It looks like Torrent.is, a private BitTorrent tracker established exclusively for residents of Iceland, may be shutting down for good - and may also have to pay penalties to copyright holders.
The site claimed as much as 10% of Iceland's population as members, and when the site was temporarily shut down in November 2007, Internet traffic in the small country was literally cut in half. Ernesto of TorrentFreak is reporting that, after a court hearing this week, it looks increasingly likely that not only will the next shut down be a permanent one, but that the site's admins may well have to pay up damages to the clients of SMAIS. (That's basically the Icelandic version of the MPAA.)
Snæbjörn Steingrímsson, an executive from SMAIS did not have an exact amount of damages, but he estimated it to be several million kronur (the island's currency).
The head administrator of Torrent.is, Svavar Kjarrval, still believes they have a strong case, and told TorrentFreak, "The plaintiffs are making an outrageous claim. They argue that website and domain owners should always be responsible for copyright violations of third parties. The case could set a dangerous precedent if the court agrees with their claims.”