.'

what the hell?....pay to DL then paid to share files with other users?
i really dont know what to think about this whole thing.../

Unless people can easily generate enough money from sharing files to pay for everything they want to download this will fail miserably.

Hmm this new business model seems a bit funny i mean couldn't i just buy some cheap thing when it first comes out then leave my computer on all the time or get a seed box to 'earn' me enough 'credits' to buy games?

Hmm this is very odd, good thing i don't use pirate bay.

;( all good things come to an end

Ak76 writes...

;( all good things come to an end

TPB i've found to be filled with a lot of fake, low quality, slow to download files. I found the "legal" section more entertaining than any torrents hosted there. If you are going to download torrents there are, and always have been, many better sites.

I will miss the middle finger they had permanently pointed in the direction of the RIAA, the cause of many a lol.

TPB "your share" logo is gone. Does this mean the TPB is back?

edit: horrib speling the gramma

lol that's US$7.7 Million down the tube for that company.

as if anyone is going to use TPB in the new planned format they have for it.

napster anyone :-P

-troy- writes...

US$7.7 Million down the tube for that company.

Still smells of some sort of publicity stunt, going on TPB's past form.

The new owner told BBC how its gonna work.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8128551.stm

-troy- writes...

lol that's US$7.7 Million down the tube for that company.

as if anyone is going to use TPB in the new planned format they have for it.

napster anyone

mmm tend to agree...just a half-formed thought:

what if the whole thing "may be" a magnificent corporate piss take on behalf of the tpb guys??
i.e they are orchestrating their own "re-birth" so to speak..?by selling the "asset" to a corporation they can "refinance", all the while knowing that the BT community would never accept the proposed model and flee the site once control is handed over

> sell the site for a massive amount
> 4 weeks time new operators commence managing TPB
> users that havent already fled do so, once new operators eliminate most of the sites torrents
> new owners are left with a userless website worth nothing
> TPB owners create a new tracker in the spirit of the old tpb but with new infrastructure and technology?

i mean its not like its beyond them>? :)

http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/jul2009/gb2009071_378545.htm

But Pandeya's ambitions for Pirate Bay 2.0 are much greater. He has hatched a groundbreaking scheme to bundle together the collective Internet bandwidth of Pirate Bay's users into a giant new peer-to-peer network. Then, he'll resell that broadband capacity on an ad hoc basis to Internet service providers—companies like Comcast (CMCSA) or AT&T (T)—that are in need of a quick injection of cheap bandwidth. Pirate Bay aims to split the revenue with its users, who will be financially compensated for sharing their connections. Pandeya declined to say how much users could pocket.

? harnessing the power of p2p?

gasp-gasp writes...

The new owner told BBC how its gonna work.

Seems like they're trying to sell bandwidth to ISPs and using peers computers for other stuff like storage and processing?

Almost as if the content sharing part is secondary to what really is for sale....bandwidth.

It's an interesting concept, think the biggest hurdle will be getting the ISPs on side. Plus working out who the media being shared actually belonged to.

pedro741 writes...

But Pandeya's ambitions for Pirate Bay 2.0 are much greater. He has hatched a groundbreaking scheme to bundle together the collective Internet bandwidth of Pirate Bay's users into a giant new peer-to-peer network.

One small problem, what illegal downloader would pay to download when they can rip it off for free from another site?

Muad'Dib writes...

One small problem, what illegal downloader would pay to download when they can rip it off for free from another site?

i guess the idea is you generate enough "credit" from seeding that you offset any DL costs on the site....

funny thing is tpb is not really known for it's speeds & seeding on most content...:)

What they're trying to do simply won't work. They threw away that large sum of money and ruined the TPB name.

People will just adopt another tracker, it's the community that makes the trackers what they are not the trackers themselves.

pedro741 writes...

I guess the idea is you generate enough "credit" from seeding that you offset any DL costs on the site.

Pie in the sky, doomed to failure, like I said before what illegal downloader would suddenly pay for something that they can get of another site for free?

Hmm I wonder if this sale goes through that this gaming mob get the database of registered members of TPB?

Looks like everyone will abandon ship ;)

Whole thing could just be a rort.

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2009/07/insider-trading-suspected-ahead-of-pirate-bay-sale/

twist71 writes...

Seems like they're trying to sell bandwidth to ISPs and using peers computers for other stuff like storage and processing?

That is what Kazaa wanted to do if I remember correctly.

I think it is all a crock. The Domain name may be worth something but not much. I think they are taking the piss.

There are few barriers to entry in this game, some other site(s) will step up to replace the Pirate Bay. It cannot be monetised with the current clientele.

Meh, even if Pirate Bay goes down, there is still 100's of others. Torrents will never die, no matter how hard they try.

Hmm? something is rotten in the State of Sweden.

General Herpes. writes...

Torrents will never die, no matter how hard they try.

Nah I think legal product has a chance.

If everyone used video on demand and the price was cheap enough (why shouldn't it be) then why stuff around?

aahhhh they bring dishonor to us pirates
when all they want is our treasure
cut of their heads i say !

ABCXYZ writes...

Nah I think legal product has a chance.

No because torrents are available to everyone world wide. While legal options aren't.

malarkey101 writes...

No because torrents are available to everyone world wide. While legal options aren't.

Take a look at music.

Legal online music has made big strides against piracy lately. Still a long way to go sure but it has a good chance.

If I could pay a modest monthly subscription and listen to all the music I wanted too in one convenient place in consistently good quality I would find that hard to resist.

I agree though that places like China, South America, Africa will never pay worthwhile rates for music.

Am i to understand this correctly. Users will be paid for joining the service and sharing files, while copyright holders will be paid royalties when their material is shared.

http://www.nme.com/news/various-artists/45828

So if i share a Tv show or Music or Movie file I will get paid for that. Something sounds wrong here

It'll be interesting to see how this will work..

Glitchme writes...

It'll be interesting to see how this will work.

Probably won't even get off the ground the mob that overpaid is being investigated for insider trading.

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2009/07/insider-trading-suspected-ahead-of-pirate-bay-sale/

Anyone notice that OpenBitTorrent and TPB share the same IP range?

malarkey101 writes...

So if i share a Tv show or Music or Movie file I will get paid for that. Something sounds wrong here

I think it works like this...

You first pay for what you want. You download it using bit torrent from other people who have already downloaded it and are now seeding. Then after you have downloaded it you seed it, and you get paid for the amount you share. They save money because they are using the bandwidth of the users to distribute files rather than their own and that's how they can afford to pay people for sharing (along with advertising).

Sounds fair enough in principle but I think the share ratio required to make enough money to purchase what you wanted will probably be fairly high and unless people can continue to get content completely for free they will leave.

The OLD Pirate Bay may die but a one has JUST opened ;)

"OpenBitTorrent"

Intrestingly its only a tracker, so no torrents. Torrents have to be found via other sites, which i guess means they cant be sued again?

Those PB guys are very sly :) 7mil richer and a new shiny PB without the media coverage/threats.

møbius writes...

7mil richer

Don't count the chickens yet.

that whole idea is silly, people wont use it there is plenty of other sites/communities to use.

But won't you still be paying for illegal downloads. i.e Tv shows & movies. Then in turn yourself getting paid for sharing those files.

Have i missed something about tv shows or movies not being illegal to download anymore via torrents.

malarkey101 writes...

But won't you still be paying for illegal downloads. i.e Tv shows & movies. Then in turn yourself getting paid for sharing those files.

Well they reckon they will pay the content owner royalties, somehow I don't think that they will be able to afford the royalties, especailly when one seed could "feed" millions.

Sounds very dodgy, this whole sale thingy smells.

Especially now with this whole OpenTracker thingy.

Muad'Dib writes...

Sounds very dodgy, this whole sale thingy smells.

I agree, has any record company/movie company come out and said that they would agree to that?

xpfalcon writes...

I agree, has any record company/movie company come out and said that they would agree to that?

Not one, wait and see.

xpfalcon writes...

I agree, has any record company/movie company come out and said that they would agree to that?

This is what i don't understand. If millions of people all over the world are downloading tv show or movies. Even though the tv show or movie is not yet available in that country. It is ok to download it because now the proper people will be getting paid for the downloads.

So you are turning what is illegal into now being legal. No i'm just not buying it. My interpretation must be wrong.

malarkey101 writes...

It is ok to download it because now the proper people will be getting paid for the downloads.

The studios will not agree to it.

They have their own plans like Hulu in the states etc. The Pirate bay cannot just decide to make all it's content legal.

You can't sell what you don't own. You can only steal what you don't own.

I thought it sounded a bit funny. When reading this article. I came across this bit.

America would say only that they were encouraged by the news. However, the company has yet to reach any licensing agreements, meaning that when it takes over Pirate Bay by early August, pending the approval of its shareholders, it likely won't have much to offer.

But by doing this i don't see how popular they will be. People like their free lunch. By not having the same content as TPB. People will just lose interest.

So i don't really see how Global Gaming Factory are going to make it still popular.

http://www.gulfnews.com/business/Internet/10328262.html

And of course the Global Gaming Factory website. which talks about the next generation of filesharing. I didn't know there was a next generation of file sharing.

http://www.globalgamingfactory.com/

ABCXYZ writes...

The studios will not agree to it.

They would agree to it if it made them enough money... trouble is they are too greedy so it won't.

A.J. writes...

They would agree to it if it made them enough money.

I disagree.

The Global Gaming Factory is a tiny, unknown and dodgy company. They could promise anything and then not deliver. The idea they you could download anything and somehow the copyright owner gets paid is extremely dodgy.

Plus the studios have been burnt before by companies such as Apple and iTunes. iTunes has got so big it is threatening the studios. They are now busily setting up their own portals.

It is not ONLY money they want some control of their destiny.

malarkey101 writes...

pending the approval of its shareholders

If they had any brains they would stop the sale. All round dodgy deals going on.

ABCXYZ writes...

You can't sell what you don't own. You can only steal what you don't own.

no but they are probably seated well to be the worlds first truly global distribution point with millions of clients that could be brought instantly to the table

the companies have not had to spend anything just sign the papers really, and the potential intake i believe would be massive over and above what they make through existing legit systems

7.7, that all?

pezzat writes...

no but they are probably seated well to be the worlds first truly global distribution point with millions of clients that could be brought instantly to the table

Millions of clients? where from? do you really think the millions of registered members of TPB would suddenly change the habit of a lifetime and decide to pay for stuff that they can get free from another site?

Then of course there is that ridiculous notion that they will pay the rights holders a fee, think about it, one seed pays for the privilege and then distributes the file to millions of others, how are they going to then work out how to recompense the rights holders for those millions of other downloaders?

no not at all :) but to have the ability to would equate to more than a few sales i think

kobe24bryant writes...

7.7, that all?

USD.

Pretty smart kids. Assuming they don't go to jail TPB was a top business for them. They probably got heaps from the ads while they had it as well, plus this. I recall reading they also have an ISP in Sweden setup as well.

and after all its only a brand name

Muad'Dib writes...

If they had any brains they would stop the sale. All round dodgy deals going on.

Dont be hating on the entrepreneurs!

Reading on the OBT site, looks like their new aim is to basically blindly run a tracker; they don't know what the torrents are since it's just hashes. So by not indexing, it's even harder for copyright holders to take chase; they don't even know what the content of the torrents are! From their page..

Can I remove an info_hash from the tracker?

Short answer NO.

Long answer, no because of several reasons. We are not a company, we don't have any employees that can handle requests all day long. We are a non profit organization relying on donations to keep the service up and running. The software solutions we have don't include any support for blocking info_hash keys from being registered with the tracker. To implement such functionality would cost time and money, as well as hardware upgrades. But as always with open projects being funded by donations, if you want to request a feature and are willing to pay for it's development, we are willing to listen.

Just to make it clear so people sending DMCA takedown notices understand:

• We do not have any content.
  * We are not a bittorrent site, we are just a tracker, we can not see what content is behind an info_hash.
  * We don't have any torrent files.
  * We can't give you any IP addresses in any other way than normal tracker usage – the software don't support it.
  * We can't verify any claims when we have no data other than the info_hash.
  * We can't block info_hash keys from being registered with the tracker.
  * We don't have any logs or ways to trace previous connections, there is just not enough disk and IO resources in the world for that (at least not at our operational budget).
  * And most importantly, we have no time.

So what should you as a content owner do? Contact the indexing site where the torrent download originated from and ask them nicely to remove the listing and the .torrent file!

Nevok writes...

Pretty smart kids.

They would look pretty dumb if the deal went belly up, good chance it will go that way.

Part of this article says.

“We would like to introduce models which entail that content providers and copyright owners get paid for content that is downloaded via the site” said Hans Pandeya, CEO GGF.

So what Pandenya is saying is… once a user pays for his file, he will in turn be paid to share the file that he downloads.
It sounds like a pyramid scheme for downloader’s, I’m sure some people will make money.

So i'm reading this as if pay for a file. I will get paid for sharing. So does this mean that i would be getting my money back. Which i paid for in the first place.

http://blogs.thetimes.co.za/vlad/2009/07/06/the-pirate-bay-conundrum/

malarkey101 writes...

So does this mean that i would be getting my money back.

No. The seeding ratio required to get your money back will probably be too high... like 1 cent for every 1gb uploaded or something.

Muad'Dib writes...

They would look pretty dumb if the deal went belly up, good chance it will go that way.

Why? Deals dont go ahead all the time, thats business.

Bronx19 writes...

Why? Deals dont go ahead all the time, thats business.

As deals go this one is "odd" to say the least.

Anyone ever wonder that they had this lined up for awhile and were waiting for the court case to finish?....

Well this just means other sites will get more attention and become more developed.

BTW to not take 7.8 mil is dumb, that is ALOT of money for something that started out of nothing.

Sounds like a nice way to lose US$7.7m. Seriously, are these people idiots?

Give people free access to products they dont want to pay for
Wait until you have many users
Decide that people will pay for the access to products they dont want to pay for
????
No profit

The music industry will attempt to seize money paid to acquire the Pirate Bay, according to a high-level music industry source and a spokesman for the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), the trade group representing the music industry worldwide.

Hmm time for the TPB four to cough up the dosh to pay the piper.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10288495-93.html

Perhaps the single biggest challenge facing the Global Gaming Factory will be convincing several million file sharers (all of whom are used to free-of-charge file sharing) to stick around.

You have got buckley's and none of keeping the file sharers that TPB had. For a start you would have to keep all the torrents that TBP had. All those thousands of tv shows & movie torrents.

As i said before unless Global Gaming Factory have some ingenious plan of making every think legal. I just don't see them keeping all of TBP users and charging for the service.

Just what do Global Gaming Factory think they can achive here. Plus they are forgetting one thing. People could access TBP from all over the world. If they legalize tv show or movie downloads. I don't see it being worldwide. Right there at that point you have lost more then half TPB users.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/technology/news/article.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=10585558

malarkey101 writes...

As i said before unless Global Gaming Factory have some ingenious plan of making every think legal. I just don't see them keeping all of TBP users and charging for the service.

They buy TPB do they also get the registered users database as part of the deal? all those choice records would make the mouths of the MAFIAA water. :D

Muad'Dib writes...

Hmm time for the TPB four to cough up the dosh to pay the piper.

"We never had any interest in earning money from the Pirate Bay," Peter Sunde told Dagens Nyheter, a Swedish newspaper. "We haven't owned TPB since the search and seizure in 2006.

Jacob, from the IFPI, says it makes no difference who owns the Pirate Bay. He said: "The judge found the four operators guilty and ordered them to pay the damages."

Quite the puzzle.

Bronx19 writes...

"We never had any interest in earning money from the Pirate Bay," Peter Sunde told Dagens Nyheter, a Swedish newspaper. "We haven't owned TPB since the search and seizure in 2006.

Yeh right, what about the 7.7 million smackers you are getting from the sale, oops I guess he forgot about that.

I wonder if he is trying to forget about the gaol time he and his cohorts will soon be spending.

Then of course there is the matter of that 3.6 million in fines, perhaps he is trying to forget about that as well.

Still can't for the life of me work this GGF company out, they are somewhat deluded in thinking that this will make money for them.

Muad'Dib writes...

Yeh right, what about the 7.7 million smackers you are getting from the sale

Read the article, they don't own it.

Bronx19 writes...

Read the article, they don't own it.

Well I suppose if they don't own it they will have to sell 3.6 million pairs of Jammie Thomas-Rassett souvenir thongs. :D

or sign up 180,000 people to 20 bucks a month to be pseudo-anonymous with old broken tech

lol...
EPIC FAIL!
i don't use torrents as i prefer to download other ways (not limewire etc.) but the way the dont track :/
They will just start tracking IP's and send warnings to the ISP's and go from there.
the gov't are also talking about making a 3 penalty rule: first 2 times they warn you, 3rd time for downloading illegal material they shutdown your internet.

daymmm. you'd be scuttt (so cut)

Gov: Third time your out.
User: But I earn my income online.
Gov: Oh yeah sorry about that try www.centrelink.gov.au.
User: But you took away my internet access.....

looks like the deal might fall through.. i wonder what the TPB team will do then.

oh o !!!
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=844036

I think their goose is cooked !

NotebookMaster writes...

I think their goose is cooked !

Not really. They just have to block traffic to the Netherlands which is pretty easy. It just won't be effective as most users that frequent the site would have enough knowledge to access the site through a proxy.

True, but I do think it's a jail they are going to soon :(

NotebookMaster writes...

True, but I do think it's a jail they are going to soon

51533 reasons a day to block.

Muad'Dib writes...

51533 reasons a day to block.

A Swedish company, Global Gaming Factory X AB, says it hopes to buy The Pirate Bay domain name and related web sites from their owner for 60 million kronor ($A9.55 million).

They can afford it!

Bronx19 writes...

A Swedish company, Global Gaming Factory X AB, says it hopes to buy The Pirate Bay domain name and related web sites from their owner for 60 million kronor ($A9.55 million).

Hopes to buy, nothing definite about the sale, that mob are facing insider trading charges, shonky like the TPB four.

Totally stupid business deal for starters thinking that a bunch of rip off merchants/creative thought stealers who use TPB will jump ship and actually pay for the downloads, pigs will fly first.

According to Torrentfreak GGF want to buy more torrent sites.

As if the plans for the Pirate Bay haven’t generated enough publicity and controversy, GGF’s CEO Hans Pandeya is already preparing his next move. Aside from The Pirate Bay, the company aims to take over several other larger torrent sites.

But what are they trying to achive here. Other torrent sites just have the same content. So what will buying other torrent sites achive.

The article goes on to say.

They can buy dozens of sites and cut deals with all the big movie studios and record labels, but they have to find a way to keep downloading free, or at least dirt cheap.

All i can say is that GGF must have a big influence over movie studios. It still sounds to me like they are trying to make illegal torrents legal.

Haha, this is a funny one!

malarkey101 writes...

All i can say is that GGF must have a big influence over movie studios. It still sounds to me like they are trying to make illegal torrents legal.

Imagine if stupidity was a crime. :D

Truly amazing, they must all be in cloud cuckoo land if they believe people will willingly decide to pay for something that they got for free before.

Have they even consulted the movie studios?

Peter departs Piratebay
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10301814-93.html

NotebookMaster writes...

Peter departs Piratebay

Already posted.

/forum-replies.cfm?t=1224615&p=24#r465

Music industry executives in Europe have begun pressuring Global Gaming Factor, the company that intends to buy The Pirate Bay, to turn over any money it pays to acquire the site to them.

Joe Oliver, the general counsel for the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) wrote Hans Pandeya, Global Gaming's CEO on July 24. Oliver told Pandeya that the group will ask authorities in Sweden to "issue an order prohibiting Global Gaming from paying the purchase sum" to the founders of The Pirate Bay. Oliver added that copyright owners will also ask the government require Global Gaming to turn over information about the acquisition should it go through.

So those soon to be gaoled copyright scofflaws the TPB 4 or is it 3 no its 4 will have to still come up with the dosh they owe.

Makes you wonder if the sale will go through now.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10305092-93.html?tag=newsLatestHeadlinesArea.0

Muad'Dib writes...

Makes you wonder if the sale will go through now.

So what the hell are GGF going to do with TPB then. They are just trying to hang themselves. How are they supposed to get all of TPB users onboard if they have this hanging over them. It's a bad start if you ask me.

Muad'Dib writes...

Makes you wonder if the sale will go through now.

lol, you had it canned back on page 3.

malarkey101 writes...

How are they supposed to get all of TPB users onboard if they have this hanging over them. It's a bad start if you ask me.

The whole deal has been malodorous from the start.

Who owns The Pirate Bay? It sounds like a simple question, but it turns out to have a surprisingly complicated answer. As Swedish company Global Gaming Factory X tries to round up the money to purchase the site's domain name by the end of August, we were curious to figure out exactly who GGF will be paying if the deal goes through. When the answer involves "a mysterious company registered in the Seychelles," it's clear that "transparency" won't be the deal's hallmark.

Still trying to round up the dosh, so what about all the other torrent sites this mob wants to buy, they haven't even raised the dosh for the TPB purchase. A strange smell coming from the vicinity of the Scandinavian peninsula. Nothing from the major studios about a deal either.

http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2009/08/pirate-bay-sale-steams-ahead-but-whos-doing-the-selling.ars

Hmm they are claiming they are about to do a deal with a major record company.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gjmrc5uA6NcpcsKnLorfqj8hb7pA

Muad'Dib writes...

Hmm they are claiming they are about to do a deal with a major record company.

This reminds me of when Qtrax first came out. They claimed that they had a million songs you can download for free with adverts. They were set for their big opening. But one major problem. They never had any deals with any records companies. So no one could download any songs. Just install their software. Then when you joined they forgot to add post codes as part of the joining process. You could only put in a zip code. They really stuffed things up.

So i'm wondering how GGF is going to be any different.

malarkey101 writes...

So i'm wondering how GGF is going to be any different.

For something so important involving multi millions it is all a bit slap dash.

Muad'Dib writes...

For something so important involving multi millions it is all a bit slap dash.

Not that anything has been disclosed.

Can't belive they finally sold it but they where in alot of legal issues so it seems fair.

8MaXXaM8 writes...

Can't belive they finally sold it but they where in a lot of legal issues so it seems fair.

The sale hasn't been finalised yet.

Wonder if the investors asked that the ??? for step 2 was

A Torrentfreak article. Part of which says.

To please the entertainment industry GGF will install a system that will allow the copyright holders to either authorize the ‘illegal’ torrent or have it removed from the site. If the copyright holder opts to choose the first option they will be compensated every time the file is downloaded. In addition, the board says that it will pay penalties if it has to.

“The holder will be able to leave the file and obtain compensation or ask for removal of the file. GGF will also pay any penalties that may arise,” the GGF board announced. There are no licensing agreements in place with the entertainment industry yet, but GGF hopes to partner with most of the major movie studios and record labels within a year.

They will simply remove the content. You are kidding yourself if you think that they are going to let GGF keep the files and let the movie studios get compensation.

It will simply be a mass deletion. In which users will leave in the masses. The content will be very poor. And on top of that GGF are asking users to pay.

isnt it supposed to happen in the next couple days? (handover of the site to GG)

Hmm the cracks are appearing.

Ljungberg isn't the first to express doubts about Global Gaming's ability to pull off the Pirate Bay acquisition or to turn it into a legitimate service.

The deal smelt from the start.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10314557-93.html?tag=newsLatestHeadlinesArea.0

Slyck article

BREIN Not Impressed with The Pirate Bay's Torrent Removal Plan

So it seems that GGF is already fighting an uphill battle. Not only are they butting heads with the entertainment industry, but they must also confront a user base that's quickly becoming disenfranchised with The Pirate Bay's new direction. They're paying a lot of money with a population already looking for a new home. Hey, there's a bridge around here that's for sale too.

More troubles for GGF.

“In the proposed system the right holder must detect illegal content on the website and remove it. That is insufficient”, says BREIN director Tim Kuik.

Slyck article Notice and take Down system proposed by future owner

Torrentfreak are doing a poll on weather the sale of TPB will go ahead.

Will the proposed sale of The Pirate Bay to GGF go ahead?

Results so far and climbing.

Yes: 623
No: 1301

I still find it doubtful that if the sale goes ahead much will come from it.

/forum-replies.cfm?t=1224615&p=40#r789

Hmm now TPB is shut down does this mean the sale will not be going through?

Muad'Dib writes...

Hmm now TPB is shut down does this mean the sale will not be going through?

Why would that indicate that?

The sale might not be going ahead either way:
http://www.thedomains.com/2009/08/24/thepiratebayorg-isp-ordered-to-shut-it-down/comment-page-1/

Sir Loin Of Beef writes...

The sale might not be going ahead either way

That on top of.

Ljungberg isn't the first to express doubts about Global Gaming's ability to pull off the Pirate Bay acquisition or to turn it into a legitimate service.

Then there is the BREIN hurdle on top of that.

pbay dead for now.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10316037-93.html

The company's chairman quit this week amid reports that GGF could not come up with the cash, that it was misstating the facts surrounding its negotiations, and that some insider trading of its stock might be taking place. The company's stock has been suspended from trading for the second time in the last three months, though GGF still says that it will present the buyout plan to its board this Thursday.

The malodorous saga continues. GGF trading suspended for the second time over allegations of insider trading.

http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2009/08/swedish-court-rules-tpb-admins-too-broke-to-pay-damages.ars?utm_source=microblogging&utm_medium=arstch&utm_term=Main%20Account&utm_campaign=microblogging

It's back up, now.

dav27 writes...

It's back up, now.

That was short lived.

Pirate Bay?

More like Bride's Knickers.. up & down so much!

Bronx19 writes...

That was short lived.

Any take down of their site will be, it won't last if it goes offline again. It's way too easy to change providers or countries to host in, with incredibly limited downtime. These guys seem to be set for the long fight and I don't see them giving up any time soon.

The hydra lives.

"A mere three hours after it went offline the site reappeared from a different location, but because of technical issues at the new ISP a full comeback took almost a day."

If Antigua can support the capacity needed, why not just host it from there? Slysoft have gone untouched and unscathed with their CD/DVD copy protection cracking software because of their country's non-chalant attitude towards copyright law.

,

Looks more like the sale is going bye byes.

Global Gaming Factory X (GGF) is running the risk of being delisted from Swedish stock exchange AktieTorget. The exchange has called in its disciplinary committee to decide the fate of the company, it said on Thursday

Insider trading, going to be disciplined by the Swedish Stock Exchange, GGF a company that lacks relevance and credibility when it comes to informing its stockholders.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/170895/stock_exchange_considers_delisting_pirate_bay_buyer.html

According to Torrentfreak. In this news article.

In a press conference a few minutes ago, GGF CEO Hans Pandeya confirmed that the Pirate Bay acquisition will go through. Earlier today the financing and legalization plan was presented to the shareholders, who unanimously decided to give the acquisition the green light.

But then goes on to say.

There are currently no licensing agreements in place with the entertainment industry, but despite the criticism GGF hopes to partner with most of the major movie studios and record labels within a year.

Watch now as copyright holders start removing content. There won't be much left.

malarkey101 writes...

Watch now as copyright holders start removing content. There won't be much left.

The sale was doomed from the start, this GGF mob couldn't run a booze up in a brewery, now under investigation for the second time for insider trading and problems with funding the buyout.

malarkey101 writes...

Watch now as copyright holders start removing content. There won't be much left.

You guys are nuts :)

Hands up everyone who understands the difference between an "opt-out" and an "opt-in" scenario, and keep your hand up if you have never been affected by either one... (/me notes all hands still very much aloft).

I can't believe the balls these guys have, I might as well put a disclaimer on my machine "anyone who objects to my pirated stuff, mail or it's mine" come on get with the program here. These guys are either stupid or this was all some kind of caper right from the get-go :)

The malodorous deal just got more malodorous.

In addition to having little to no money to buy The Pirate Bay for 60 million kronor ($7.8m), GGF also has to find 100 million Swedish kronor to buy Peerialism, the company under agreement to provide the core technology behind the project.

However, Peerialism CEO Johan Ljungberg said today that he thinks there will be no business done between the two companies.

TF article No Pirate Bay Deal, Says Key GGF Technology Partner

Lucky this is all supposed to be "real", if I were to fictionalise all this in a novel, no one would believe it for one minute.

What a farce :)

Interesting update. I did a read through this a few nights ago and I have to hand it to them, I was entertained as if it was a good news week.

Very nice read :)

As all the commercial deals fall apart, I am fully expecting them to put PBay on Ebay with an initial bid of 99 cents, and maybe a "buy it now" option.

since the sale,several torrents have been removed due to copyright,my guess in the next year or so it wont be free from pirate bay

Sweden's Economic Crimes Bureau has begun an investigation into some of the events surrounding the planned acquisition of The Pirate Bay by Global Gaming Factor X.

Trading of Global Gaming shares was halted by AktieTorget, a Swedish exchange, on Friday after officials there requested proof that Global Gaming had enough money to complete the sale.

The odour continues.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10315576-93.html

Sale to go bye byes? looks more and more that way.

Global Gaming Factory (GGF), the company that says it is set to buy The Pirate Bay, has been kicked off the Swedish stock market following several serious violations. Since half of the payment for The Pirate Bay acquisition would be in GGF shares, it is uncertain whether the deal will now go through.

TF article Pirate Bay Buyer Loses Several Investors

None of these articles really mean anything. TPB get enough revenue from advertising and donations to keep their site going without investment, and get enough public support to ward off further legal challenges.

They will split the site into 2 entities, search engine & torrent tracker, and keep on serving up the warez until they get sick of it.

If there's money to be made in the whole thing it's only a matter of time before another company steps in to buy them out, that's how business works.

The smell just got even worse for the CEO of GGF. Hit with a tax bill of 780,000 kronor now this.

The CEO of Global Gaming Factory, the company aiming to buy the Pirate Bay, has suffered yet another embarrassment. After losing a luxury car and a motorcycle to the tax authorities over an unpaid debt, the bailiffs – acting on an anonymous tip – have sailed off in Hans Pandeya’s luxury boat.

How embarrasment first his car and a motorcycle now his luxury boat, seized by the taxman, on top of the company being kicked off the Swedish Stock Exchange.

Hmm maybe he could flog the company off in a "fire sale" to the TPB. :D

TF article Tip-off Sees Bailiffs Sail Off In Pirate Bay Buyer’s Boat

Translated from.

http://www.realtid.se/ArticlePages/200909/07/20090907144835_Realtid783/20090907144835_Realtid783.dbp.asp

The financial problems of the Global Gaming Factory really has nothing to do with P2P. TPB is still up and running, daily updates on their proposed buyer does nothing to change the fact the site is still running & thousands use it every day.

it really should of went for mroe