Reports that torrents sites were dwindling after years of file-sharing services recently made the rounds online as one key player in the industry, Popcorn Time, apparently shut down for good. However, it seems that the site is back, as industry observers have noted that variants of the app sprouted online.
According to Torrent Freak, smaller, leaner variants of the torrent site, called forks, have appeared online. Apparently, some developers from the original Popcorn Time have made their own forks, starting with a Popcorn Time Community Edition. The fork itself came from a fix to an .io fork and evolved to become Popcorntime.ml. T
alking to Torrent Freak, the developers behind the new Popcorn Time said that this is only a start of the revival. "In the beginning it was just so people still could use the version from Popcorntime.io and continue to enjoy this great software. But as long as people use it and we have people to drive this project forward it will probably continue to evolve in future as well," the developers stated.
The closure of the original Popcorn Time file-sharing site was attributed to the MPAA. The Motion Picture Association of America itself claimed credit for the shutdown, filing lawsuits against the developers. Because of the legal battles, some developers of the original torrent site backed out from the project, leading to Popcorn Time's demise.
Meanwhile, copyrights advocates already started tearing down the new versions Popcorn Time. Torrent Freak added that anti-piracy group BREIN already settled with two developers of Popcorn Time Community Edition, taking the two out of the game. BREIN is also behind the legal scuffles of other torrent sites, most notably The Pirate Bay.
The original Popcorn Time's demise has been focused on in the past weeks, as in addition to PT, other torrent sites like YIFY have also shut down their operations. Meanwhile, The Pirate Bay has had an intermittent online presence, leading fans to expect that other torrent sites will shut down for good.
