Illegal TV service provider jailed in Dubai

Dubai - The court also ordered him to pay Dh50,000 fine and deportation at the end of his prison sentence.

By Staff Reporter

Published: Fri 27 Nov 2015, 5:17 PM

A Dubai court has sentenced a dealer of illegal IPTV (Internet Protocol Television) services to three months in jail and fined him Dh50,000. The court also ordered his deportation at the end of his prison sentence.
The ruling is being seen as a milestone in the fight against TV piracy, championed by OSN, the region's leading pay-TV network.
OSN has been leading a successful campaign against the illegal use of dish TV across the UAE and other Gulf markets. The conviction on the IPTV pirate services, which are primarily provided to Western expats, highlights that authorities are committed to addressing all forms of copyright and intellectual property rights (IPR) infringement.
In a previous case, a distributor and seller of an illegal IPTV service operating under the name of UKTV Abroad was ordered to pay a fine of Dh50,000 after being found guilty of pushing pirated feeds of TV channels from the UK.
The recent conviction follows an increase in proliferation of illegal IPTV services in the UAE through platforms such as UKTV Abroad, IP888 TV, Primetimetv.TV, Volka TV, Royal IPTV, GIPTV and Expat TV.
David Butorac, CEO of OSN, said: "The conviction is a strong message to all illegal TV service providers that the government and authorities take copyright infringement seriously. Distributing IPTV service in the UAE is illegal and customers must also be vigilant against accessing such service. We will take strong action and work with the authorities concerned to curb all forms of piracy that impact the industry."
reporters@khaleejtimes.com