Blog Post

PRESS RELEASE: PREMIER LEAGUE AND IRDETO COLLABORATE WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES

AAPA

11th April 2017

TO SHUT DOWN ONE OF THE LARGEST IPTV PIRACY BUSINESSES IN EUROPE

Spanish National Police, Europol, Eurojust and other authorities team up on global anti-piracy investigation leading to raid of 12 locations in Spain and Bulgaria

AMSTERDAM , 11 April 2017 – The Spanish National Police and Europol have publicly announced the successful raid of one of the largest European illegal IPTV streaming businesses. In a collaborative operation with Europol, Eurojust, Spanish specialized computer crimes prosecutors, Premier League and Irdeto , 12 locations were raided in Spain and Bulgaria. Dubbed “Operation Casper,” eight individuals were arrested for the illegal distribution of 1,000 pay TV channels across two Internet Service Providers (ISPs) through the use of IPTV technology. The servers used to provide illegal access to the channels were shut down and numerous documents incriminating the individuals under investigation were also confiscated. [ Click here to watch Police video of what was found at the scene ].

The investigation was initiated by the Premier League as part of a global effort to combat illegal online redistribution of its live broadcasts. Irdeto identified a Danish citizen residing in Spain who owned an ISP in Málaga used to illegally broadcast encrypted TV signals to thousands of consumers and businesses across Europe. It was discovered that this individual was the leader of a criminal organization that was able to provide a high-quality pirate service rivaling offerings from legal operators. Operation Casper also uncovered another illegal organization located in Silistra, Bulgaria that was operated by the same criminal network who had another internet provider in that location covering different European countries. Both of the ISPs identified were legally established, performing legal activities while also exploiting their capacities to provide illegal services.

“These actions are just one part of the largest anti-piracy campaign the Premier League has conducted to protect its copyright,” said Kevin Plumb, Director of Legal Services, Premier League. “The raids in Spain and Bulgaria by the Spanish Police and law enforcement agencies are a clear indication that IPTV piracy will not be tolerated. Our model, like other sports and creative industries, is predicated on the ability to market and sell rights and protect our intellectual property. It is because of this that clubs can invest in and develop talented players, build world class stadiums, and support young people in schools and communities across the country."

Engaged by the Premier League for piracy detection and investigative services, Irdeto’s team of experts worked closely with the Premier League, Spanish National Police and law enforcement agencies to gather information and evidence leading to the raid. This information resulted in the 12 simultaneous raids in Spain and Bulgaria, proving that both ISPs were illegally distributing pirated content. The disbanded criminal organization also controlled three other entities that provided the content to its customers.

“The efforts of the Spanish Police and law enforcement to dismantle pirate organizations like this is critical in the fight against IPTV piracy,” said Mark Mulready, Senior Director, Cyber Services & Investigations at Irdeto . “We continue to support our customers, partners and law enforcement agencies to identify large-scale cross-border pirate networks and help combat piracy. By detecting, analyzing, investigating and countering piracy, our collaborative efforts send a message to the pirate community that they will be found and brought to justice.”

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AAPA MEMBERS JOIN FORCES WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT IN THE WORLD’S LARGEST-EVER OPERATION AGAINST AUDIOVISUAL PIRACY

by AAPA • 27 November 2024

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) has supported the Catania Public Prosecutor’s Office, the Croatian State Attorney Office for Suppression of Corruption and Organised Crime and law enforcement agencies in Italy, Switzerland, Sweden, Croatia and England in dismantling the world’s largest transnational criminal organisation alleged to be serving pirated audiovisual content to over 22 million users, and generating over 250 million euros in illegal revenue per month. The operation, conducted yesterday, was coordinated by Europol and Eurojust and involved over 270 officers from the Polizia Postale carrying out 89 property searches in 15 Italian regions. An additional 14 searches were conducted by law enforcement agencies abroad, including five addresses in England, and further searches and seizures in the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, Romania, France, Bulgaria, Germany and Croatia. 11 people were arrested by the Cybercrime Division of the Croatian Police. During yesterday's searches, cryptocurrencies in excess of EUR 1,650,000 and cash in excess of EUR 40,000 were seized as alleged proceeds of the offences committed. These immediately seized proceeds represent only a fraction of an illegal business that is alleged to yield approximately EUR 3 billion per annum. Digital piracy harms the entertainment and creative industries across the continent and is often run by sophisticated criminal networks that may use their profits to fund other serious forms of criminal activity. At the same time, illegal streams can expose the end user to the risks of data theft, fraud and malware. Mark Mulready, Co-president of AAPA, said: “We applaud the efforts of the Catania Public Prosecutor’s Office, the Croatian State Attorney Office for Suppression of Corruption and Organised Crime, Europol, Eurojust, and all of the law enforcement agencies involved in these operations. The scale of these multi-jurisdictional law enforcement actions highlights the considerable challenge our industry faces when dealing with such sophisticated international pirate networks. We are proud to have collaborated with our law enforcement partners to provide technical training and in-field support to assist them in successfully tackling the world’s largest pirate network. We are very grateful to the AAPA members who supported this action day, including Premier League, Sky Group, Nagravision, Deutsche Fußball Liga (DFL), beIN Sports, United Media, Friend MTS and Irdeto. We will continue to closely collaborate with law enforcement agencies in Europe and beyond to enable them to successfully identify, investigate and prosecute large-scale cross-border pirate networks.” ---------- AAPA contact: Mark Mulready +31651246415 Co-President AAPA Miranda Rock +44 7957 391 498 Rocket Launch for AAPA

Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance 2024-2029 EU Manifesto

by AAPA • 1 October 2024

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) publishes its first Manifesto, linked here . The document aims to recognise past efforts of EU legislators when it comes to content protection and the fight against copyright infringement, whilst admitting that more can and should be done to address this growing issue. Miruna Herovanu, Executive Director of AAPA said : " After years of laying the groundwork to combat online piracy it’s time for EU policymakers and beyond to fully acknowledge that decisive, targeted measures are needed at the European level. The rise of digital theft demands action. We call for strong political resolve to end the theft of our members' content. We're ready to support every stakeholder—law enforcement, policymakers, and industry representatives—to dismantle criminal networks and protect European consumers from harm."

AAPA ANNOUNCES NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

by AAPA • 28 May 2024

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) has announced the appointment of Miruna Herovanu as its Executive Director. Miruna was previously the Director at the Association of Commercial Television and Video on Demand in Europe in charge of Intellectual Property and Competition policies. She took up her position with AAPA on 27 May 2024 and will be based in Brussels. Miruna will replace Sheila Cassells who is retiring as Executive Vice President of AAPA and will report on a day-to-day basis to the two Co-Presidents, Mark Mulready, VP of Cyber Services at Irdeto and Oliver Pribramksy, Head of IP Protection and Committees at the Deutsche Fussball Liga. She will be responsible for the implementation of the strategy agreed by AAPA members, managing relationships with law enforcement agencies such as Europol, Eurojust, INTERPOL and the European Institutions, delivery of AAPA’s Working Group goals and general management of the Alliance. Mark Mulready said that: “We are delighted to appoint someone of Miruna’s calibre and experience to become the Executive Director of AAPA. Miruna’s commitment to copyright protection is well-known. Her knowledge of the Brussels institutions and the EUIPO will stand AAPA in good stead for future policy developments. A priority will be for Miruna to work closely with AAPA members, the EUIPO and the European Institutions to deliver on, inter alia, the goals of combatting online piracy of sports and other live events recommendation.” Miruna Herovanu commented that: “My professional experience demonstrated that piracy is an ever-growing issue that eats at the heart of Europe’s most important industries. This is a golden opportunity and a new professional challenge that will help further develop my passion for and commitment to protecting copyright. Being able to work with and support industry experts and practitioners in AAPA, law enforcement, the European Institutions and other trade associations is essential to the fight against piracy. I am excited to be taking on this role.”