Re: Is archive.org like Vimm Lair
Posted by Danielle on .
Legally? Not much. Ethically? That's subjective.
I would say a "piracy site" in the traditional sense of the word is a site that would provide you with unlicensed copies of brand-new content. You know, those places where you can download the latest games, movies, TV shows, etc. They receive the most pressure from rights holders and law enforcement and have to constantly find ways to avoid getting shut down.
Vimm's Lair, by focusing on older content and complying with takedown requests, is a lot more low-profile and generally tolerated, which is probably why it's been able to stay up on the same domain name for over twenty years now.
But again, legally there's no real distinction. Copyright lasts for 95 years after publication, so none of these games are going to be public domain any time soon. If the big video game companies really wanted to, they could force Vimm to shut down. So like I said, download what you want now, because there's no guarantee it'll be there tomorrow.
I would say a "piracy site" in the traditional sense of the word is a site that would provide you with unlicensed copies of brand-new content. You know, those places where you can download the latest games, movies, TV shows, etc. They receive the most pressure from rights holders and law enforcement and have to constantly find ways to avoid getting shut down.
Vimm's Lair, by focusing on older content and complying with takedown requests, is a lot more low-profile and generally tolerated, which is probably why it's been able to stay up on the same domain name for over twenty years now.
But again, legally there's no real distinction. Copyright lasts for 95 years after publication, so none of these games are going to be public domain any time soon. If the big video game companies really wanted to, they could force Vimm to shut down. So like I said, download what you want now, because there's no guarantee it'll be there tomorrow.
What the difference between piracy sites and sites like vimms lair.