In just over 5 days the new MEGA service will launch.  The brainchild of Kim Dotcom, the new cloud file storage service will launch on January 20th, 2013.  Exactly one year after the raid that took down Megaupload.  To be more precise the site will launch on January 20th NZDT and January 19th EST/GMT.  Regardless of what timezone you’re in the new service will be accessible by the end of the week.  Why would we cover the event?  While not directly related to VPN news, the MEGA launch is a new twist on private online storage.

So how is MEGA different from Megaupload?  For starters MEGA will secure all files uploaded using AES encryption.  Any files you upload will be encrypted and only you will hold the key to decrypt them.  Not even the MEGA staff will be able to see what you uploaded.  Adding a level of privacy and security to the new service.

That’s all well and good but what if you want to share your family photos or videos with friends?  You control access to your files with the encryption key.  Share it with whomever you want to let them access your files.  The service will boast some other enhancements like a web interface and large network footprint.  They mention faster data transfers but by avoiding servers in the United States this time around we’ll be interested to see how well MEGA performs.  To find out more visit the new MEGA site which will launch at the end of the week.