The Pirate Bay - Definition from the Hotspot Shield Encyclopedia

The pirate bay is a large index of online content pertaining to the entertainment industry.

The site was created in 2003 a Swedish group caked Piratbryan and is still operating today. Pirate Bay allows its users to search for different torrent and magnet files which allow peer to peer file sharing. Due to the content it includes, and the fact that it facilitates the download of files that may infringe on copyright laws, the website has seen much controversy and in 2009 its founders were arrested and had to serve a prison sentence. In the early stages of development, the site was funded via public donations, but in later years it used paid advertisements and an online store as sources of revenue.