Retroshare screengrab

Arrests, shutdowns of established file-sharing sites like Megaupload and legislation such as S.O.P.A. have driven users to seek a new breed of file-sharing destination. File-sharers are looking for security and privacy and they may have found it with newer solutions such as RetroShare and Tribler.

Naturally, since governments the world over are actively pursuing shutting down file-sharing in a variety of ways, anonymity and a lack of censorship are highly prized. TorrentFreak has more on why these and other options are gaining in popularity:

[There] are more file-sharing tools that are specifically built to withstand outside attacks. Some even add anonymity into the mix. RetroShare is such a private and uncensored file-sharing client, and the developers have also noticed a significant boom in users recently.

The RetroShare network allows people to create a private and encrypted file-sharing network. Users add friends by exchanging PGP certificates with people they trust. All the communication is encrypted using OpenSSL and files that are downloaded from strangers always go through a trusted friend.

RetroShare, according to TorrentFreak, is "a true Darknet and virtually impossible to monitor by outsiders." RetroShare's founder, comfortingly named "DrBob," said that downloads of his 6-year-old client have "massively shot up" in recent months. The downloads were apparently directly tied to interest in S.O.P.A. and also the February disabling of cyberlockers such as RapidGator. DrBob also told TorrentFreak that RetroShare is completely uncensored,  "A network that allows you to use any pseudonym, without insisting on knowing your real name."

"Darknet" may not be the wisest way to describe RetroShare--Anonymous has an Operation Darknet in play that's taken down multiple  child porn sites. If they begin targeting the kind of anonymity tool they might also prize, it could cause a rip in the Anonymous Up-time Continuum.

Megaupload/Megavideo was shut down by the Federal Government last week! It was sad. Also—coincidentally, or not—right around the time SOPA and PIPA, the anti-piracy legislation meant to prevent sites like Megaupload from ever doing business, died their own lame legislative deaths.

A week later, the Recording Industry Association of America has issued a press release basically dancing over the grave of the cloud-upload site.

Via Billboard, RIAA's VP of something called "Strategic Data Analysis" (or "Why We Hate The Internet, In Numbers), one Joshua P. Friedlander wrote a blog posts about how great it is that Megaupload is dead. The post bears the not-at-all-subtle title of "Why Closing Megaupload Matters." In your face, everyone who isn't the RIAA:

The shutdown of illegal sites helps create a thriving and diverse digital marketplace. It encourages users to go to legitimate sites, and enables great new services to be launched - like Spotify, which launched in the US last year and quickly signed up millions of new users. It's always reassuring when the data we see in the market reflects what we thought was just common sense.

What most other people think is common sense is not paying for something they can get for free. Like music. On Megaupload. Granted, this is also known as "stealing," but they're probably going to split hairs on this one nonetheless. Also, goes without saying, but the RIAA is probably not helping their odds of coming under another hacker attack with this one.

Pitchfork Media points out two other interesting facets of this story:

1. Other sites making sure their dead corpses don't end up like Megaupload's. This is probably going to make Filestube a whole lot less fun.

2. Megaupload's founder, the absurdly-named and not-surprisingly-obese Kim Dotcom, will be making an album. Which nobody will likely pay for whether he charges them for it or not.

fkamer@observer.com | @weareyourfek

Unfortunately for musicians, many of whom are literally poor, the record companies are going to get the lions share.

One week into a federal grand jury trial, Michael Gorton, LimeWire’s founder, agreed to pay the Recording Industry Association of America $105 million. Gorton was already found guilty of copyright infringement, so the trial was about how much LimeWire would have to pay up, not if.

Having to pay $105 million is actually a good deal for LimeWire, since the RIAA was asking for a total of $1.4 billion.

But this is not a good deal for artists. RIAA spokesman Jonathan Lamy previously told TorrentFreak that any money awarded from piracy-related lawsuits will go towards funding more anti-piracy campaigns.

If this is indeed how the money will be spent, it doesn’t bode well for the RIAA’s faith in the effectiveness of the existing anti-piracy campaign.

Which is exactly what LimeWire’s lawyers argued – that music piracy was not invented by LimeWire and will keep happening even after people just remember LimeWire in a vague, Napster-y way.

During the trial, Gorton’s attorney told jurors that when a file-sharing service goes offline, users “just funnel into the next-best service.”

“The next best thing” is kind of a catchy name for a new file sharing service. Some savvy pirates should snap that up while the domain is still available.