With a name like Kim Dotcom—which was adopted as a nickname over time—it’s easy to wonder what this guy has been doing right (and wrong) on the Internet. One of the world’s most wanted cyber fugitives, the guy gloated a few weeks ago about a deal that will pay him as much as $179 million, which only adds to his legacy as U.S. officials try to extradite him from his expensive New Zealand property to face nine piracy and hacker charges over a file-sharing site.
While that sounds terrible for Dotcom—who goes by the name Kim Schmitz—seeing how he has built his company from zero to over $210 million proves that he is powerful, smart and creative—albeit, illegal. Making things even more complicated is that Dotcom has a number of shareholders in a new venture that he launched in 2013, claiming to have seven million confirmed, registered users. While Dotcom and three of his colleagues are set to stand trial for the piracy charges and money laundering from the activity, authorities have had a headache trying to get added charges and extradite the four men.
Claiming that Dotcom cost film studios and record companies more than $500 million and generated more than $175 million by persuading users to pay and store copyrighted content like music, movies and TV shows, the defense is that the men simple offered a digital warehouse for the material, and that they should not be held accountable for holding or obtaining it illegally because they weren’t actively seeking such content.
Needless to say, when rich, flashy millionaires take on the government, it’s expected to be a battle of both egos and facts to see what truth ultimately rules. But one thing’s for sure, Dotcom and his former colleagues have tapped into a system by building a brand that has excelled in the online community—much like former file-sharing sites like Napster and The Pirate Bay.
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