Spanish court docket hits unlawful streamer Roja Directa with €31.6m superb

December 23 – A industrial court docket in A Coruña has ordered the web site’ Roja Driecta’s s mother or father firm, Puerto 80 Tasks, and its director, Igor Seoane, to pay €31.6 million in damages to Grup MediaPro for illegally pirating soccer broadcasts, together with LaLiga matches from the 2014/15 season.  

The court docket discovered Puerto 80 and Seoane collectively and severally responsible for €15.8 million of the entire damages. The calculation is predicated on what the corporate would have paid for reputable entry to Grup MediaPro’s broadcast sign. This judgment comes almost a decade after authorized proceedings in opposition to the positioning started, marking a landmark victory for mental property rights in soccer.

The Supreme Courtroom had already dominated in 2022 that Puerto 80 Tasks and Seoane have been answerable for Roja Directa’s widespread piracy of LaLiga matches. The web site, which operated in Spain, supplied free unlawful streams of premium sports activities content material, together with Spanish league fixtures, producing huge promoting revenues. Judicial studies revealed that only one Puerto 80 account raked in additional than €11 million.

Whereas followers streamed without cost, Puerto 80 cashed in via advertisements and referral commissions from sportsbook platforms. Now, with this €31.6 million judgment, the price of piracy has lastly caught up with the corporate.

Seoane isn’t simply going through monetary penalties – he’s additionally within the dock for prison expenses. Grup MediaPro and LaLiga are in search of a six-year jail sentence for Seoane, whereas the prosecutor is asking for 4 years.

The fees stem from ongoing mental property violations and the income pocketed from Roja Directa’s unlawful actions.

To arrange for future liabilities, Puerto 80 has been ordered to deposit a €4 miliion bond. Regardless of the court docket’s efforts to crack down, Roja Directa continues its illicit operations outdoors Spain, showcasing the worldwide challenges of curbing digital piracy.

For years, Roja Directa symbolised the murky world of unlawful sports activities streaming. Now, with the positioning shuttered in Spain and its administrator going through hefty fines and potential jail time, the case underscores the excessive stakes battle for the enforcement of mental property rights.

Contact the author of this story, Harry Ewing, at moc.l1734965772labto1734965772ofdlr1734965772owedi1734965772sni@g1734965772niwe.1734965772yrrah1734965772