Sky gives stark warning to people planning to stream Premier League illegally

With subscription services to watch live sport, such as the Premier League, being considered by some to be too expensive, a lot of these people are turning to illegal streams and Internet Protocol television (IPTV).

There was a huge spike last season in the number of people watching the world's greatest league via these methods.

But ahead of the new season kicking off at Old Trafford on August 16, with Manchester United v Fulham being broadcast live, Sky has given a stark warning to people who are planning to watch games illegally, reports LADBible.

Matt Hibbert, Sky's director of Anti-Piracy, said: "We are passionate about protecting our content while ensuring consumers can enjoy the content they love, free from risks that illegal streams can pose.

"We'll continue to support efforts to shut down the organised networks involved in the large-scale theft of our content and to protect consumers from the risks involved in accessing content in this way."

Illegal streaming can lead consumers vulnerable to malicious software accessing devices.

There was a surge in the number of people watching live Premier League games illegally last season JulieAlexK, iStock

There was a landmark court case days ahead of the new season starting where two brothers were jailed for a combined total of 11 years in prison for their role in facilitating illegal streams of the Premier League.

An increasingly popular method of people watching content without paying subscriptions, whether that's films, TV series or live content such as sport, is through IPTV which can be accessed through jailbroken, or 'dodgy', Fire Sticks.

These usually incur a one-off fee for the Fire Stick itself with no other charges after that but the content that's being accessed is done so illegally.

Ahead of the new Premier League season, Sky has warned it is working with FACT (Federation Against Copyright Theft) and local police forces to target those who are providing these services and identify exactly who is using them.

Kieron Sharp, CEO at FACT, said: "Illegal IPTV service providers are breaking the law and putting consumers at real risk of malware, data compromise, and identity theft.

"Consumers who pay for pirate services should also know that they are often funding serious organised crime groups."

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