Editor’s note: This article was first published in February 2011. In January 2012 US authorities shut down Megaupload and Megavideo, and Kim Schmitz (by then Kim Dotcom) was arrested in New Zealand. Seriesyonkis also later faced legal action. The article’s framing of download sites as a good business should be read in that light.
If you’ve ever watched or downloaded a video online, you’ve almost certainly passed through Kim Schmitz, creator and owner of Megaupload and Megavideo. Schmitz, regarded as a computer hacker since the age of 16, is one of the internet era’s millionaires.
German-born and living in Australia, at 37 years old, we don’t know how much he earns from his online download empire, but we do know he lives in a house worth more than 17 million euros and travels by private jet, so his personal finances can’t be doing too badly.
He is known for his outrageous, excessive and out-of-control parties and for weighing more than 140 kilos. He has been arrested several times for taking part in illegal car races and for disobeying the authorities.
Meanwhile, in Spain we have two entrepreneurs, Jordi Tamargo and David Martínez, the creators of Seriesyonkis, a site estimated to get around 10 million visits a month. It lives solely off advertising, with several banners that, according to XLSemanal, sell for 300 euros a day, which means the site takes in 18,000 euros a month in advertising revenue.
Seriesyonkis is among the 20 most visited websites in Spain. Clearly, film and download sites have been a good business to start online.
Further reading
- Calvin Ayre, a millionaire catering to vice online
- Ways to make money online
- New social networks focused on professionals and specific markets
Featured image: Robert O'Neill, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
