New development? Actually they have been doing that probably all around the world for years now.<p>A friend of mine in Germany also got such a letter once and wrote something back along the lines of &quot;Wasn&#x27;t me, don&#x27;t know what you are talking about&quot; and he never heard from them again.<p>They try to profit from the fear of everyday people who rather pay up front, because they don&#x27;t want to risk that the case goes to court, no matter how unlikely this might be. And it&#x27;s even understandable, ordinary folks probably really panic when they see such a letter and all the legal talk and underlying threats that are made.<p>It&#x27;s as despicable as patent trolling.<p>First avoid such a situation:<p>-) use vpn if possible (check with their policies, whether they allow torrent traffic or maybe they ban it from certain servers, preferably use a provider that does not log)<p>-) quite simply never download newer material with big companies behind them from public trackers. most of the times these letters regard the newest Hollywood movies, a current album by a big pop star or the newest game everyone has been waiting for, not Taxi Driver, The Godfather Trilogy, Quake 3 or the weird Japanese pop band from the 80s you are into<p>and if you are in such a situation:<p>-) consult your lawyer or search on the Internet how to properly respond, do not just pay!