Popcorn Time, which was once a giant of illegal downloads and streaming, has announced its definitive shut down due to the clear lack of interest that the platform currently gets. Through a clear message on their website, the platform’s operators confirmed what some enthusiasts already anticipated.
In its busiest period, Popcorn Time was the largest peer-to-peer (P2P) streaming and download platform, thanks to a simple interface and that Netflix came to consider it as a serious threat; Reed Hastings, Netflix founder and CEO, pointed out piracy and Popcorn Time as his greatest competitors.
After a period of great popularity, everything began to change in 2015, when they shut down their first servers due to U.S. authorities starting to put pressure on some of the original developers. In addition to this, Popcorn Time was an open source platform that could be replicated on other domains, so there were more and more options for users looking for online piracy. Most of the websites derived from this code have already closed though.
Even during its peak of activity, the main developers anticipated that the platform would eventually shut down, mainly due to law enforcement activities against torrent websites, which were once the target of advanced police operations, thus decreasing its number and activity levels.
Curiously, it is platforms like Netflix that once again increased the interest in P2P downloads and torrents, since in a matter of a couple of years the availability of exclusive content on streaming platforms skyrocketed considerably.
To learn more about information security risks, malware variants, vulnerabilities and information technologies, feel free to access the International Institute of Cyber Security (IICS) websites.
He is a well-known expert in mobile security and malware analysis. He studied Computer Science at NYU and started working as a cyber security analyst in 2003. He is actively working as an anti-malware expert. He also worked for security companies like Kaspersky Lab. His everyday job includes researching about new malware and cyber security incidents. Also he has deep level of knowledge in mobile security and mobile vulnerabilities.
