The Pirate Bay to Fly 'Server Drones' to Avoid Law Enforcement

[Schiff_FTW]

http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2012/03/19/the-pirate-bay-to-fly-server-drones-to-avoid-law-enforcement



The world’s largest and most resilient BitTorrent site plans to redefine “cloud computing” with a plan to move at least some of its servers onto unmanned drones miles above Sweden.

In a Sunday blog post, The Pirate Bay announced new "Low Orbit Server Stations" that will house the site's servers and files on unmanned, GPS-controlled, aircraft drones.

One of the sites administrators, MrSpock, said with the advent of miniature computers such as the Raspberry Pi, a $35 micro computer the size of a thumb drive that includes a WiFi and SD card slot for storage, the site can take its servers far from any law enforcement.

“We’re going to experiment with sending out some small drones that will float some kilometers up in the air,” MrSpock wrote. “This way our machines will have to be shut down with aeroplanes in order to shut down the system. A real act of war.”

The Swedish site has operated since 2003 by an “anti-copyright organization” and despite numerous raids, remains one of the most popular music and movie pirating sites on the web. The site hosts thousands of “torrent” files—tiny files that allow users to connect to and download files from other users. The system is one of the most popular ways to anonymously share large files and often comes under fire from copyright holders, who argue that the service allows people to easily share copyrighted movies, music, games and software.

The site has repeatedly mocked American copyright laws and has said that American laws “[do] not apply [in Sweden].” Earlier this year, four of its staffers were sentenced to Swedish prison. Last year, the site apparently moved some of its servers to a mountain cave complex in Sweden.

“Experiencing raids, espionage and death threats, we’re still here,” the site wrote in a blog post last month. “We’ve been through hell and back and it has made us tougher than ever.”

The move to hovering servers could make it nearly impossible for authorities to shut the site down, a fact not lost on the site’s administrators.

“We can’t limit ourselves to hosting things just on land anymore,” MrSpock wrote. “When time comes we will host in all parts of the galaxy, being true to our slogan of being the galaxy’s most resilient system.”

[CaseyJones]

*evilgrin*

[Philosophy_of_Politics]

LOL!

Please be true!

[Athan]

This is like in that old cartoon Tailspin in which there are air pirates. However this time, they are the good guys.
Should we call them Corsairs?

[jkr]

they will shoot them down

[Intoxiklown]

What an ingenuis idea

[TexAg09]

I bet they just created the next boom in technology. Send your servers to space so they can't be under anyone's jurisdiction.

[dannno]

Heh..


And wow, that's pretty cool:

http://blogs.itbusiness.ca/2012/03/why-a-35-raspberry-pi-is-better-than-the-new-ipad/

[gerryb]

Why haven't they done boats, yet?

[Anti Federalist]

Why haven't they done boats, yet?

Because the sea has become a NWO prison.

[CaseyJones]

Why haven't they done boats, yet?

I think they tried?

[Edit : ya they tried to buy Sealand http://betanews.com/2007/01/16/bittorrent-pirates-want-own-country/ ]

[eduardo89]

Why haven't they done boats, yet?

Because you have to register your boat to a home port.

[youngbuck]

Wow, ballsy and brilliant - mad props to them!

[Lishy]

Unfortunately, I think they would shoot it down anyways v-v

I don't really support pirating either (Except for Japanese doujinsoft games and CDs like from Touhou, since westerners cannot buy em' outside of conventions. Pirating and donating the money of cost to the author is the only "legit" way...)

Either way, good luck TPB! I might not like your site, but I like net neutrality! :p

[2young2vote]

Well, I guess you have to respect them for trying to provide a good service for their customers. :p

Anyone know how much money they make? It has to be quite a bit if they are thinking of having flying servers 24/7. They are probably a heck of a lot more expensive than normal servers.

[phill4paul]

Pirate radio came about because the governments decided they did not like freedom of information. As it did with the sea vessels so too will it do with the internet. Pirate radio history...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirate_radio

A fun movie. I recommend it.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qX1SSiFWF-s

[eduardo89]

Unfortunately, I think they would shoot it down anyways v-v

I don't really support pirating either (Except for Japanese doujinsoft games and CDs like from Touhou, since westerners cannot buy em' outside of conventions. Pirating and donating the money of cost to the author is the only "legit" way...)

Either way, good luck TPB! I might not like your site, but I like net neutrality! :p

I 100% support "pirating" because intellectual "property" is an absurd concept.

[awake]

They can kill most pirating of files by properly pricing their digital files. The record, movie and game companies don't want to come to the realization that thier products can be reproduced faster than Ben Bernanke's keyboard money. This is why they seek to use violence to avoid this economic reality.

[Lishy]

I 100% support "pirating" because intellectual "property" is an absurd concept.

True.. But shouldn't artists have the fruits of their labor?

My general opinion is that we shouldn't crack down on it. Maybe frown upon piracy, but nothing more in terms of the law. Companies should try to find new and inventive ways to profit off of their work, and prevent pirate copies of their game.

Valve is a great example of a genius company which has combated piracy of its work, while working out a win-win situation which doesn't punish anyone!

Of course, the priority in any conflict regarding piracy is not to use it as a precedence to violate net neutrality. Piracy websites should have a right to net neutrality just like any other website! I don't like TPB, but I would be saddened if it was ever taken down because that is violating net neutrality!

tl;dr: I'm a neutral hypocrite, but I don't think punishing pirates works. This is an issue of the times. Selling software is a thing of the past, and companies must move on. Protect net neutrality instead, blah blah blah...

Of course, things like Photoshop ARE overpriced, so I don't blame people...

[eduardo89]

Artists make virtually no money off music sales. And anyway, that's not the point. Intellectual property is a ridiculous idea. Patents and copywrites depend on government force to protect a government granted monopoly.

Just so you see how little artists actually make off music sales...as you can see the record companies are the ones who make money, thus their obsession with using government force to stop "piracy"

http://6.mshcdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/selling_out_550.png

[AGRP]

http://images.paraorkut.com/img/funnypics/images/l/lol-12924.jpg

[UtahApocalypse]

The only software I have pirated, and will continue to do so are ANYTHING that has some type os DRM. I want OWN what I buy not rent it with a off chance that someday it can be shut off, not allowed on another system later when I upgrade, or when the company goes oout of business and there is no authentication server available again.

[cjm]

True.. But shouldn't artists have the fruits of their labor?

If the artists do not want people to have access to their ideas, they shouldn't share them. Ideas, like the lyrics or the sequence of notes in a song, are not property.

[dannno]

True.. But shouldn't artists have the fruits of their labor?

Yes, they should play shows because that is something that cannot be fully reproduced. It is something that people will always demand.




Of course, things like Photoshop ARE overpriced, so I don't blame people...

Adobe has every right to make their software difficult or impossible to pirate through encryption, online registration, etc..

To count on govt. to reduce piracy is a bad idea, anyway.

[AGRP]

If music belongs to the artist, should we exhume dead artists such as Beethoven and trace their blood lines to their closest living relative in order to award the music to the rightful owners? Should Jesus or Moses's closest living relatives receive a portion of sales from the Bible?

[CaptainAmerica]

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uPbwpO6PZnQ/TZf5TE2UCyI/AAAAAAAABNk/L4DuQbmWIvI/s400/YAY-cat.jpg

[Lishy]

I agree. The patent system is ridiculous, especially when you sue someone for violating like... 20 patents. You can't own an idea!

[Pauls' Revere]

The next step is satellites.

[Lishy]

Speaking of Server Drones, how's the "free internet" project coming with the satellite?

[Cleaner44]

Three cheers for the FREE MARKET finding new ways to innovate and improve!

[Crotale]

True.. But shouldn't artists have the fruits of their labor?

My general opinion is that we shouldn't crack down on it. Maybe frown upon piracy, but nothing more in terms of the law. Companies should try to find new and inventive ways to profit off of their work, and prevent pirate copies of their game.

Valve is a great example of a genius company which has combated piracy of its work, while working out a win-win situation which doesn't punish anyone!

Of course, the priority in any conflict regarding piracy is not to use it as a precedence to violate net neutrality. Piracy websites should have a right to net neutrality just like any other website! I don't like TPB, but I would be saddened if it was ever taken down because that is violating net neutrality!

tl;dr: I'm a neutral hypocrite, but I don't think punishing pirates works. This is an issue of the times. Selling software is a thing of the past, and companies must move on. Protect net neutrality instead, blah blah blah...

Of course, things like Photoshop ARE overpriced, so I don't blame people...

Intellectual propety is a riduculous concept. You can't own your thoughts or ideas.

[Peace&Freedom]

Artists make virtually no money off music sales. And anyway, that's not the point. Intellectual property is a ridiculous idea. Patents and copywrites depend on government force to protect a government granted monopoly.

Just so you see how little artists actually make off music sales...as you can see the record companies are the ones who make money, thus their obsession with using government force to stop "piracy"

http://6.mshcdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/selling_out_550.png

Very useful graphic demonstration of how the media corporations distort the issue. They are making awesome money right now from online money centers, but want to criminalize peer file sharing that is theoretically depriving them of mere pennies. It's also telling that the corporations have adopted the same 'revolving door' tactics as the drug companies with FDA or Goldman Sachs with Treasury, in that many of the lawyers in the Obama Justice department are former attorneys for MPAA/RIAA. They have subsequently brought their same agenda straight into government by aggressively litigating so called piracy.