Hotfile
 | The topic of this article may not meet Wikipedia's general notability guideline. (September 2010) |
| The topic of this article may not meet Wikipedia's notability guideline for web content. (September 2010) |
Type of site | Free File Hosting/Sharing Service |
|---|---|
| Available in | Multilingual (19) |
| Owners | Hotfile Corp. |
| URL | http://hotfile.com |
| Registration | Optional |
Hotfile is a one-click file hosting website that was founded by Hotfile Corp in 2001 in Panama City, Panama. Hotfile currently gets 21,000,000 daily visits.
Usage
Hotfile[1] allows users to upload and download files with any web browser. Non-registered users are allowed to upload up to 400 MB at once. After a successful file upload, the user is given a unique URL which allows others to download the file. Non-registered users have to wait 15 seconds in the download queue and might need to enter a CAPTCHA and have to wait 30 minutes to download another file after a previous download session ends (even if the file did not download completely).
Features
The service has a Link Checker where users can enter file urls in order to check their current availability. There's also a Hotlink feature, which allows users to directly link to their files for additional fee.
Terms of use and Privacy Policy
The users under 13 years old are not allowed to use the service. HotFile is a service provider under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act[2], 17 U.S.C. section 512 ("DMCA"). Hotfile responds to claims of copyright infringement reported to its designated copyright agent.
In Hotfile's Privacy Policy under the 'Usage Data' section they state "We automatically collect usage information...type of Web browser you use, your operating system, your Internet Service Provider, your IP address, the links you use, and the time and duration of your use of the Service...be aware, however, that we may be required to disclose information such as your IP address which could be used by others to attempt to identify you." This is of concern to many Hotfile users that believe in proper privacy instead of logging every users actions. All of this data resides on US servers making it extremely easy for the courts to order Hotfile to hand it over. This policy of logging IP's and associating them with items downloaded is the completely opposite approach to webite such as Fileserve and Rapidshare.
Legal issues
Hotfile has no history of legality problems.[citation needed]
Localization
The website is maintained in 19 languages, including Arabic, Bulgaria, Czech, two types of Chinese, Dutch, German, English, French, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Spanish, Serbian and Turkish.
Affiliate program
Hotfile has its own affiliate program which is encouraging people to become premium users.
See also
- One-click hosting - more information about this type of service
- Tuboodle - British & US based file hosting & sharing service
- Megaupload — Hong Kong-based company established for the use of uploading and downloading files
- RapidShare - German-owned one-click hosting that operates from Switzerland
- MediaFire — a free file and image hosting web site located in Texas, United States
- 4shared — Ukrainian file hosting and sharing service