Data stored on MegaUpload’s servers was expected to be destroyed late this week, but according to the Washington Post the company has secured a two week reprieve from hosting companies.

“It is our understanding that the hosting companies may begin deleting the contents of the servers beginning as early as February 2, 2012,” U.S. District Attorney Neil MacBride wrote in the letter to MegaUpload’s lawyer last week.

Ira Rothken, MegaUpload’s attorney, said that the company is in talks with the Department of Justice to unfreeze some of its assets so it can pay to have the data recovered. Mr. Rothken said that the hosting companies — Cogent and Carpathia — have been “very open to negotiating” to preserve the data.

Mr. Rothken also hopes that some of the data recovered will be used in the company’s defence, proving the digital storage locker was not only used for copyright infringement.

Tags: MegaUpload