October 30, 2013

2 min read

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Isohunt BitTorrent site rises from the dead as Isohunt.to

Isohunt.to looks like an exact replica of the original Isohunt. (Credit: Screenshot by Dara Kerr/CNET) It's been two weeks since BitTorrent search engine Isohunt agreed to exit the Internet after reaching a $110 million settlement deal over copyright infringement with the Motion Picture Association of America.

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It's been two weeks since BitTorrent search engine Isohunt agreed to exit the Internet after reaching a $110 million settlement deal over copyright infringement with the Motion Picture Association of America. But, a quick glance at the site Isohunt.to and it seems the search engine appears to be alive.

No, Isohunt founder Gary Fung didn't renege on his settlement -- rather, fans of the site decided to make an exact clone of the original Isohunt, according to TorrentFreak. Isohunt.to is almost a perfect replica of Isohunt.com; it has the same interface, categories, and torrent pages.

"IsoHunt is back online! It's the same old isoHunt from the outside but very different from the inside," Isohunt.to wrote in a blog post on Wednesday. "We have nothing in common with the isoHunt Inc. that made the original website. We proudly copied it and are happy to share."

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Isohunt was one of the most popular BitTorrent sites online; Fung claimed it had 44.2 million peers and 13.7 million active torrents. Earlier this month, the site was slated to shutter indefinitely after years of court battles over copyright infringement with the MPAA.

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Under the terms of the settlement, Fung had seven days to shut down the site, as well as close three other sites that redirect to Isohunt -- Podtropolis, TorrentBox, and Edtk-it.com. Apparently, before the closure, Isohunt.to's owners were able to copy and resurrect their new site, according to TorrentFreak.

The new owners are adamant that Fung has nothing to do with their site. In fact, when Fung caught wind that a group was copying his site before the closure deadline, he shuttered Isohunt down several days early. But, it appears Isohunt.to's owners had already nabbed most of what they needed.

"IsoHunt can definitely be called a file-sharing icon. People got used to it and they don't want to simply let it go," Isohunt.to's owners told TorrentFreak. "We want those people to feel like being at home while visiting isohunt.to. The main goal is to restore the website with torrents and provide users with the same familiar interface."

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