Sweden Toughens Stance on Illegal IPTV: New Law Targets Consumers
The Swedish government is cracking down on illegal IPTV use. It's preparing new legislation that makes it an offence for consumers to access unlicensed streaming news services. This move aims to combat the significant revenue loss broadcasters and rights holders face, estimated at SEK 1-1.5 billion annually.
Currently, legal actions against illegal IPTV providers focus on competitors and consumer protection associations issuing cease-and-desist claims and fines. Penalties range from warnings to lawsuits, with fines up to 50,000 Euros for violations like missing or incorrect imprint details. However, the new law plans to target individual streamers and operators more harshly.
The proposed legislation includes technical measures like live blocking of illegal news streams, domain blocking, and removal from search results. It also recommends fines for private individuals streaming unlicensed news content and tougher penalties for operators. This comes as over 700,000 households, around 15% of Sweden's population, are using illegal IPTV news services. Recently, an individual was ordered to pay SEK 2.7 million in damages for running an unlicensed IPTV news service.
The new law, if passed, could enter into force on 1 July 2026. It signals a stricter stance against illegal IPTV news use, aiming to protect broadcasters' and rights holders' revenues and encourage consumers to use licensed news services.
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