With YouTube and other online video sites playing ball, and file-sharers being stepped on left, right, and center, the attention is turning towards live streaming sites such as Justin.TV and Ustream.
Live Streaming Piracy
Of all the various types of online video piracy, that which takes place over live streaming services may prove the hardest to combat.
Once a video is uploaded to YouTube and the like it’s there for all to see, and if it’s copyrighted then it’ll be subject to a DMCA takedown. But live streaming piracy only happens while the event in question is being broadcast. Which makes things much more difficult for the companies involved on both sides.
Livestream has had a zero tolerance approach to piracy since March, but the other big streaming services Justin.TV and Ustream haven’t followed suit. And they’re now paying the price for that.
UFC Vs. All-Comers
The UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) is suing Justin.TV and Ustream in an attempt to get them to give up the IP addresses and other data related to the users who made events available to watch on the respective sites.
Around one million people legally tune in to the big UFC events, paying up to $50 each for the privilege. But UFC is alleging that 36,000 people watched a stream of UFC 108 in January, with 78,000 watching UFC 110 six weeks later via the same means.
This isn’t the first time the subject of piracy on streaming video sites has reared its ugly head. Last August Ustream was sued by Square Ring over a pay-per-view Roy Jones Jr. vs Omar Sheika fight. And in December the U.S. House Judiciary Committee held a hearing into the problem.
Conclusions
Will Justin.TV and Ustream hand over the details of those responsible for streaming these events? If so, it could set a precedent. Which has to be the aim of the UFC, alongside an attempt to scare others from doing the same thing in the future.
[Via NewTeeVee]
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