A senior British police officer has warned that the number of UK consumers streaming sports illegally has gone ‘through the roof’.
Speaking to The Financial Times, Emma Warbey, Detective Chief Inspector and head of the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit at the City of London Police, said that use of internet TV media boxes or “sticks” that can be used to illegally stream content had become increasingly prevalent.
.jpg)
Warbey told The Financial Times that her team is focusing its efforts on tackling “resellers and the people at the top of the tree” given that “it’s really hard to stop people doing it”. She added: “We always follow the money and go for the bigger organised crime groups and the bigger organised crime networks.”
Many broadcasters are concerned that an increase in the use of illegal streaming devices has helped normalise piracy for many sports fans in the UK and parts of Europe.
They also say that it risks undermining the value of sports rights.
Warbey told The Financial Times that the police had discovered clear links between pirated sports with money laundering and fraud.
She also said the cost of living crisis had added to the already rising cases of people using illegal but cheaper means to watch sports.
You are not signed in
Only registered users can comment on this article.
.jpg)
Mediaproxy updates LogServer
Software provider Mediaproxy is introducing the latest version of its LogServer analysis and logging platform, which it says now offers greater levels of intelligence and efficiency for live broadcast through AI and the new Monwall Web interactive multiviewer.
.jpg)
Mainstreaming joins OpenMOQ consortium
MainStreaming has joined the OpenMOQ Software Consortium, an industry initiative developing open-source software to implement the IETF’s Media over QUIC (MOQ) and QUIC standards.
.jpg)
Gracenote teams up with Tubi Media
Gracenote, the content intelligence business unit of Nielsen, and Tubi Media Group, a division of Fox Corporation, have announced a new agreement under which Gracenote will provide advanced content discovery and advertising capabilities on Tubi Media Group properties, including Tubi and Fox One.
.jpg)
LTN expands live event support
LTN has announced expanded capabilities for its live event master control offering, which it says provides sports broadcasters, leagues, rights holders, and content owners with a more flexible and scalable approach to managing live event distribution.
.jpg)
MTC Jockey Club becomes first deployment of Zixi’s Mauritius
Live video delivery and workflow orchestration specialist Zixi has announced its first direct deployment in Mauritius with the MTC Jockey Club (MTCJC), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Mauritius Turf Club.
.jpg)