Amazon Remote Disables Piracy Apps Sideloaded on Fire TV Devices
Always sold at highly competitive prices that almost anyone can afford, Amazon’s Fire TV Stick has enjoyed more than a decade of success, driving millions to the company’s video and online retail platforms. Popular all year round and at times selling out in the run-up to Christmas, the Fire TV Stick became a household brand, assisted in no small part by its Android-based operating system allowing sideloading of apps from third-party...
Fears of “Overblocking” Unite Critics of U.S. Pirate Site Blocking Bill
After a decade of focusing efforts overseas, the push for pirate site blocking has landed back on American shores. There are currently two bills in the making; the Foreign Anti-Digital Piracy Act (FADPA) introduced by Representative Zoe Lofgren in February, and Representative Darrell Issa’s ‘American Copyright Protection Act’ (ACPA), which tackles the same issue from a different angle. ACPA has yet to be formally introduced, but a...
Meta Secures Bittersweet Fair Use Victory in AI ‘Piracy’ Case
Over the past two years, rightsholders of all kinds have filed lawsuits against companies that develop AI models. Most of these cases allege that AI developers used copyrighted works to train LLMs without first obtaining authorization. Meta is among a long list of companies now being sued for this allegedly-infringing activity, including a class action lawsuit filed by authors Richard Kadrey, Sarah Silverman, and Christopher Golden....
€850K IPTV Piracy Haul Ends in 4+ Years in Prison & 6,000 Users Facing Fines
Selling pirate IPTV subscriptions has always been illegal and after the EU’s top court confirmed as much in 2017, consuming unlicensed content is illegal too. Nevertheless, these offenses are typically treated differently. Once identified, those who operate or sell access to illicit services are unlikely to get a free pass. Yet subscribers to those services have almost always walked away completely unscathed. Limited Time For Success...
ACE Shuts Down Filma24, Albania’s Movie Piracy Juggernaut
Online piracy is a global problem for copyright holders, but some threats are relatively localized. In addition to internationally oriented sites such as The Pirate Bay, Hianime, Cineby and many others, there are also many local favorites. Filma24 Five years ago, Filma24 was Albania’s leading pirate site, with over half of its visitors hailing from the Southeastern European country, making it one of the nation’s most popular websites....
Indian FIFA Club World Cup Piracy Blocking Order Felt Globally
The High Court in Delhi, India, regularly issues site blocking orders, requiring Internet providers to block access to pirate sites. These orders have targeted sites that stream movies and TV series, both from Hollywood and Bollywood, but also sites that specialize in pirated sports streams. Last week we covered a new “superlative” injunction that temporarily extends blocking powers to deal with pirated cricket matches, protecting the...
