> Although I confess I don't fully understand why American corporate interests can throw around such weight in New Zealand -- in this judgement, or in the original paramilitary raid on Dotcom's home, either.

> What's the hidden leverage?

Joe Biden is good friends with Chris Dodd[1] who is (was?) the president of the MPAA[2]. Kim Dotcom had this to say previously[3]:

"Best friend of MPAA's Chris Dodd > Joe Biden. Former lawyer of Joe Biden > US Attorney Neil MacBride. Connect the Dodds"

So it seems that a former Senator turned lobbyist used his connection to the former US vice president to pull strings and convince the NZ government that Dotcom deserved a Pablo Escobar style raid on his home.

[1] http://www.cbsnews.com/news/joe-biden-is-a-big-fan-of-chris-...

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Dodd

[3] https://twitter.com/KimDotcom/status/280810245209587712

Also worth noting how arbitrary the rule of law has become in the U.S. There are a lot of little edge cases that are technically illegal but millions of people do them and they are generally ignored. However, if the government decides to go after you they'll examine every single tiny thing you've done to see if they can find something they can trump up charges for.

The charges are often pretty shaky, by they threaten you with decades of prison time if you don't plead guilty. Most people agree because they're rather the certainty of a few years of probation or a year of house arrest than the possibility 20 years in prison.

The US is NZ's third-largest trade partner. As of 2012, the US had $44 billion invested in NZ, which is about 30% of the NZ GDP between 2010-2015.

NZ is also the home of Wetta Digital (you'd be surprised how many major Hollywood films are animated in Wellington on the Wetta sound stages. They're not just the LoTR company), tons of mobile game companies (including PikPok, who Adult Swim contracts all their games through) and Rocket Labs (Auckland Rocket startup).

The big one there is Wetta though. That's one reason the MPAA carries so much weight there. (Wetta is a shit shop btw. I wouldn't suggest taking their contracts. They work people 80+ hours a week during a production cycle. Unless you really love your work, it's a terrible environment).

NZ has no chance of opposing US will unless it wants to go completely in opposition and cut off ties. The US is a giant bully, NZ is a tiny isolated island state. The US managed to get Switzerland to give up banking secrecy, there's no chance for NZ.