Megaupload Founder Dodges Jail Again; Wife Under Investigation 175
New submitter xenn writes "The linked article, titled by TVNZ as 'Kim Dotcom bail appeal dismissed, funds released,' somehow doesn't quite capture the drama the lies within... 'Meanwhile, it emerged today that U.S. authorities are investigating Dotcom's pregnant wife, Mona Dotcom, as part of a world-wide sting on Internet piracy. Toohey said she had received a preliminary application from the U.S. indicating that Mona could have been involved in Megaupload.'"
Torrentfreak adds that U.S. attempts to put Kim Dotcom back in jail failed, and he's been granted access to his bank accounts to cover essential expenses (to the tune of $30+k per month).
It's a witch hunt (Score:4, Interesting)
The feds should be going after the users that upload the content, not the hosts.
Re:Uh oh-- it's a 1%er! (Score:5, Interesting)
Are we reading the same Slashdot? People around here love rich technologists whenever they do anything that the Slashdot crowd considers good/interesting/cool. Kim Dotcom is hardly the only rich person to get plaudits; people can't fall over themselves fast enough with praise whenever John Carmack is mentioned, and Elon Musk (Tesla, SpaceX) has a large fanbase as well.
Re:Uh oh-- it's a 1%er! (Score:3, Interesting)
We like him because he is sort of our "Robin Hood". he takes from the big media companies and gives to the media-poor...
the audience of this site typically hates MPAA/RIAA they are like the sheriff. and we don't entirely like most IP laws and think they are too restrictive.
Re:It's a witch hunt (Score:4, Interesting)
It's more like them putting Sony Execs in jail because a Walkman might play non-licenced MP3s.
Not as much as you think (Score:1, Interesting)
Re:Funds (Score:3, Interesting)
While he got 30K US$ released for the next 3 weeks, he has asked for 180K US$ for "expenses" ;-). Not a shy guy...
"This sum included $24,000 for security, $29,000 for staff wages and $28,678 for general costs. Among the general costs was a monthly power bill of $8500 and $6000 per month in phonecalls." http://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/local-news/6501320/Dotcoms-expenses-through-the-roof [stuff.co.nz]
Re:Uh oh-- it's a 1%er! (Score:5, Interesting)
Kim Dotcom isn't a hero, he's a fraud artist. That said, if he has the resources and visibility to pry the lid off the copyright system and its hordes of legal goons, I'll at least give him partial credit. It's less about the actual money, and more about what you do with that money. Right now, copyright is largely used as a "rich get richer" weapon, in part because it is an expensive system to maintain and enforce. If someone halfway around the world decides to upload my app to RapidShare, I have to pay some suit-wearing prick a few thousand in legal consultations, just to get the ball rolling. So for the sake of a $20 piece of software, enforcing copyright makes my lawyer $2000 richer, and me $1980 poorer - assuming I even get my $20 back which is very unlikely.
Your Robin Hood comment is spot-on. Yes, I think Dotcom is a scumbag, but he's less of a scumbag than the thousands of executives behind Disney, Viacom, Sony, Time Warner. He'll also be much easier to take down, even after he takes a bite out of those media cartels. Or, as we radicalist nutbars say: "the end justifies the means".
Re:Uh oh-- it's a 1%er! (Score:2, Interesting)
If this were a CEO, doctor, or lawyer who made less than half of what this guy makes and were arrested for something that wasn't related to infringing IP rights then the usual lynch mob would be out screaming about how all "rich" people are evil and we need to destroy Wallstreet and kill all the Republicans, ban Faux News, etc. etc. [insert administration approved Media Matters talking points here].
When the perpetrator is a guy who got rich by getting kickbacks to facilitate piracy, however, he's suddenly some Robin Hood hero who takes from the evil rich music & movie companies to give to uh... himself. Suddenly he's no longer an evil 1%er and is our new personal hero just like Michael Moore & Bill Maher.
It's more a case of why isn't he being prosectuted for breaking New Zealand laws. As a New Zealander I couldn't give a toss if our courts sentence him to 50 years, being Americas lacky is what grinds my gears. I bet David Lange would turn in his grave, the only leader we have ever had to tell America to go fuck itself.
Re:Uh oh-- it's a 1%er! (Score:5, Interesting)
I completely agree that the current copyright and patent system is broken and unrealistic
that doesn't mean I think people should be able to become multi-millionares by helping people distribute other people's work.
That *is* the current copyright system.