DUBLIN: Fans in Ireland are set to be blocked from watching live Premier League soccer matches on illegal streaming sites in the coming season following a court order.
As reported by The Irish Times, a ruling in the country’s Commercial Court granted English football’s top flight, trading as Football Association Premier League Ltd, Ireland’s first ever order compelling internet service providers (ISPs) to block pirate streams of matches from English soccer’s top flight.
The order is against companies including Eircom/Eir, Sky Ireland, Virgin Media, Ireland and Vodafone Ireland.
The Premier League initiated legal proceedings in Ireland against the country’s five major ISPs at the start of July, in a move aimed at clamping down on the illegal streaming of its matches after obtaining similar orders in the UK last year.
The latest ruling means that illegal streams will now be targeted for disabling in real time using advanced anti-piracy technology, making it possible to block feeds across several platforms and apps “in one blow”, the court heard.
Jonathan Newman, representing the Premier League, added that the IP addresses of illegitimate streaming hosts will be updated at least twice during games so that the blocking can be enabled. This means it will be possible to respond to illegal streams “within minutes”, he said.
The news comes just one week after a new study carried out by digital piracy authority MUSO and sponsorship valuation firm GumGum Sports estimated that clubs in the Premier League are missing out on UK£1 million (US$1.2 million) in sponsorship every game because of illegal streaming.
Piracy is believed to have a considerable impact on the value of television rights, and Spanish soccer’s LaLiga estimates that it loses around €400 million a year due to illegal streaming.
The Premier League, meanwhile, saw the value of its domestic rights dip during its most recent sales process, and broadcasters have warned that they will not be prepared to spend as much on premium sports if rights holders are not being seen to take active measures to combat piracy.
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