bronyaur1: Just because you are able to take without permission something that is not yours does not mean that you are legally justified to do so.

oh well i don't think that's up for debate.

the streams are illegal and violate copyrights.

What I love about this is that he doesn't host the streams in any way. he just has people post stream locations, copies embed codes, generates the pages, and throws some ads on them.

When you create a "hub" for these things, you attract attention.

No one cared about this at all during the World Cup, and everyone at my company was using soccertvline.net and streaming the games.

This is purely NBC pulling weight and those with the most $$$ get the best treatment.

In a week there will be another streaming hub that will be ignored.

I use the NHL ones during the playoffs to watch multiple games at once. My actions aren't "right", but it's not money they'd get from me anyway since I can't go to the games when they're not in my hometown.

/also yay greenlight it's fun being a subby

violentsalvation: They did this one year + one day ago, and most the sites were back up before the thread was closed to new comments. They will be back or they will be replaced.

Yeah, at least one of the sites in the article is still up.

Well, there goes the WWE PPV threads in the sports tab.

/because fark you, that's why

Feds shut down 16 websites for streaming copyrighted footage, arrest webmaster. Coincidentally, don't miss the Super Bowl Big Game this Sunday on NBC

Do not use that term without the express written consent of the National Football League.

/cease and desist
//big game big game big game

violentsalvation: They did this one year + one day ago, and most the sites were back up before the thread was closed to new comments. They will be back or they will be replaced.

Yep. One of the sites is still up cuz it's registered in europe.

SOPA woulda been worse for this.

"Challenge accepted for hockey playoffs."

epyonyx: "Challenge accepted for hockey playoffs."

Comcast just gave us free HD and DVR for a year when i called yesterday to say "hey, promo ended and bill went up $20 and some channels now not working nice so what up with that?"

so yeah, I'm looking more forward to NHL Playoffs now than ever.

KellyKellyKelly: Well, there goes the WWE PPV threads in the sports tab.

/because fark you, that's why

I was thinking the same for UFC threads as well. Guess i just dont watch them and read about it a few days later. Or I just stop having any interest in the product and not give them any clicks or visit places that show the PPV's. Meh....buffalo wild wings food is overrated any way.

jaylectricity: "These websites and their operators deprive sports leagues and networks of legitimate revenue, forcing spectators and viewers to bear the cost of this piracy down the line. Yonjo Quiroa's arrest and these 16 seizures underscore our commitment to stopping this virtual thievery."

We would have to pay for it anyway. The whole point is the network knowing how many viewers they have, therefore knowing how much they can charge for advertising. If anything the advertising dollars go up, and the companies doing the advertising pass that cost on to their consumers.

Smiths: This is purely NBC pulling weight and those with the most $$$ get the best treatment.

Sometimes I wonder if all the money corporations throw at politics to get things going their way actually balances out against the money they gain from rigging the system.

There is some anecdote floating around about how certain industries use more money in lobbying than they pay in taxes. How is that profitable at the end of the day?

If NBC's NFL stream didn't completely suck ass, then I wouldn't have to go looking around the web for far better options.

ArkAngel: "Sports fans may be tempted by illegal streaming websites, but in the end, it is they who pay the price," said Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara in a statement. "These websites and their operators deprive sports leagues and networks of legitimate revenue, forcing spectators and viewers to bear the cost of this piracy down the line. Yonjo Quiroa's arrest and these 16 seizures underscore our commitment to stopping this virtual thievery."

Yeah, a few hundred people watching a stream of the Bears game or John Cena match is why ticket prices are so high.

Thats exactly what I was thinking.

Most of the people watching these streams are just US citizens over seas who cant find out where the game is being shown, I used those sites watching CFB in europe so seriously, fark them, fark them hard all your ad revenue is coming through fine and most of us who watch the streams would have skipped the ads anyway.

Niveras: Sometimes I wonder if all the money corporations throw at politics to get things going their way actually balances out against the money they gain from rigging the system.

There is some anecdote floating around about how certain industries use more money in lobbying than they pay in taxes. How is that profitable at the end of the day?

Duh, its gives them more tax breaks!!! Wasnt EA games paying virutally zero taxes because of a loop hole in the system?

And I used to work for a clec(they provide data/phone) and once ATT/verizon and others realized they were stealing a lot of small business away from them they decided to lobby to quit providing them with cheap backbone because they couldnt compete with smaller companies offering better service and quicker response times.

archie leach: If NBC's NFL stream didn't completely suck ass, then I wouldn't have to go looking around the web for far better options.

Really? I had nothing but good luck with it all season long for the Sunday Night games. Solid as a rock.

FTA: According to the indictment, the illegal sites all were "linking" sites-- gateways that link to third party websites that are actually hosting the pirated events.

So that's all it takes to get arrested and have the cops steal your equipment? shiat, I hope the feds never find out about Google and all the links to pirated content they have.

bighasbeen: I really don't know why you have to buy extra equipment to access television you pay for on your computer. I mean, if you are seeing the same ads and they can track what you are watching for ratings, why doesn't every network just do what ESPN Go or Sunday Football on NBC does but leave in commercials?

On the air networks and some cable channels, some ads are local ads, as opposed to network-originating ads. Streaming programs with ads like that would hurt the stations and cable companies that sell those ads.

SamFlagg: Out of curiosity, am I allowed to illegally stream tv shows or sporting events if I don't have a Nielsen box?

Since ratings determine ad revenue, and not having a box means I can't influence the ratings, doesn't that mean I should be able to watch TV without commercials and no one has lost a dime?

I'm just asking questions.

Arrested.

For copyright infringement.

Let that sink in for a while then tell me this isn't completely out of control.

bighasbeen: wxboy: bighasbeen: I really don't know why you have to buy extra equipment to access television you pay for on your computer. I mean, if you are seeing the same ads and they can track what you are watching for ratings, why doesn't every network just do what ESPN Go or Sunday Football on NBC does but leave in commercials?

On the air networks and some cable channels, some ads are local ads, as opposed to network-originating ads. Streaming programs with ads like that would hurt the stations and cable companies that sell those ads.

What I'm getting at more is why can't they just send the information they would send to my cable box to my computer instead? For example, I have Charter for cable. Why can't I go to Charter's website, log in, then access any channel that is on my cable plan and be able to watch what would be sent to my TV? Why should I have to buy a separate piece of equipment to do that or why don't they start including that in their cable boxes rather than or in addition to a DVR?

They would at the very least have to limit your access to IP addresses within the local area where you're paying for service. Otherwise you're potentially working against syndication agreements for local stations at the very least.

There's also the technical issue with providing streams of every channel they offer, including all local channels, which would require broadcast agreements with each channel. That's not a small task (though perhaps not difficult).

You idiots have some pretty warped ways of justifying your theft. Yes, watching an illegal stream is theft, just because you wouldn't have paid for it otherwise does NOT change that FACT!

Homeland Security enforcement presented himself as a WWE employee arranging a meeting to purchase the domain names from him. Quiroa agreed to make a deal, after which the agents made their arrest.

ReapTheChaos: You idiots have some pretty warped ways of justifying your theft. Yes, watching an illegal stream is theft, just because you wouldn't have paid for it otherwise does NOT change that FACT!

Theft implies loss of property. No one has anything actually taken from them with streaming content. That's why the media industries and prosecutors always call it copyright infringement and not theft.

Nice try Feds. http://www.firstrowsports.eu/

apparently everyone missed the part where he was making money off of the shiat that isn't his.
who am I kidding this is fark, of course they didn't miss that part. everyone should be allowed to make money off of shiat that isn't there's cuz "It's not stealing it's piracy™" and "I wasn't gonna pay anyway™"

Pizilla: Homeland Security enforcement presented himself as a WWE employee arranging a meeting to purchase the domain names from him. Quiroa agreed to make a deal, after which the agents made their arrest.

WHY THE fark IS HOMELAND SECURITY INVOLVED IN THIS shiat????? A damn cabinet position and government branch that is completely unnecessary and shouldn't even exist. Do we really need the FBI, CIA, NSA, DEA, ATF, police, and homeland security?

http://www.firstrowsports.eu/

Just saying hockey fans. It is up.

bronyaur1: Just because you are able to take without permission something that is not yours does not mean that you are legally justified to do so.

I watched games on firstrowsports.tv. I watched the Boston Bruins a couple of times on pirated feeds from the UK's premium sports provider whose name I can't recall... it was basically THEIR repurposing of ESPN's international feed... with COMMERCIALS. Basically, firstrow was increasing the audience size for those paid ads.

I also watched my alma mater's men's basketball games, which were not being televised anywhere. It was the video feed from the arena what was being piped up to the jumbotron with the local radio play by play as audio. Once again, INCREASING the audience for the radio broadcast and using video that really had NO licensed protection.

So please, tell me this isn't about lobbyists from big media paying the politicians to sick a government organization after this clown?

BTW, of the 13K this guy said he made in revenue, some came from the fukstik that created the Win7 Virus Protection trojan worm because it kept trying to load it onto my machine while I was watching a Bruins game on firstrow... Comodo killed it every time it reared its head.

Farnn: Pizilla: Homeland Security enforcement presented himself as a WWE employee arranging a meeting to purchase the domain names from him. Quiroa agreed to make a deal, after which the agents made their arrest.

WHY THE fark IS HOMELAND SECURITY INVOLVED IN THIS shiat????? A damn cabinet position and government branch that is completely unnecessary and shouldn't even exist. Do we really need the FBI, CIA, NSA, DEA, ATF, police, and homeland security?

PROBLEM?


KISS MY ASS!!

timujin: bronyaur1: Just because you are able to take without permission something that is not yours does not mean that you are legally justified to do so.

Watching a streaming video isn't "taking".

No. It's stealing.

Sanic123: Nice try Feds. http://www.firstrowsports.eu/

Thanks dude, you're a lifesaver.