European law enforcement agencies have conducted a mass take down operation of one of the largest illegal streaming networks in the world. Assisted by Europol and Eurojust, law enforcement agencies in Bulgaria, Croatia, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Romania, Sweden and the United Kingdom were able to conduct the operation which saw 102 suspects identified, 11 people arrested, 29 servers seized, 100 domains taken down, and €1.6 million in cryptocurrency and €40,000 in cash seized.
The primary aim of the operation was to target those distributing copyrighted material on the illegal streaming service IPTV. The copyright material includes films and television shows, with over 2,500 television channels, including Sky TV, being made available to more than 22 million users worldwide, as well as a plethora of content available on streaming services such as DAZN, Amazon Prime and Netflix.
Distributing copyright works without the consent of the copyright owner is a clear act of copyright infringement under both European law and domestic law, including the law of England and Wales. In addition to copyright infringement, those arrested are being investigated for crimes such as money laundering and cybercrime of which there have been indications. Additionally, when properties were raided by law enforcement, various weapons and drugs were seized. It was estimated that the illegal streaming network generated a monthly revenue of €250 million and it is said to be the largest pirate IPTV operation in Europe, if not the world.
Although this operation has been shut down, other IPTV operators are still distributing the pirated material to users globally. This is a common issue in relation to the distribution of pirated works and counterfeit goods and is often compared to the game of ‘whack a mole’. When law enforcement shuts down one illicit operation, another will quickly pop up to take its place, which demonstrates the service’s demand among users.
If you have any questions on the above, please do not hesitate to contact the team at McDaniels Law on 0191 281 4000 or legal@mcdanielslaw.com.
