In Spain, if you want to watch sports live, you have to pay a lot of money. If you want to follow the main football competitions, Liga and UEFA Competitions like Champions League, Europa League or Conference League, the monthly sum can easily reach over 100 euros if you want the full competitions. A hundred a month!
It is no wonder why piracy has skyrocketed, despite the multiple attempts by the right holders and the competitions that sell those rights to stop it. And today it has been announced a record breaking penalty for distributing piracy sporting events online: €31.6 million euros.
31.6 million, that is the sum a court in A Coruña, Spain, has ordered Roja Directa to pay to media company Mediapro, in compensation for damages. Roja Directa, managed by the company Puerto 80 Projects, was one of the most popular websites to watch football games live online without paying. And, for over a decade, it has been targeted by the judiciary system in Spain.
That record breaking 31.6 million sum comes from calculating the amount that Puerto 80 should have paid Mediapro for the media rights of LaLiga season 2014/15. Half of it, 15.8 million, must be paid by the owner, Igor Seoane, as the sole administrator.
Although the website Roja Directa offered links to watch the games live for free, Puerto 80 earned millions for publicity, as well as charging commissions for diverting traffic to sports betting house websites. The website has been closed in Spain, but still operates abroad.
Javier Tebas, LaLiga president, celebrated the new, saying "More will fall, and the will be big fishes. Google, Cloudfare, among others.. because they also profit from this theft."