NinjaVideo was a

website A website (also written as a web site) is a collection of web pages and related content that is identified by a common domain name and published on at least one web server. Examples of notable websites are Google, Facebook, Amazon, and Wi ...

created in February 2008 containing links to uploaded videos of

TV shows A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed bet ...

movies A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

, and

documentaries A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". Bill Nichols has characterized the documentary in term ...

. Since June 30, 2010, the site has been unavailable, as a result of a multinational

anti-piracy Anti-piracy may refer to: * Anti-piracy, protection against copying of computer software. * Piracy#Anti-piracy measures anti-piracy measures, measures to counter maritime pirates. See also * Pirate (disambiguation) A pirate is a person who com ...

effort led by the US federal government. At the centre of the takedown, was the

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is a federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. ICE's stated mission is to protect the United States from the cross-border crime and illegal immigration tha ...

(ICE) initiative as

Operation In Our Sites Operation In Our Sites is an ongoing effort by the U.S. government's National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center to detect and hinder intellectual property violations on the Internet. Pursuant to this operation, governmental agencies ...

, citing that they were, "targeting pirate websites run by people who have no respect for creativity and innovation". Federal search warrants were executed at servers in the United States and the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. At the time of its seizure, the site was visited more than 6 million times a month.

Arrest and manifesto

Long before the arrest one of site admins, they printed a manifesto of the site's reasoning for their actions. The manifesto was a transcription of a podcast released on the site early in the life of Ninjavideo. They claimed that inflated prices were to blame. ICE-HSI Banner NinjaVideo

Prosecution of NinjaVideo founders

Co-founder of NinjaVideo, Matthew David Howard Smith (aka Dead1ne), pleaded guilty to criminal copyright infringement on September 25, 2011. Smith ran the site from 2008 until its shutdown in 2010. According to the government, Smith has admitted to signing ad deals that grossed $500,000 during that period, and he was personally responsible for designing many of the site's features. Originally optimistic that her actions were in a "gray area" of the law, the co-founder and public face of NinjaVideo, Hana Beshara (Phara), pleaded guilty to conspiracy and criminal copyright infringement on September 30, 2011. "She was sentenced to 22 months in prison, another two years probation after that, 500 hours of community service and she has to pay back the $209,896.95 that she supposedly made from NinjaVideo to the MPAA". A federal judge sentenced Beshara to 22 months in a West Virginia prison. Justin A. Dedemeko, another co-founder of NinjaVideo, had also pleaded guilty to uploading content and profiting from the ad revenue that was accrue through the illegal activities of NinjaVideo. He has admitted to making $58,000 through the website and will be forced to pay this back in restitution. He was scheduled to be sentenced on Feb 24, 2012 where he faces a maximum sentence of 5 years in prison. Two other individuals have pleaded guilty to charges stemming from the operations of this website. Joshua David Evans (Wadswerth) and Jeremy Lynn Andrew pleaded guilty in October 2011 to charges of one count of conspiracy and one count of criminal copyright infringement relating to the release of the movie Iron Man 2. Another "co-founder" of the website, Zoi Mertzanis (Tik) of Greece, remains at large and a warrant is out for her arrest for her role as an active uploader of content on NinjaVideo.

References

External links

NinjaVideo's "mission statement"
via its Facebook page
NinjaVideo's Manifesto in full
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ninjavideo Internet properties established in 2008 Internet properties disestablished in 2010 Defunct websites Defunct video on demand services