Donuts Partners With The MPAA To Reduce Online Piracy

Donuts and the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) jointly announced an agreement to help ensure that websites using domains registered with Donuts are not engaged in large-scale piracy.

Under the terms of the agreement, the MPAA will be treated as a “Trusted Notifier” for the purpose of reporting large-scale pirate websites that are registered in a domain extension operated by Donuts. The agreement imposes strict standards for such referrals, including that they be accompanied by clear evidence of pervasive copyright infringement and a representation that the MPAA has first attempted to contact the registrar and hosting provider for resolution.

The agreement specifies that Donuts will work with registrar partners to contact the website operator and seek additional evidence. If Donuts or its registrar partner determines that the website is engaged in illegal activity and thereby violates Donuts’ Acceptable Use and Anti-Abuse Policy, then they, in their discretion, may act within their already established authority to put the infringing domain on hold or suspend it.

Overall, the new program is a voluntary best practice designed to help promote a healthier Internet by mitigating blatantly illegal online activity.

“This is a groundbreaking partnership and one we’re proud to undertake,” said Donuts Co-Founder and Executive Vice President Jon Nevett. “Donuts, as the operator of .MOVIE, .THEATER, .COMPANY and almost 200 other domain extensions, is committed to a healthy domain name environment and this is another step toward a safe and secure namespace.”

“I want to thank Donuts for their leadership. This agreement demonstrates that the tech community and content creators can work together on voluntary initiatives to help ensure vibrant, legal digital marketplaces that benefit all members of the online ecosystem,” said Senator Chris Dodd, Chairman and CEO of the MPAA. “Filmmakers and distributers are already using the Internet to offer more options than ever before for accessing online legal content, including over 115 such sites in the U.S. alone. But sites engaged in large-scale piracy threaten this continued growth and creativity, as well as the livelihoods of the 1.9 million Americans whose jobs depend on our industry.”

“Nobody questions that the Internet has made possible dramatic technology innovations both for legal and illegal purposes,” said Paul Vixie, CEO of Farsight Security and longtime member of the Internet and open source technical communities. “We need responsible parties to take voluntary, cooperative action against illegal activities online. I see programs like Trusted Notifier as an ideal step toward making the Internet safer.”

“While this agreement is geared specifically to film and television piracy, it can also be adapted to address other illegal activity online,” Nevett said. “Hopefully, it will become a model for similar agreements that can be reached with operators in the domain name ecosystem and other Internet intermediaries.”

The announcement immediately precedes the first Healthy Domains Initiative summit, an event organized by The Domain Name Association, which will convene domain name industry leaders who are focused on issues such as this, including the safe and healthy evolution of the namespace.