September 03, 2024

Colombian justice blocks two illegal streaming platforms and fines their owners more than $33,000

The conviction fell on the sites Latinos IPTV and Redcol IPTV, which were declared illegal. The sentence was achieved after an investigation by the Alliance Against Audiovisual Piracy.

Bogotá, September 2, 2024. The Colombian justice system sentenced the owners of two illegal internet content transmission platforms (IPTV) to pay a fine of $33,500 and ordered the continuation of the total blocking that had been ordered in a previous judicial instance, marking a new ruling in favor of intellectual property rights and the safety of users and consumers in the country.

Through the National Copyright Directorate (DNDA), the Judiciary issued a ruling against the Latinos IPTV and Redcol IPTV platforms for transmitting content over the internet (IPTV), confirming that they infringed intellectual property rights by broadcasting sports content without authorization.

The sentence was achieved after an exhaustive investigation carried out by the Alliance Against Audiovisual Piracy (Alianza), a non-profit organization whose goal is to fight against all forms of piracy, which directly affect users by exposing them to scams, fraud, and theft of sensitive information, and generate losses of quality jobs and harm to governments.

The DNDA imposed a fine on two individuals identified as Abdeel Maussa and Héctor Gómez (according to the judicial file), who were found directly responsible for the illegal platforms Latinos IPTV and Redcol IPTV. Both now face a judgment for damages estimated at $33,500.

The judicial process, conducted by the law firm Baker McKenzie on behalf of ALIANZA, also ordered the continuation of the precautionary blocking measure, so that all companies providing internet services in Colombia must permanently block access to the IP addresses and URLs of Latinos IPTV and Redcol IPTV, which were illegally retransmitting content from DIRECTV and other companies.

ALIANZA was able to prove the responsibility of the individuals through a report submitted to the court in mid-2021. Jorge Bacaloni, president of the entity representing numerous industry companies, declared: "The illegal transmission of content is a crime, and justice is condemning those who commit it. ALIANZA is making a valuable contribution with numerous cases throughout South America."

“Our association works with deep dedication and perseverance to combat these copyright infringing networks, which harm authors and expose users to malicious software for the theft of sensitive data. This new ruling in Colombia becomes even more relevant in times when technological advancement allows pirates to mutate and quickly reinvent themselves," Bacaloni said.

For his part, Víctor Roldán, executive director of the Alliance Against Audiovisual Piracy, stated: "Piracy harms the quality of content; it damages users' devices by exposing them to serious situations of fraud and other crimes; it does not pay the taxes that the state needs to fund health, education, and security. Therefore, this new ruling in Colombia encourages us to continue our mission against copyright and related rights infringements."

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