CNet notes that Google pulls links to Kazaa imitator. This is ominously bad news for the master of all things search. Other companies will surely notice this tactic and start pelting Google with DCMA affidavits.

In response to a legal threat that invoked the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, Google has removed from its index eight sites that distribute a hacked version of file-swapping service Kazaa.

The popular search engine took action last month after it received a legal notification from Sharman Networks, owner of Kazaa, claiming that the eight sites contained software that violated the company's "exclusive rights" under U.S. copyright law.

The software, Kazaa Lite, is an unauthorized copy of Kazaa with the pop-up ads removed. These advertisements, often called "spyware," appear every few minutes and cannot be turned off.