Torrentz.eu, formerly known as Torrentz.com, was the most popular BitTorrent meta-search engine, indexing torrent sites such as KickassTorrents, BTjunkie and The Pirate Bay.
The site was ranked in the top 5 of all BitTorrent sites according to statistics from Alexa. It didn’t offer any downloads on the site but pointed to external torrent sources instead.
Torrentz had a community of more than a million users and lists “verified” torrents on the frontpage.
Here is what happened to Torrentz and why it’s no longer available.
Torrentz shut down in 2016 after being in operation for more than 13 years. The site operator, Flippy, never explained in detail why he took this sudden decision. We do know however that the shutdown was voluntary and the Torrentz domain wasn’t seized or taken over.
Soon after Torrentz.eu said farewell, the unrelated Torrentz2.eu took over.
Torrentz.eu
Founded: July 24, 2003
Founder: Flippy
Closed: August 4, 2016
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Authorities in Greece are making good on their promise to crack down and deter use of pirate sites and services. Arrests during a significant action to disrupt pirate IPTV last month are now followed by news of an immediate five-year prison sentence and a €10,000 fine. The 59-year-old defendant was reportedly found guilty of running a private torrent site; P2Planet.net. Curiously, the site announced its closure over a decade ago, making the offenses even older than that. - X vs. Music Publishers: Settlement Looms in Copyright Clash After “Maximum Pain” Revelation
After two years of litigation, X Corp. and leading music publishers are eyeing a settlement in their copyright infringement dispute. The move follows X Corp.’s recent “maximum pain” allegations against the NMPA, suggesting the lawsuit aimed to force licensing agreements. A 90-day case stay has been approved to allow both sides to amicably resolve their disagreements. - Google Receives Piracy Shield Orders to Block Pirate Sites in Public DNS
Italian telecoms regulator AGCOM has regularly criticized Google over its anti-piracy efforts, but the signs suggest that change is on the way. AGCOM says a system activated last month, relayed blocking orders received by the Piracy Shield anti-piracy system, directly to Google, which “promptly” blocked pirate site domains on its public DNS resolver. AGCOM says the system should be fully operational “as soon as possible” but warns that Google will still have to do more. - Napster and Sonos Sued for Millions in Unpaid Music Royalties
Napster, the brand synonymous with the music piracy boom of the early 2000s, has a new copyright challenge. Together with audio giant Sonos, Napster faces a lawsuit demanding over $3.4 million in alleged unpaid copyright royalties. Filed by SoundExchange, the complaint centers on missed payments related to the “Sonos Radio” service, which until 2023 was powered by Napster’s music catalog. - IPTV Piracy Lawsuit Targets ‘Boss IPTV Cartel’, CDN, Hosts, Set-Top Box Supplier
A five-year-old investigation by US-based streaming service YuppTV features in a copyright complaint filed at a federal court in Pennsylvania. Alleging systematic piracy of YuppTV content, the complaint claims to identify the owner of various IPTV services and companies, collectively the ‘Boss IPTV Cartel’. Allegations against CDN company Datacamp, set-top box manufacturer Infomir, and other intermediaries, add extra layers to an already complicated case.
