I Don't Think This Will Make a Difference

According to Gizmodo (normally the sane part of Gawker):

Hands On With Kim Dotcom’s New Mega: This Service Could Dismantle Copyright Forever

I doubt if it will make much of a difference. Wasn't it already possible to encrypt files locally and then share them with a public-key system?

Even if it makes such techniques more popular, there are other ways to enforce copyright. We might have a state-mandated operating system with built-in spyware. If that falls through, there might be a free (gratis but not liber) operating system (subsidized through some lofty-sounding government program) that will include spyware. It might not be mandatory, but if it becomes popular among idiots, the rest of us might have to go along. If there are PhDs in hard sciences who insist on Word …

This style of rhetoric might also explain the Aaron Swartz case. It was yet another case of telling people “You can't achieve your goals unless you create a totalitarian regime!” and having that backfire.