DMCA Notice

Longtime frequenter of the site, been coming here for years to download the latest, and frankly not surprised at the DMCA notice coming along.

However I run a website and am familiar with copyright law, and there is a way around it. As an owner, you Viper, and any employee of the site, cannot endorse any link posting to the episode. You cannot make it a sticky thread, you cannot endorse it on the downloads pages, etc.

However, any USER on the forums can create a torrent link and post it on the forum within a thread and DMCA cannot do anything. Its User content, and they cannot get you for that. They'd have to show that you the site owner are endorsing the spread of copyrighted information and that you read the thread. The link would have to come down at some point as you will eventually.
 
The way I understand it, the owner wishes to separate himself entirely with the idea of providing links. Even having another user post it, is a grey area I'm sure he'd rather avoid. Allowing that, is in some way an endorsement and he is responsible for it ultimately.
 
Its User content, and they cannot get you for that. They'd have to show that you the site owner are endorsing the spread of copyrighted information and that you read the thread. The link would have to come down at some point as you will eventually.

They can certainly send a DMCA to me though requesting the removal of the content, regardless of who posted it though. This is why you don't see much copyrighted content on YouTube for example. YouTube is protected but only if they remove content that they are asked to.

Regardless, I'm not going to be personally involved in releasing torrents anymore.
 
What happens if the links are posted on the forums? Will they be removed?
 
What happens if the links are posted on the forums? Will they be removed?
'course they will be, unless Viper gets his hands on a fortune big enough to have some lawyers fight the copyrights holders in court.
 
What happens if the links are posted on the forums? Will they be removed?

I can't control what content you guys post and I'm way too busy to read and monitor every single post that gets made here. If I receive a DMCA request for a post, then I'll remove it.
 
I guess that means the end of TGUK for me, I have no clue where to get the stuff otherwise.

Thanks, BBC, you've killed a great show for me.
Sincerely,
A British Citizen living abroad.

PS: I've spent quite a bit of money on songs this site has identified as being used in the episodes. Not that the artists got much money from selling their work after the labels took their cut.
So you have no access to Google then?
 
If only there was a Bay full of Pirates that offered downloads...
 
If only there was a Bay full of Pirates that offered downloads...

Yeah, but you have to be careful there because not all the pirates are your friend. I would recommend waiting till a few comments are posted telling people how friendly the pirate is. You can also do a little research on the pirate for other things he has found and offered to see how reliable he may be.
 
Yeah, but you have to be careful there because not all the pirates are your friend. I would recommend waiting till a few comments are posted telling people how friendly the pirate is. You can also do a little research on the pirate for other things he has found and offered to see how reliable he may be.

Heh.

But seriously, you guys should just Google EZTV. They put out quality TV stuff.
 
Heh.

But seriously, you guys should just Google EZTV. They put out quality TV stuff.

I agree with you, but I think it is only fair to let the people that may be going out to look for the first time that not all offerings are as safe as the ones they found here.

The other sites are making a good effort to get rid of the unfair players, but sometimes they still exist, so I just want our first timers to be aware and don't necessarily jump on the first file they see. Most will be completely safe, but there can be a bad apple too.
 
You know what sucks the most about this: how soon everyone forgets all the awesome things you've done for them. I've been a member of this site for a while...a long while. Thanks to you guys I was able to watch every single episode from beginning to end and all the specials in between. Hearing this news for the first time today pissed me off so much.

It's not the ease and availability of the links. Not the countless fans that were able to watch the show in all its raw, unedited, hd, original uk version. No, it was that act of selflessness that this entire community showed for one of its beloved heroes: Richard Hammond.

In September 2006 Richard Hammond had his near death accident.
Within days this Viper started a fund to show our support for Hamster and we all pitched in to purchase a helmet with a cheeky design from a one of his most loyal fan bases: TFG forum. http://forums.finalgear.com/top-gear/finalgear-com-richard-hammond-fund-13478/

He even wore it on the set of one of the episodes:
http://forums.finalgear.com/top-gear/hammonds-helmet-he-has-it-18882/

Akje


That, above all else, pisses me off. We weren't - and still aren't - just some freeloading fans. We all genuinely love the show and will support it by whatever means. It would have been commendable if the Cease and Desist were instead a Help and Assist notice. Work out a solution with the premier destination for TG episodes. Consider a paid model of a worlds first host to all the content from TG. Forget having to download and unpackage torrents. Instead login to the site and watch unedited, straight from the UK, every fucking episode of TG (with all the original audio/music!). For fucks sake I would have paid a healthy subscription for that!

Anyway, just feels like a cold slap in the face. Mostly because those of us that could, supported the show as often as possible. And those of use that went above and beyond to show some love not just in words but in actual deed...ugh...just feels like a huge let down...

Cheers,
meltron
 
I'm 99.9999999999999% sure that it's me, because I still don't understand this stuff, but I've visited several sites, including the pirates, but I've never had any luck with any of them. This was the only place that worked for me.
 
I'm 99.9999999999999% sure that it's me, because I still don't understand this stuff, but I've visited several sites, including the pirates, but I've never had any luck with any of them. This was the only place that worked for me.

I am sure when the time gets closer there will be plenty of help offered to those that do not have big red blobs after their names. I would try to make friends with some of the old hands around here. Can't hurt.
 
Long time lurker, I just wanted to say thanks for all of work you guys have put in this site, if it wasn't for here I would have never discoved Top Gear in the first place.
 
So, the REAL owners of the property didnt tell you to terminate and you still did it? As i know only the real owners can do that, not some assholes behind an organisation pretending to be almighty!
I would contact BBC and ask their thoughts about it if i were you....As you are not making any money with your site and posted stuff and are not preventing them do make a profit (BBC) they didnt bother you for many years....The DMCA is stepping were it shouldnt is my guess...Contact BBC to find out, you wont lose anything for it...

I think the key point is this : "I have a good faith belief that none of the materials or
activities listed above have been authorized by BBC Worldwide Consumer Products, its agents or the law." If he was really working on behalf of BBC he wouldnt leave room for doubt about the purpose!


BBC is a public broabdcast television, not Private, so as soon as they transmit something, it becomes public domain!
 
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