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US DOJ Drops Charges Against Two Seized Websites

Posted by samzenpus on from the forget-about-it dept.

angry tapir writes "The U.S. Department of Justice has dropped its case against two Spanish websites that stream sports events nearly 17 months after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement seized the sites and shut them down for alleged copyright violations. In a one-page brief to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on Wednesday, U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara of the district said his office had dropped the case against Rojadirecta.com and Rojadirecta.org. ICE seized the two sites on Jan. 31, 2011, and the DOJ asked the court to order that Puerto 80 Projects, the owner of the sites, forfeit the sites to the U.S. government."

4 of 152 comments (clear)

  1. No even a "we're sorry?" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    What about the lost money? Time to sue.

    1. Re:No even a "we're sorry?" by jythie · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Sadly, while the US can seize foreign assets, often courts rule that foreign companies do not have standing to sue. The standards for what constitutes having a local presence seem to vary according to which side the government is on....

    2. Re:No even a "we're sorry?" by Inda · · Score: 4, Interesting

      What lost money?

      I used Rojadirecta before I found a better site. It was only when my 'better' site didn't stream a game I was after that I looked back to Rojadirecta.org and saw it was down.

      Rojadirecta.se came to the rescue. I see there is a Rojadirecta.me too. When will these ban-hammer organisations learn? How long have we seen the same processes repeated over and over?

      I don't give a shit about Hollywood or Poptastic music. I do give a shit about my sports.

      If only they'd let me buy the stream on a Saturday afternoon. I only want to watch Tottenham Hotspur play. I cannot afford to travel to the game, even if I could get a ticket - their ground is full most weeks. I can afford a few quid to stream the game.

      I pay for Sky Sports. I'm happy to pay for my sport. Let me give you more money, you fucking idiots.

      --
      This post contains benzene, nitrosamines, formaldehyde and hydrogen cyanide.
  2. Why not? by jdev · · Score: 4, Interesting

    The U.S. government makes an even more bold claim than that. They have argued with Megaupload that the government can continue to seize their servers even if the case is dismissed. I'm halfway surprised that the government bothered to drop the charges against Rojadirecta since they feel they can keep cases like this in limbo indefinitely without any consequences.