Man who ran illegal football streaming service jailed

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A man who sold Firestick devices he had reconfigured to illegally stream Premier League football matches, despite repeated warnings to cease, has been sentenced to prison.

Jonathan Edge, from Liverpool, loaded the unauthorized streaming services onto Amazon Firesticks at home, then sold them for cash after advertising on Facebook.

The 29-year-old pleaded guilty to three fraud charges following a private prosecution by the Premier League and was sentenced to three years and four months in prison at Liverpool Crown Court.

Kevin Plumb, representing the Premier League, emphasized that efforts to protect broadcast rights would continue by cracking down on illegal activities, regardless of their scale.

Edge was also convicted for accessing and viewing the illegal football streams he was selling.

The court heard that he ran the operation, accepting cash-in-hand payments, and ignored multiple warnings from the Premier League to stop.

Cash payments

“Many people see no harm in illegally streaming TV services but they are wrong,” Det Sgt Steve Frame, from Merseyside Police, said.

He said Edge’s sentence should “serve as a further warning how seriously such copyright theft continues to be taken”.

Mr Plumb said the selling of Premier League broadcast rights helped support “financial contributions to the whole football pyramid”.

“We’re pleased that the courts have once again recognised the importance of safeguarding these rights,” he added.

Keiron Sharp, of the intellectual property rights watchdog FACT, said those who create an illegal business to sell stolen content will be investigated, “regardless of their level of operation or advertising methods”.

In a statement, the Premier League added: “Edge ignored multiple warnings to stop this activity, which was referenced by the judge and treated as an aggravating factor towards the sentence passed.

“The judge also recognised that legitimate subscribers are victims of these fraudulent operations and therefore their impact goes beyond that experienced by the broadcast industry.”