Ash Knotek/Snappers/ZUMAPress.comThere's one less unnecessary thing on the Internet these days.
A federal judge has granted a temporary restraining order preventing distributors from haggling over the new Verne Troyer sex tape and TMZ.com—or any other site—from posting anymore clips of the 50-minute video.
Troyer sued TMZ, celeb-porn broker Kevin Blatt and online adult-film rental service SugarDVD for $20 million, claiming violation of privacy and right to publicity, copyright and trademark infringement and misappropriation of name and likeness.
When it posted a clip of Troyer's encounter with his then-girlfriend on Wednesday, TMZ reported that SugarDVD had offered Blatt $100,000 for the tape, which Troyer claims was stolen from his home months ago.
In his decision Friday, U.S. District Judge Philip Gutierrez wrote that the 39-year-old Austin Powers actor had "demonstrated that he will suffer irreparable harm to his reputation" if the tape is distributed.
The judge also stated that he could be inclined to impose a stricter injunction if TMZ and the others cannot come up with a reason why this tape should be on the market. (But we'd certainly like to see them try.)
As of Friday afternoon, TMZ had removed the Troyer sex tape clip from its live site.