The New Freedom

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Just over a year ago, the streaming-video site TV-Links.co.uk was shut down and the owner and some of the staff were arrested.

Now, the site has relaunched as TV-Links.ws and staff member Martin gave me some information about what has happened since the raid.

What has happened since your arrest? What crimes have you and the other staff been charged with? Have you come to any plea agreements or anything like that?

I have had no further visits or contact with the Police since my questioning. I can only assume that we broke no laws since we have not been charged with anything.

Things never went that far, I was questioned, released and that is all, I didn’t need to make any plea agreement. Sin was also released without charge.

Will there be a trial?

Again no, having been released without charge I can only assume that there will be no trial.

Are you afraid of facing another arrest?

Yes, however I believe that the authorities would be better off spending their money and time on more important things where people are actually suffering as a result of real life problems, and spend less time been goons for the rich and powerful.

Why are you still involved with tv-links after your arrest?

Because it’s a hobby for me, I enjoy taking part in a community of people that share my interests in media.

Is tv-links.ws a business venture?

It can’t be called a business in my opinion, businesses make profits and their staff get a pay cheque every week. I’ve never made a cent out of what I do, and don’t want to either. Tv-Links is not a comercial entity, any money thats made from ads goes directly back into the site, to pay hosting bills etc, and any extra is invested in improving the site for its users.

What precautions are you taking to prevent another repeat incident?

We are now located in Sweden, the site is completely legal according to Swedish law as we do not host content. Linking to other sites is not illegal (which is in effect what we do). We will of course now and always fully abide by the law of our country which is Sweden.
We wont go into details on the precautions we have taken other than that we have worked closely together with our lawyers to ensure the legality of what we do and that there are measures in place protecting us in case anyone tries to challenge that.

Where do you see the project in 3 to 5 years?

It’s hard to say really, it’s a hostile market and difficult to predict any changes in law, licensing and demand. If the market is there, we’ll be there.

I’d also like to take this time to say that although other tv-links clone sites exist, they are nothing to do with us. Many of them use heavy handed advertising methods to monetize their sites for profit, which we do not condone at all.

It’s good to here that the boys there have been staying out of trouble and that there was no punishment.

In the year since the arrest, streaming video has gone legitimate with sites like Hulu.com and major networks like CBS and ABC launching their own, ad-supported streaming video services.

The next year will be interesting. Hobbyist sites like TV-Links typically have the advantage in sheer quantity and availability of shows (and they don’t have ads), but the legitimate sites have the advantage in video quality and reliability. Hulu is deliberately keeping the amount of available content low, presumably to push new TV shows and DVD sales of old shows, so there may always be a place for sites like TV-Links, especially as more foreign MegaVideo clones pop-up to provide the bandwidth.

There has also been recent research into streaming torrents, so a third alternative may arise which could combine the archival depth of TV-Links and the Pirate Bay with the convenience and quality of Hulu. The internet needs to sort out a way for me to watch every possible Star Trek episode in high-quality whenever I want. This is the challenge, internet, you have exactly one year!

Rich out.

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