Brazil Advances Criminal Prosecution of American Yout.com Operator
Over the past few years, stream-ripping service Yout.com has fought legal battles on several continents. The most prominent lawsuit was filed by the site’s operator, American developer Johnathan Nader, who took the RIAA to court in an attempt to have the site declared legal. Criminal Prosecution The RIAA case is still under appeal and Yout.com remains available in most countries. Not in Brazil, however, as the site was effectively...
Employee Pleads Guilty in “Spider-Man” Pre-Release Piracy Case
Three years ago, pirated Blu-ray copies of “Spider-Man: No Way Home” began circulating on pirate sites, weeks before its official release. Such high-profile leaks are rare, and the source of the breach remained unknown until earlier this year. In February, the U.S. Department of Justice indicted 37-year-old Steven Hale from Tennessee, a former employee of a disc manufacturing and distribution company in Memphis. While working at the...
Pirate IPTV Consumed By 30% of Swedes, Including 50% of Men Under 35
Describing Sweden as a country with a serious pirate IPTV problem is technically accurate, but lacking in all-important context. As a member of the European Union, Sweden is among 27 member states experiencing broadly similar difficulties. The main drivers usually boil down to lots of content being accessible from one supplier, at a price people can afford or are willing to pay. There are variables across the bloc, from consumer...
U.S. Govt. Backs Cox in Landmark Supreme Court Battle Over ISP Piracy Liability
In 2019, Internet provider Cox Communications lost its legal battle against a group of dozens of record labels, including Sony and Universal. Following a two-week trial, a Virginia jury held Cox liable for its pirating subscribers. The ISP failed to disconnect repeat infringers and was ordered to pay $1 billion in damages. This case is one of many. Other ISPs have been accused of being similarly lax in their stance against alleged...
LaLiga’s “Precise” Blocking Cut Piracy By 40-60%, “Without Collateral Impact”
When rightsholders, broadcasters, and ISPs have a shared interest in the success of a multi-billion euro broadcasting rights deal, there’s no dispute over the need for a blocking order. With formalities out of the way, who argues against asking the court for anything less than the full measures the judge is prepared to authorize? When Telefonica spent billions acquiring broadcasting rights from LaLiga, the companies received full...
Musi Alleges Apple’s App Store Removal Was Orchestrated, Seeks Sanctions
Last September, Apple removed the popular music streaming app Musi from its App Store, affecting millions of users. Apple’s action wasn’t completely unexpected. Music industry groups had been trying to take Musi down for a long time, branding it a ‘parasitic’ app that skirts the rules. Musi Sues Apple Delisting from the App Store put the future of Musi directly at risk. The company initially hoped to resolve the matter with Apple...
