Warner Bros. and NBC Universal want Mega blocked by Google

Mega logo

Warner Bros. and NBC Universal have asked Google to block notorious file-sharing websites such as Mega from search results to help cutdown on piracy.

The two Hollywood studios have filed takedown claims under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act in relation to the films Gangster Squad and Mama.

NBC claims to have found 5,857 links, which offer users the chance to illegally download the 2013 horror film Mama. There are 35 links to the file-sharing site Mega, which was launched by internet mogul, Kim Dotcom, in January.

Meanwhile Warner Bros. alleges there are 404 links to download Gangster Squad. There are no specific links to Mega, with the studio simply asking Google to block the file-sharing site's homepage.

Dotcom claims blocking the homepage would be unreasonable, and that content providers are abusing their rights under the DMCA.

"During the Megaupload days over 20 per cent of all takedown notices were bogus. We analysed big samples of notices and most were automated keyword-based takedowns that affected a lot of legitimate files," Dotcom told TorrentFreak.

"The abuse of the takedown system is so severe that no service provider can rely on takedown notices for a fair repeat infringer policy."

When launched in January, Mega claimed that users who joined the site would automatically agree to absolve the company of any responsibility if copyright laws are broken. However, Hollywood studios clearly feel the site is not doing enough and is still a prime source for copyrighted material.

Khidr Suleman is the Technical Editor at IT Pro, a role he has fulfilled since March 2012. He is responsible for the reviews section on the site  - so get in touch if you have a product you think might be of interest to the business world. He also covers the hardware and operating systems beats. Prior to joining IT Pro, Khidr worked as a reporter at Incisive Media. He studied law at the University of Reading and completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Magazine Journalism and Online Writing at PMA Training.