The Motion Picture Association of America has gone on the offensive in its battle against piracy and peer-to-peer sharing of movies, and has launched more than 200 civil suits against users it identifies as being the worst offenders.

The organisation has filed between 200 and 300 lawsuits, according to reports, and the Los Angeles Times says it is particularly targeting people who pirate movies before their DVD release. Individual filesharers could be liable for $30,000 per illegally traded file, and up to $150,000 if the infringement is found to have been "willful".

Read the complete story here. (The Register)