Meanwhile, in a letter to Torrent Freak, the application’s developers blamed restrictions and geo-blocks placed on content by Hollywood producers for the success of the application. Like in the Dallas Buyer’s Clubcase, if a similar action was launched against Australian users, it would ultimately hinge on internet service providers revealing the identity of users - something which Mr Miller believes would be unlikely to eventuate.

“Popcorn Time exists for one purpose and one purpose only: to steal copyrighted content,” the complaint reads. It’s not entirely understood why they zeroed in on Popcorn Time users specifically, but some contend that the image of the application as flouting copyright laws could help bolster the case. The makers of Adam Sandler’s latest film The Cobbler have targeted the users who streamed it illegally via Popcorn Time. Legal action has been launched in the United States targeting 11 users of the application in Oregon. The software has an extensive catalogue of movies. “On top of the legal issues surrounding Popcorn Time, the service has been proven to have security vulnerabilities potentially allowing hackers to gain complete access and control of a computer connected to the service,” Chief Technology Officer at Intel Security Mike Sentonas told. “There is a lot of pressure on the federal government coming from right’s holders (to crackdown on pirates),” he said.Īlthough it has the feel of privacy, the Popcorn Time application is by no means private, as users connect to public BitTorrent swarms and - as in the recent Dallas Buyer’s Club case - monitoring firms and copyright holders are able to trace pirates. Mr Miller is an expert in entertainment and copyright law and said he thinks it’s possible that rights holders could come after Australian users of the program if successful elsewhere. According to the latest reports, Norwegian authorities have warned people to expect “a surprise in the mail”. The group has threatened to sue between 51,000 and 75,000 people in the country who use the program. It’s unclear how many Australians use Popcorn Time, but those that do will be paying close attention to the outcome of a row between pro-copyright group Rights Alliance and users in Norway.

Popcorn time iphone