SPANISH COURT JAILS SERVICIO-IPTV OPERATORS IN PIRACY CASE

A Spanish court has sentenced those behind the Servicio-IPTV group to prison terms of up to 3 years for intellectual property offences linked to the illegal sale of pay-TV signals, including access to Movistar+.

According to Eleconomista, the Provincial Court of Malaga ordered the permanent closure of the services servicio-iptv, servicioiptvccam and servicioiptvpremium, after finding they breached Spain’s Intellectual Property Law. The ruling was delivered via a plea agreement, with the defendants admitting the facts and accepting the prosecution’s requested sentence, cutting the penalty and removing the option of an appeal.

Investigators said the group sold access lists to more than 8,000 national and international TV channels through subscription packages priced from around €50 per year, alongside monthly, quarterly and semi-annual options.

The operation was led by Spain’s National Police Central Cybercrime Unit. Telefónica initiated the legal action, with other rights holders later joining via ADIVAN, whose members include Sony Pictures Entertainment Iberia, 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment Spain and The Walt Disney Company.

Alongside prison sentences and fines, the court set civil liability in favour of Telefónica, initially estimated at €80,000, citing the scale of the alleged commercial benefit and the economic impact on content owners.

Source: broadbandtvnews.com