AMSTERDAM - 10 April 2017 - The Spanish National Police announced that they have successfully raided one of the largest European illegal Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) streaming businesses. In a collaborative operation with Europol, Eurojust, Spanish specialized computers crimes prosecutors, Premier League and Irdeto, 12 locations were raided in Spain and Bulgaria. Dubbed Operation Casper, eight individuals were arrested for the illegal distribution of 1,000 pay TV channels across two Internet Service Providers (ISPs) through the use of IPTV technology. The servers used to provide illegal access to the channels were shut down and numerous documentation incriminating the individuals under investigation was also confiscated. [Click here to watch Police video of what was found at the scene].

The investigation was initiated by the Premier League as part of a global effort to combat illegal online redistribution of its live broadcasts. The Premier League identified a Danish citizen residing in Spain who owned an ISP in Málaga used to illegally broadcast encrypted TV signals to thousands of consumers across Europe. It was discovered that this individual was the leader of a criminal organization that was able to provide a high-quality pirate service rivaling offerings from legal ISPs. Operation Casper also uncovered another illegal organization located in Silistra, Bulgaria that was operated by the same criminal organization who had another internet provider in that location covering different European countries. Both of the ISPs identified were legally established, performing legal activities while also exploiting their capacities to provide illegal services.

“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,” said Kevin Plumb, Director of Legal Services, Premier League. “The legal distribution of our matches is essential to growing our league and providing our passionate fanbase with the quality matches and content that they crave. Supported by Irdeto’s expertise, the identification and response to IPTV piracy is critical to protect our intellectual property, resulting in future investments to improve upon our product.”

Engaged by the Premier League for piracy detection and investigative services, Irdeto’s team of experts worked closely with the Premier League, Spanish National Police and law enforcement agencies to gather information and evidence leading to the raid. This information resulted in 12 simultaneous raids in Spain and Bulgaria, proving that both ISPs were illegally distributing pirated content. The disbanded criminal organization also controlled three other entities that were in charge of providing the content to its customers under the ISPs.

“The efforts of the Spanish Police and law enforcement to dismantle pirate organizations like this is critical in the fight against IPTV piracy,” said Mark Mulready, Senior Director, Cyber Services & Investigations at Irdeto. “We continue to support our customers, partners and law enforcement agencies to identify large-scale cross-border pirate networks and help combat this growing global piracy epidemic. By detecting, analyzing, investigating and countering piracy, our collaborative efforts send a message to the pirate community that they will be found and brought to justice.”