People in Gedling borough using Kodi set-top boxes to stream Premier League matches could soon lose access to live games following a court order
Internet service providers (ISPs) including Sky, BT, Virgin Media and TalkTalk will now have to block customers’ access to streams provided by third-party add-ons on Kodi at the request of the Premier League.
Until now, they could only go after individual video streams – which were relatively easy to re-establish at different links.
“This will enable us to target the suppliers of illegal streams to IPTV boxes, and the internet, in a proportionate and precise manner,” reads a Premier League statement.
“The new block will enable a proportionate and targeted restriction of content that would otherwise have been proliferated to unauthorised websites and IPTV devices.”
Football fans are now being urged instead to get a Sky Sports or BT Sport subscription, or watch games at a venue that pays for access.
Earlier this week Kodi boxes came under attack from the Intellectual Property Office (IPO), after they launched a bid to try halt sales of the devices.
In a post about its consultation about Kodi boxes, the IPO said: “Despite the legitimate use of this equipment, software is widely available (illicit Kodi extensions being the best known) which connect the boxes to illegal content through streaming websites, file lockers and BitTorrent trackers.
“Broadcasters and content owners have voiced concerns that, although a range of existing legislation applies to the sale and use of these devices (as well as the provision of illicit content streams), the legal framework does not provide sufficient tools to tackle this growing threat.”
The IPO consultation will close on April 7th of this year.
