Torrentz.eu, formerly known as Torrentz.com, was the most popular BitTorrent meta-search engine, indexing torrent sites such as KickassTorrents, BTjunkie and The Pirate Bay.
The site was ranked in the top 5 of all BitTorrent sites according to statistics from Alexa. It didn’t offer any downloads on the site but pointed to external torrent sources instead.
Torrentz had a community of more than a million users and lists “verified” torrents on the frontpage.
Here is what happened to Torrentz and why it’s no longer available.
Torrentz shut down in 2016 after being in operation for more than 13 years. The site operator, Flippy, never explained in detail why he took this sudden decision. We do know however that the shutdown was voluntary and the Torrentz domain wasn’t seized or taken over.
Soon after Torrentz.eu said farewell, the unrelated Torrentz2.eu took over.
Torrentz.eu
Founded: July 24, 2003
Founder: Flippy
Closed: August 4, 2016
- New Site Blocking Push Aims to Curb Italy’s Growing Stream-Ripping Numbers
Following a complaint from a local anti-piracy group, Italian telecoms watchdog AGCOM has given the green light to blocking measures against several popular stream-ripping platforms. The sites received millions of monthly visitors in Italy, where stream-ripping from sites such as YouTube has grown to become the most popular method for obtaining pirated music. - Five Men Behind Huge Pirate Streaming Site Want Their Convictions Overturned
Five men found guilty of operating one of the largest pirate streaming services in the U.S. have filed requests for their convictions to be overturned. Kristopher Dallmann, Douglas Courson, Felipe Garcia, Jared Jaurequi, and Peter Huber, were convicted last month by a Las Vegas jury. Four of the men face up to 60 months in prison while Dallmann’s maximum is 48 years. - Piracy Portal ‘Hikari-no-Akari’ Shuts Down Following Legal Pressure
Hikari-no-Akari, a long-established pirate site that specialized in Japanese music, has closed its doors voluntarily. The drastic decision comes shortly after Sony Music Entertainment Japan obtained a subpoena, requiring Cloudflare to share the personal details of the operator. Despite the shutdown, the Recording Industry Association of Japan still plans to hold the site’s operator accountable. - Stealth Piracy App Evaded Apple Again? Just the Tip of the Evasion Iceberg
It recently emerged that yet another pirate movie streaming app managed to evade Apple’s stringent vetting process for more than a year. With incidents like this running in parallel with apps that are blatantly infringing, a new discussion paper asks what more can be done to prevent apps and app stores being used for infringing purposes. We also suggest a free tool to limit exposure to app-related risks. - UK ‘Crackdown’ on Pirate IPTV Streaming Leads to Three Arrests & 40 Warnings
Anti-piracy group FACT assisted UK police to deliver cease-and-desist notices to 40 alleged pirate ‘IPTV operators’. The ‘crackdown’ further resulted in three arrests in Nottingham, Widnes, and Stockton-on-Tees in recent weeks. Meanwhile, Sky reportedly removed more than 3,000 IPTV advertisements from social media platforms since June.
