Illegal IPTV Streaming Threatens Pay-TV Sports Broadcasters

The threat looms over the business of sports program broadcasters, pay-TV. Its name is IPTV (or television broadcast over a network using the Internet Protocol). This piracy genius in vogue in the Maghreb countries is starting to settle in France, notes the legal director of beIN Sports, Caroline Guenneteau.

It is the channel chosen by a quarter of the French to illegally access their television, according to a 2018 study by Hadopi, the authority responsible for protecting rights on the Internet, reports the Sofoot portal of September 10.

"You have to admit that the plug and play system of IPTV, it works very well. It’s very effective. I’m sorry to say it, but it seems to work better than a legal system," testifies Caroline Guenneteau.

The rush towards this magical piracy box is explained by its low cost and the ease of installation. Its user only has to spend between 30 and 100 euros per year and there he is flooded with channels, ready to zap between beIN Sports, RMC Sport, Canal + or even Téléfoot. All with often impeccable image quality.

This state of affairs does not leave indifferent the holders of the exclusive broadcasting rights who are forming an association within the APPS (Association for the Protection of Sports Programs).

Their concern? To seize justice to stop this movement which, if not stopped, condemns them to certain and very imminent death. For the moment, the crisis due to Covid-19 has imposed a truce between the two rival camps.