You could finally be sent to court for watching IPTV and illegal streams

The clock could well be ticking when it comes to finding yourself with a nasty fine or hauled in to court over illegal streaming and using IPTV services, with one of the world's leading media companies looking to take on the individual as well as the people behind illegal streams.

IPTV [Internet Protocol television] is used by millions of people around the world as a way of getting around paying the fees that come with premium content.

From the Premier League to the latest Netflix shows and cinematic releases, more and more people want to watch the newest films, TV shows, and live events without paying the asking price.

As a result, people are paying hugely discounted fees for illicit subscription services that have illegally taken premium content and re-sold it themselves on a platform of their own, usually via a form of IPTV.

So far, all eyes have been on prosecuting people behind these services which has included a monstrous $30 million fine to one man selling IPTV packages. And it's a fight that doesn't obey the constraints of geography, with the likes of the Premier League taking its fight global.

Now, one of the world's streaming giants is looking to take the fight against piracy further by focusing on those buying the illegal streaming packages as well as those supplying.

IPTV showing premium content for free or for a discounted fee is illegal (Getty Stock Images)

The revelation came in Italy following on from the country's introduction of its revolutionary Piracy Shield system.

Piracy Shield is used across Italy to protect the intellectual rights that are held by the big sporting giants in Italy. We're talking about Amazon Prime Video, Sky, and DAZN.

It works by blocking illegal streaming of their content, whether that's of the Champions League, Serie A, or other sporting events only viewable behind their paywalls. Part of the services it blocks includes IPTV, as well as even DNS and VPN services that exist to bypass geo-specific rules - which includes those watching via the UK.

But the fight continues, given that pirates are doing whatever they can to get around the IPTV blocker and keep their services running.

Millions are lost to piracy every year, with the Italian top flight football league - Serie A - losing out on €285 million (£240 million) every 12 months.

Watching premium sport on IPTV is illegal (Getty Stock Images)

As a result, Romano Righetti, Director of External and Public Affairs for DAZN, has said the next move must be to target the ordinary man and woman using the illegal services.

As reported by TorrentFreak, he said: “Some estimate that the number of illegal viewers could be in the order of two or three million, but it’s obviously very difficult to detect as they are illegal.

"However, it’s clear that strong action against piracy would not only benefit the treasury. Obviously, revenues received under a legal regime are treated differently to those generated under an illegal one.

"The mechanism we have introduced could activate a virtuous circle whereby football would enjoy greater financial resources from us, although I cannot speak on behalf of our competitors, the other broadcasters."

You could soon be prosecuted for watching illegal streams (Getty Stock Images)

Righetti said that 'we must take note that pirates are very sophisticated operators who know how to circumvent blocking' and as a result, hinted that more services that provide internet access must sign up to the likes of Piracy Shield.

From there, these services could have to hand over IP addresses and domains of illegal services before blocking them. All eyes would then on hitting those using the pirating services.

Righetti explained that 'another very important step would be to put the Public Prosecutor’s Office in a position to prosecute not just those who offer piracy but those who buy piracy services', describing this move as an 'absolutely fundamental step' to rooting out piracy and getting people back to paying for legal streaming services. And given that the Piracy Shield system used by DAZN has the ability to bypass VPNs and target those not in Italy, expect to make the list if you're using illegal Italian services to watch premium content.