Megaupload Founder Kim Dotcom Loses Extradition Case, Plans Appeal
Kim Dotcom, the founder of the now defunct file sharing site Megaupload, has lost his fight against extradition from New Zealand to the U.S., where he is wanted for multiple copyright violations.
Kim Dotcom, the founder of the now defunct file sharing site Megaupload, has lost his fight against extradition from New Zealand to the U.S., where he is wanted for multiple copyright violations.
A New Zealand judge ruled that Dotcom, as well as three colleagues from Megaupload, were eligible for extradition at a last minute hearing on Wednesday. However, the case is likely to run for a little while longer as Doctom said he would file an appeal.
Speaking after the ruling, Dotcom said he would appeal. “This is not the last word on the matter. We’ve filed an appeal. I’m disappointed. That’s all I have to say and I wish everybody a very merry Christmas. I’m going home now,” Stuff.co.nz reports Dotcom saying.
Dotcom is facing money laundering, racketeering and breach of copyright charges in the U.S. from his time running Megaupload. U.S. authorities allege Dotcom and his colleagues were knowingly allowing copyrighted material, particularly Hollywood movies, to be shared on a massive scale.
Kim Dotcom Calls U.S. a ‘Dirty, Ugly Bully’ as Extradition Hearing Ends
In a statement to The Hollywood Reporter, Steven Fabrizio, MPAA senior executive vice president and global general counsel, said: “The MPAA believes that, for years, Dotcom and his associates at Megaupload knowingly and willfully broke the law by hosting stolen content — and profited from those stolen creative works by rewarding users for uploading infringing content to their site.”
Fabrizio added: “At the extradition hearing the Crown presented summaries of evidence to be presented at trial in the United States that 90 percent of material on the site was copyright-protected, with users being paid to upload popular films and television shows. All told, according to the U.S. Justice Department, Megaupload’s efforts cost copyright owners approximately $500 million and reaped $175 million in revenue.”
This article was originally published by The Hollywood Reporter.
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