The police have used this tactic with devastating effect against startups such as Megaupload, a popular file-sharing site that was shuttered by the federal government in January.
Deploying British Columbia-grown fruit to full effect, the company concocts 25 spirits on site, including fruit liquors such as blueberry and sea buckthorn, and a taste bud-popping prune brandy called Old Italian.
The prosecution claims the site provides a search engine that helps people find and download copyrighted material including movies, music and games -- in effect, enabling copyright theft.