Executives charged as file-sharing site closed

ONE of the world’s largest file-sharing sites was shut down yesterday and its founder and several company executives were charged with violating piracy laws, federal prosecutors said.

An indictment accuses Megaupload.com, which is linked to the husband of music star Alicia Keys, of costing copyright holders over $500 million in lost revenue from pirated films and other content.

The indictment was unsealed one day after websites including Wikipedia and Craigslist shut down in protest at two congressional proposals intended to thwart online piracy.

The US Justice Department in a statement said that Kim Dotcom, formerly known as Kim Schmitz, and three other executives were arrested in New Zealand at the request of US officials. Two other defendants are at large.

Megaupload was unique not only because of its massive size and the volume of downloaded content, but also because it had high-profile support from celebrities, musicians and other content producers who are most often the victims of copyright infringement and piracy.

Before the website was taken down, it contained endorsements from Kim Kardashian, Alicia Keys and Kanye West, among others.

The Hong Kong-based company listed Swizz Beatz, a musician who married Keys in 2010, as its chief executive He was not named in the indictment and declined to comment through a representative.