France/anti-piracy: first decision blocking fraudulent addresses and websites identified by beIN

"As part of the new legislation aimed at combating sports content piracy, beIN Sports France, a pioneer in the fight against the illegal broadcasting of sports content and events, obtained, via the Paris Court of Justice on 20/01/2022, the first court decision requesting the blocking of fraudulent addresses and websites, previously identified by the channel," said the pay-TV group on 25/01/2022. "This major decision comes at a time when beIN Sports France is broadcasting the whole of the TotalEnergies AFCON Cameroon 2021, a competition that has historically been heavily pirated."

"In the context of this decision and in compliance with the new article L. 333-10 of the Sports Code, ISPs have ensured the blocking of infringing sites and addresses. Users of these platforms were thus unable to access illegal live broadcasts. In line with this decision, Arcom will now have the power to request ISPs to block any new site - identified as of the decision - that is illegally streaming live. This measure is intended to significantly reduce the volume of fraudulent signals," added beIN Sports…