Monroville said:
I think there will be a way around this; c'mon folks! If the government couldn't stop BOOZE, they can't stop fan edits.

All those rapidshare files and torrents still exist. They CAN'T take those down. It's just that the convenience of knowing where to go to get the links has been disabled. I think if people want to "take a look at Dr. Zhivago (to quote Clarence Whirley)", we can figure it out.

Still, you have to wonder. What the hell took them this long to finally close shop? I mean, the place has been up for at least a few years. Did someone rat out FanEdit.org?

Exactly. The genie is out of the bottle... They're fighting a losing battle. Why not embrace it and use it as a way to promote sales of back catalog or use it in viral marketing of sequels or something creative. Suing, or threatening to sue, your biggest fans is just dumb. Hollywood / RIAA need to embrace the 21st century and let go of the 20th.