Chartbusters closes down

Biggins · 29-10-2010 03:14PM

Just on the pirate end of things, I see Limewire has just been ordered shut down.

The music has finally stopped for file-sharing website LimeWire after the plug was pulled by a New York City judge.

The ruling has left 50 million users in silence after United States District Judge Kimba Wood decided that the site had knowingly engaged in a "massive scale of infringement" of copyright laws and had to be stopped.

Users who try to log on to the now-defunct website are greeted with confirmation that LimeWire has gone, stating that "This is an official notice that LimeWire is under a court-ordered injunction to stop distributing and supporting its file-sharing software," and that "Downloading or sharing copyrighted content without authorisation is illegal."

Following a similar path to the kingpin of "peer-to-peer" music sites, Napster, which was launched a year earlier and became a global sensation, LimeWire will cease to function as a freebie site, if at all. Napster was taken down in 2001 after a costly legal battle brought by the US recording industry, but has since regained composure and now operates as a legal site.

The case is far from over as the Recording Industry Association of America and LimeWire will have to face the judge again in January as they begin to assess how much the website may owe to the record labels in damages. LimeWire may live to regret its regular bragging that its 50 million users had shared and downloaded over three billion songs a month.

LimeWire Chief Executive George Searle said that the company was still open for business, but with Judge Wood's ruling that the website was to disable "searching, downloading, uploading, file trading, and/or file distribution functionality" this may be problematic.

It seems the world of file-sharing is doomed, with websites such as Kazaa (2001), Torrent Spy (2005) and The Pirate Bay (2006) all having faced major lawsuits.

http://uk.news.launch.yahoo.com/dyna/article.html?a=/101028/340/iz76z.html&e=l_news_dm

Gunsfortoys · 29-10-2010 03:15PM

Another company tanked because of poor management.

Biggins · 29-10-2010 03:16PM

IvySlayer wrote: »

Biggins I think they're just making a joke!

I know but they did hit/raise a good point if intentional or not.
...And yes, I did get the "Bubbles" joke.

ejmaztec · 29-10-2010 03:19PM

Gunsfortoys wrote: »

Another company tanked because of poor management.

Some people should never be allowed to run any kind of business, because they haven't a clue.

neilthefunkeone · 29-10-2010 03:22PM

Nice one.. I owed then 4 euro on my card.. havent been in there in about 5 years though.. Wonder is there interest on that..

Stinicker · 29-10-2010 03:22PM

Biggins wrote: »

Just on the pirate end of things, I see Limewire has just been ordered shut down.

http://uk.news.launch.yahoo.com/dyna/article.html?a=/101028/340/iz76z.html&e=l_news_dm

Ah crap, anyone else know are really good source of viruses and malware?

ejmaztec · 29-10-2010 03:24PM

Stinicker wrote: »

Ah crap, anyone else know are really good source of viruses and malware?

Give me your email address and I'll let you know.

Kimono-Girl · 29-10-2010 03:24PM

neilthefunkeone wrote: »

Nice one.. I owed then 4 euro on my card.. havent been in there in about 5 years though.. Wonder is there interest on that..

you bankrupted them! :eek: :P

fonecrusher1 · 29-10-2010 03:25PM

Biggins wrote: »

Just on the pirate end of things, I see Limewire has just been ordered shut down.

http://uk.news.launch.yahoo.com/dyna/article.html?a=/101028/340/iz76z.html&e=l_news_dm

This is probably the start of the removal of these big p2p sites. Modern law is catching up with them. For years they were untouchable. Those days are gone.

Biggins · 29-10-2010 03:35PM

fonecrusher1 wrote: »

This is probably the start of the removal of these big p2p sites. Modern law is catching up with them. For years they were untouchable. Those days are gone.

Demonoid I expect to be the next big one targeted.

Yakult · 29-10-2010 03:38PM

Biggins wrote: »

Demonoid I expect to be the next big one targeted.

Isohunt too. It will suck when they go.

I cant see xtravision lasting too long more. Could be wrong..

Forest Master · 29-10-2010 03:58PM

Biggins wrote: »

...Or to be more accurate, high-speed internet becoming more available, killed the dvd store.

They must be staying open down the country, in that case.

Dravokivich · 29-10-2010 04:08PM

Biggins wrote: »

Demonoid I expect to be the next big one targeted.

Just because they couldn't get a membership invite :pac:

the_syco · 29-10-2010 04:51PM

R_H_C_P wrote: »

Isohunt too. It will suck when they go.

Pretty sure ISOhunt has already been targeted by someone a year or two back: I remember them having to add in some filters to make the record labels a bit happier.

Teutorix · 29-10-2010 05:04PM

haha, piracy, private trackers for the win.

Mick_D · 29-10-2010 05:05PM

elviscostello wrote: »

Except for the folks that have lost jobs of course.

Yea, my Son was told his job was gone last night - by phone. They don't know if they will even get paid.

Gonzo_Reporter · 29-10-2010 05:48PM

Yea, my Son was told his job was gone last night - by phone. They don't know if they will even get paid.

I work or did work in one of the stores till last night. I was told we'd be paid to the end of the week and any payments for outstanding pay or redundency would be handled by the liquidator... but with anything to do with that company i have my doubts.

While the lack of interest in renting DVDs and tanning may have eventually closed my store, larger stores were still (i believe) making a profit on everything.
Its my opinion that poor management by senior staff lead to yesterdays decision. But the writing has been on the tanning room wall for over a year now, it was sudden but not a surprise to me.
Further more the shop staff and store managers, certainly the ones ive worked with, were fantastic and i wish them the best. I wont miss one particular area manager though.

Consider the DVDs you have out now a parting gift... but theyre probably scratched to bits.

Celly Smunt · 29-10-2010 06:03PM

serves them right,didn't move with the times and over priced on everything.Not to mention the supply of a lot of orange girls on the streets.

WindSock · 29-10-2010 06:05PM

Aw feck, I need to work on my wintertime tan

Gonzo_Reporter · 29-10-2010 06:19PM

pmcmahon wrote: »

serves them right,didn't move with the times and over priced on everything.Not to mention the supply of a lot of orange girls on the streets.

cant believe im standing up for them, they were cheaper than Xtravision for movies. XV are the rip off merchants 4-5 euro a night for a DVD please! and now they have the whole market... but yes they are to blame for the tanning, i had to sell it.
I also sold Skinny Water!!! Same great taste of water but without all that crap in it

Celly Smunt · 29-10-2010 06:21PM

Gonzo_Reporter wrote: »

cant believe im standing up for them, they were cheaper than Xtravision for movies. XV are the rip off merchants 4-5 euro a night for a DVD please! and now they have the whole market... but yes they are to blame for the tanning, i had to sell it.
I also sold Skinny Water!!! Same great taste of water but without all that crap in it

i'd pay the extra 50c to get a workable D.V.D though

Gonzo_Reporter · 29-10-2010 06:25PM

pmcmahon wrote: »

i'd pay the extra 50c to get a workable D.V.D though

Agreed! And in my store youd be lucky to get the newest release as we only got in at most 4 copies of each new title.

29-10-2010 06:29PM

I applied to them about 8 years ago for a part time job before I started my last year in college, never heard back from them, suppose I can give up on it now :pac:

baldymac · 30-10-2010 03:34PM

well for me growing up, i was always looking to the video shops trips looking for up to 30 min for vid, sadly we have moved on with internet lazyness an box office on tv, return next day etc, its just as faze that fading out slowly

oppenheimer1 · 30-10-2010 03:40PM

Chartbusted?

dibi · 30-10-2010 03:42PM

they were never more expensive than xtra-vision!! i worked there!

Rebelheart · 30-10-2010 03:46PM

super_furry wrote: »

http://www.rte.ie/news/2010/1029/chartbusters-business.html

Sad to see but it's been coming for a while. They were always more expensive than Xtra-Vision, had a more limited choice and never diversified into DVD and videogame sales like Xtra-Vision. Add to that the fact that more and more people are downloading films and using postal rental places and it was pretty inevitable.

Watch Xtravision's prices go up the minute the competing Chartbusters shuts down. You can bet your life on that. This is really bad for consumers.

Rebelheart · 30-10-2010 03:47PM

dibi wrote: »

they were never more expensive than xtra-vision!! i worked there!

I have to agree with that. In Phibsboro Chartbusters was almost always cheaper than Xtravision directly across the road.

dibi · 30-10-2010 03:47PM

Gonzo_Reporter wrote: »

I wont miss one particular area manager though

wonder if we had the same one..i worked in the Galway branch...

dibi · 30-10-2010 03:49PM

yea everything in the galway branch was 2quid a night, even new releases..i mean it might have been a badly run business but the price was right. before we got repossessed we definitely were gettin more customers than xtra-vision across the road.but it was too late!

Chartbusters closes down

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