Sharing TV streaming passwords is illegal, says UK copyright watchdog | media law

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According to the Intellectual Property Office (IPO), millions of UK viewers are breaking the law by sharing their passwords to services such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Disney+.

The IPO, which released the new guidelines in conjunction with Facebook and Instagram owner Meta, said sharing passwords violates copyright laws.

Piracy is a major problem for the entertainment and creative industries, the IPO said. Pasting internet images into your social media without permission, or accessing movies, TV series or live sporting events via pirated Kodi boxes, Fire Sticks or apps without paying a subscription is a violation of the right to author and you can commit a crime.

The IPO originally explicitly used the phrase password sharing on streaming services in its guidelines released on Monday, but later changed the phrase to access without paying a subscription.

Netflix estimates that more than 100 million households access its services for free worldwide via shared passwords, including up to 4 million subscribers in the UK, which it has tolerated despite non-compliance. of its terms and conditions.

Earlier this year, the company announced plans to crack down on the practice by offering subscribers the ability to add additional sub-accounts or additional members for a small monthly fee.

The plan, which Netflix is ​​touting as one of several moves to boost revenue as the global streaming boom comes to a halt, is set to be introduced in Britain next year.

The IPO said the practice of password sharing is a criminal and civil offense and those who do so could theoretically be prosecuted.

There are a range of criminal and civil law provisions that may be applicable in cases of password sharing where the intent is to allow a user to access copyrighted works without payment, a said an IPO spokesperson.

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These provisions may include breach of contract terms, fraud, or secondary copyright infringement, depending on the circumstances. When these provisions are provided for in civil law, it would be up to the service provider to take legal action if necessary.

Pay-TV operators such as Sky have been aggressive in cracking down on companies and consumers taking illegal streams of entertainment and sports programs by taking legal action, but that’s not a path the streaming companies showed a tendency to borrow.

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