Web entrepreneur Kim Dotcom wins YouTube extradition battle

Internet entrepreneur Kim Dotcom has been allowed by a judge to stream on YouTube his appeal against extradition from New Zealand to the United States.

Dotcom, 42, and three colleagues at former file-sharing website Megaupload are appealing a decision to send them to face conspiracy, racketeering and money-laundering charges.

Ira Rothken, Mr Dotcom’s lawyer, said: “It provides everybody in the world with a seat in the gallery of the New Zealand courtroom. It’s democracy at its finest.”

He said streaming of the appeal in Auckland would begin on Wednesday, although there would a 20-minute delay to prevent any evidence protected by the court from becoming public. The appeal is expected to last six weeks.

Megaupload was one of the most popular sites on the internet until it was closed in 2012. US prosecutors claim it was widely used by people to illegally download songs, TV shows and films.

Mr Dotcom and Mathias Ortmann, Bram van der Kolk and Finn Batato deny wrongdoing and say they cannot be held responsible for people who used the site for illegal purposes.