BBC Studios, Sky condemn unlawful streaming after UK man jailed for selling illegal IPTV services

Rights holders including the Premier League were named in the case

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BBC Studios and Sky in the UK have condemned unlawful streaming and piracy after a man has been jailed for selling illegal IPTV services that made him almost £1m (US$1.4m).

Milan Ibrahim was sentenced on Thursday to six-and-a-half years in prison for running an illegal streaming business that generated £980,812 in criminal profits over a three-year period.

Ibrahim was found guilty of conspiracy to defraud at Preston Crown Court and will now face proceedings under the Proceeds of Crime Act to recover the funds he obtained.

The operation, led by the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit at the City of London Police, established that Ibrahim supplied illegal IPTV services to customers in the UK and overseas, particularly targeting British expats living abroad.

He unlawfully captured and redistributed television broadcasts from major rights holders, including the BBC, ITV, Sky, Premier League and the Motion Picture Association. He then converted the content into formats suitable for IPTV streaming and sold subscriptions to customers around the world.

Diane Hamer, BBC Studios head of business and legal affairs, IP protection, said: “Piracy is not a victimless crime. Those responsible contribute nothing to the creation or broadcast of television programmes. Their actions not only deprive the UK’s creative industries of vital revenue, impacting creators, businesses and professionals who rely on the protection of intellectual property rights, but also impact licence fee payers. This conviction sends a clear message that such activity has real consequences.”

Matt Hibbert, group director of anti-piracy at Sky, added: “Illegal streaming services cause harm to consumers and profit from content in which broadcasters, rights holders and creators invest heavily. Sky will continue working with partners to disrupt piracy, protect consumers and safeguard the content our customers love.”