As two more music-sharing sites are taken down, who will be next?

Amidst the talk about the controversial anti-internet piracy bills last week, the US Federal government took action with current legislation against popular filesharing Megaupload by suspending the website and arresting its founder, the self-styled Kim Dotcom. Two smaller but similar digital locker services in Filesonic and Fileserve have also been suspended and questions are now being asked about which others websites may soon be for the chop too. The authorities are trying to tackle companies that illegally host copyrighted material which puts the likes of Rapidshare and Mediafire under pressure.

Furthermore, as the increasingly popular streaming site Soundcloud just announced its 10 millionth user, there are worries that these much loved and used smaller platforms are at risk too. The concern is voiced over at TechCrunch:

“They also make sharing easy, but in a way that’s a lot more private than MegaUpload. But the prime goal of all these sites is open file sharing — just like MegaUpload […] I love SoundCloud and enjoy exploring other people’s musical works. But there is copywritten material uploaded to the service as well. A single 50 Cent song is listed in the Justice Department’s complaint against MegaUpload (General allegations, section 6)”

The scale of Megaupload’s operations was a key factor in the action taken by the authorities and perhaps others like Soundcloud will remain unscathed but these do feel like choppy times for music on the net.