Ask HN: Would it be illegal to make a Pirate-Bay-based application?

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6580160

by jawerty • 13 years ago

7 4 13 years ago

news.ycombinator.com

I was looking into making an open source thepiratebay library for using it programmatically via python or ruby. Seeing as PirateBay isn't the most legally recognized website, would making something like this be considered illegal?

w4• 13 years ago

If you're seriously concerned with the legality (side note: legality in what jurisdiction?) of implementing something like that you should spend a couple hundred bucks and chat with an attorney.

Unhelpful, I know, but it seems like you have legitimate cause for concern, especially if you're located in the US, and HN isn't a source for legal advice regardless of the quality of commenters on the site. This is doubly true since the complexity of your question is likely far greater than you might anticipate, as is often the case with legal concerns, and likely not easily addressed here.

So basically, if you're seriously concerned about legality: consult with an attorney. If you can't, or don't want to, spend the money to do so: don't write the library, or at a minimum don't publically distribute it. And if course, none if this is to be construed as legal advise, yada-yada, etc.

jawerty• 13 years ago

Thanks a lot. That's what I was thinking, consult a legal professional and then write or not write it considering the advise I was given. I notice there are a lot of ThePirateBay libraries, so I wasn't too worried about it but its better to be safe than in court.

garethsprice• 13 years ago

It's technically not illegal to link to a site that links to copyrighted material, but there's still the potential for legal challenges to come up - especially if whatever you build is successful.

The RIAA/MPAA etc can ruin your life with an expensive, years-long lawsuit whether you are found guilty in the end or not.

If you really want to make it, make it for fun and release it anonymously.

Historical context:

Napster: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napster#Lawsuit

Legal discussion: http://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=c71fa5d9-8380-...

(I am not a lawyer! Get legal advice if you are worried!)

smartwater• 13 years ago

I personally know someone who had a website seized by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for linking to copyright content. It all comes down to intent. When visiting a site like ThePirateBay or TorrentButler, it's clear that they are intentionally facilitating copyright infringement-- and that's what they will charge you with, amongst other things. It's hard to deny that fact when 99% of the content has a copyright, even if you hide behind the DMCA "user uploaded content" clause.

With that being said, they made 1M+ from it and didn't get caught. Your results may vary.

Ask HN: Would it be illegal to make a Pirate-Bay-based application?

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