Piracy kiosk pops up in Germany

As more and more governments are beginning to tackle Internet piracy, zeroing in on the peer-to-peer services like the Pirate Bay and Mininova, the pirates are coming up with fresh and innovative responses. As the future of the Pirate Bay remains uncertain, a group of the site’s fans from Germany have decided not to take ...

As more and more governments are beginning to tackle Internet piracy, zeroing in on the peer-to-peer services like the Pirate Bay and Mininova, the pirates are coming up with fresh and innovative responses. As the future of the Pirate Bay remains uncertain, a group of the site's fans from Germany have decided not to take any risks and create an offline copy of their favorite service.

As more and more governments are beginning to tackle Internet piracy, zeroing in on the peer-to-peer services like the Pirate Bay and Mininova, the pirates are coming up with fresh and innovative responses. As the future of the Pirate Bay remains uncertain, a group of the site’s fans from Germany have decided not to take any risks and create an offline copy of their favorite service.

Most interestingly, this copy is stored in a dedicated "piracy kiosk" located next to a car park in Weimar, Germany; the kiosk is not connected to the Internet but the public can connect to the service via WiFi in the area near the kiosk. The car park location is strategic: anyone who feels nostalgic for the good old Pirate Bay can park their car near the kiosk and download all they want to their laptops.

The team behind the kiosk says that anyone can set up a similar service in their house; if enough Pirate Bay fans get interested, it may result in a very intriguing distributed version of the service running off the Internet.

Evgeny Morozov is a fellow at the Open Society Institute and sits on the board of OSI's Information Program. He writes the Net Effect blog on ForeignPolicy.com

More from Foreign Policy

Newspapers in Tehran feature on their front page news about the China-brokered deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to restore ties, signed in Beijing the previous day, on March, 11 2023.
Newspapers in Tehran feature on their front page news about the China-brokered deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to restore ties, signed in Beijing the previous day, on March, 11 2023.

Saudi-Iranian Détente Is a Wake-Up Call for America

The peace plan is a big deal—and it’s no accident that China brokered it.

Austin and Gallant stand at podiums side by side next to each others' national flags.
Austin and Gallant stand at podiums side by side next to each others' national flags.

The U.S.-Israel Relationship No Longer Makes Sense

If Israel and its supporters want the country to continue receiving U.S. largesse, they will need to come up with a new narrative.

Russian President Vladimir Putin lays flowers at the Moscow Kremlin Wall in the Alexander Garden during an event marking Defender of the Fatherland Day in Moscow.
Russian President Vladimir Putin lays flowers at the Moscow Kremlin Wall in the Alexander Garden during an event marking Defender of the Fatherland Day in Moscow.

Putin Is Trapped in the Sunk-Cost Fallacy of War

Moscow is grasping for meaning in a meaningless invasion.

An Iranian man holds a newspaper reporting the China-brokered deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to restore ties, in Tehran on March 11.
An Iranian man holds a newspaper reporting the China-brokered deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to restore ties, in Tehran on March 11.

How China’s Saudi-Iran Deal Can Serve U.S. Interests

And why there’s less to Beijing’s diplomatic breakthrough than meets the eye.