Spain Fights Illegal IPTV Operations

The Spanish National Police and Europol have announced a successful raid of one of the largest European illegal IPTV streaming businesses with 12 locations raided in Spain and Bulgaria and eight arrests.

After an investigation started by the Premier League as part of a global effort to combat illegal online redistribution of its live broadcasts, Spain has had a major win in its fight against illegal IPTV operations.

Just today, the Spanish National Police and Europol have announced a successful raid of one of the largest European illegal IPTV streaming businesses.

Both entities collaborated with Eurojust, Spanish specialised computer crimes prosecutors, the English Premier League and digital platform security specialist Irdeto, to raid 12 locations in Spain and Bulgaria.

“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,” he added.

Known as “Operation Casper”, the raids landed eight individuals in jail for the illegal distribution of 1,000 pay-tv channels across two Internet Service Providers through the use of IPTV technology.

According to news site Advanced Television, Irdeto identified a Danish citizen residing in Spain as the leader of a criminal organization that was able to provide a high-quality pirate service that was up to the standards of legal operators.

In addition, the operation also uncovered another illegal organization located in Silistra, Bulgaria that was operated by the same criminal network and covered different European countries.