An expert on IPTV and piracy issues a warning about the upcoming months.
The police and rights holders are aware of the problems with IPTV services. TV channels' revenue is directly impacted by this activity, which lowers the value of the expensive broadcasting rights they have purchased.
In addition to breaking the law, anyone who illegally accesses a free football stream, movie, or series is also hurting the broadcast rights holders.
Authorities and rights holders have responded by creating advanced mechanisms to stop these practices. One example is the model promoted by the English Premier League, which since 2017 has mastered dynamic blocking of pirated broadcasts.
It allows ISPs to block servers distributing illegal content in real time. Meanwhile, Italy has taken its own approach with the controversial Piracy Shield system, which seeks to protect live streaming with stricter blocking.
While these developments represent an important step in the fight against piracy, they are not without risks. Chris White, an expert at FriendMTS, warned of bans, where access to legitimate services is restricted due to errors in automated systems .
The most famous example occurred in Italy, where Piracy Shield accidentally blocked Cloudflare’s IP addresses, causing a disaster and affecting many legitimate websites. Incidents like this have serious consequences.
Not only does this damage the reputation of the police, but it also impacts users and can result in financial losses for companies that comply with the law. In White’s words, “When disaster strikes, no one wants to be held accountable for disrupting legal services, damaging brands, or impacting revenue.”
In the future, there is an urgent need for more precision and oversight in these technologies. Blocking systems must be able to accurately distinguish between legal and illegal transmissions to avoid collateral damage.
This requires striking a balance between the effectiveness of anti-piracy tools and the protection of legal services, which can only be achieved by combining advanced technology with strict oversight.
In the coming months, we are likely to see a more cautious approach to these blocking systems. There is expected to be greater cooperation between the police and the broadcasters themselves to regulate blocking techniques, ensuring that only illegal IPTV streams are affected.