German Court Forcing RapidShare.com To Check All Uploads For Copyright Infringement

RapidShare should have known better that allowing illegal files to be shared on their site would not last long.  Especially seeing as how they host that content and expect users to pay for premium accounts.  A court in Germany has ruled that RapidShare is not doing their part in ensuring piracy controls.  RapidShare will be forced to become active against blocking users from uploading copyrighted content.  This rule is very similar to DMCA takedowns in the U.S.  RapidShare is currently #12 on Alexa.

RapidShare is also being forced to proactively check the content before publishing it and log the IP addresses of those who upload copyrighted material.  RapidShare stated that they are using an MD5 Hash filter and employs 6 people to prevent copyright infringement uploads. 

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