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Such favour should be assumed if the downloading of files is rewarded with benefits, if an anonymous free service is provided, or if a premium service is offered, subject to a fee, for increased download and storage capacities. Only in this case does the file host have a moral duty, according to German law, to conduct regular controls of third-party link collections referring to its service. In this article, the author evaluates file hosting services according to Swiss law, particularly also in the light of the federal court ruling 5A_792/2011 on 14 January 2013 (Tribune de Génève) and investigates whether, based on the legal situation in Switzerland, a civil liability could be established based on the risk clause for file hosting services, along the same lines as indirect liability (Störerhaftung) in Germany.

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