MPAA and Donuts announce anti-piracy partnership

Domain name registry Donuts has joined forces with the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) to try and stamp out “large-scale” online piracy.

Under the agreement, the MPAA will be treated as a ‘trusted notifier’ by reporting copyright infringing websites that are registered under a generic top-level-domain operated by Donuts.

The referrals must be accompanied by clear evidence of infringement and evidence that the MPAA has attempted to contact the registrar and hosting provider for a resolution.

Donuts will then contact the website operator to find more evidence. If the website is found to be illegal and in violation of Donuts’ policy then it could be put on hold or suspended.

Jon Nevett, co-founder at Donuts, said: “This is a ground breaking partnership and one we’re proud to undertake.”

Chris Dodd, chair of the MPAA, added: “This agreement demonstrates that the technology community can work together on voluntary initiatives to help ensure vibrant, legal digital marketplaces that benefit all members online.”