The Russian government has started a criminal investigation into one of the largest torrent operators in Russia, with the site's estimated infringement claim now topping $1.25 billion.
The site was founded by husband-wife tandem Ivan and Irina Podorozhnikovymi -- who were both arrested for their part in the torrent site -- along with several other staff members at the site's main office in Moscow.
Both the husband and wife now face up to six years in prison as part of the current criminal investigation.
The Interfilm.ru torrent site has been charged a whopping $1.25 billion in copyright infringement, according to the lawsuit. It's unknown how copyright holders came up with the estimated number in damages, but it is likely an unrealistically inflated amount. Interfilm.RU was raided last year by the Russian Federation Ministry of Internal Affairs Investigation Committee -- but the married couple moved fast to re-open their business quickly.
Interfilm temporarily went down, and resurfaced using a Dutch host with the name of LeaseWeb. Since then, it switched to a Malaysian host, but could end up being dumped again depending on the legal outcome in Russia.
Russia was earlier named as one of five major pirate nations, joining Canada, China, Mexico and Spain on the list. In addition, Eastern Europe also is known as a hotbed for piracy and computer crimes, with western nations often targeted as the victims.
This is an interesting change of events in a constant battle against piracy, as Russia has seemed relatively indifferent towards copyright infringement in the past. Basic peer-to-peer piracy could still be given a pass in Russia, but organized piracy and BitTorrent sites operating inside the country's borders now face substantial legal threats.
