I called this news a little “funnier” – if you do remember about the Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom, the accused pirate who was released on bail last week, asking a New Zealand court to free some of his seized assets so that he and his family have money to live on – the couple said they need the amount equivalent to $180,000 per month, New Zealand newspaper reports.
Dotcom was accused of criminal copyright violations, racketeering, and money laundering with the wire fraud added in the list later. He was arrested last month after being indicated by the US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. The New Zealand government, on behalf of the U.S. government, has appealed the decision to release him.
Some recap: The site advertised stating that it is having more than one billion visits to the site, with more than 150 million registered users, 50 million daily visitors and accounting for four percent of the total traffic on the Internet. The estimated harm conduct to copyright holders is well in excess of $500 million. The conspirators allegedly earned more than $175 million in illegal profits through advertising revenue and selling premium memberships.
