File-Sharing Shutdowns
Lobbying behemoth the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) targeted file-sharing sites like Napster and the Pirate Bay for helping users illegally transfer copyrighted material like music, TV shows and movies all over the world. Peter Sunde, Fredrik Neij, Gottfrid Svartholm, and Carl Lundstrom of the Pirate Bay were sent to prison for a year on top of being forced to pay out millions in damages to enormous entertainment-industry conglomerates. Meanwhile, Napster’s Sean Parker went on to become president of Facebook.