The UK has seen a crack down in illegal streaming and piracy, with a string of recent arrests after video piracy figures skyrocketed.

UK consumers are being squeezed by streaming subscription prices, the continual splintering of the streaming landscape, and the increased cost of living. Users are therefore turning to free, and often illegal, alternatives.

Just last week, a man from Greater Manchester was arrested for selling specially configured television set-top-boxes that would allow unlawful access to subscription services from a number of platforms, including Sky, BT, and Virgin Media. The arrest resulted in a sentencing of four years and six months.

This week, a man in Nottingham was arrested as police believe that he was involved in enabling the illegal streaming of Sky television content.

Prior to this, a man in Liverpool pleaded guilty to charges of selling and promoting illegally tampered Amazon Fire Sticks which provided customers illegal access to premium streaming and live content.

Another man, this time in Stockton-on-Tees, was arrested after Police suspected he was involved in another illegal streaming operation.

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“These cases highlight the importance of protecting legitimate providers, as well as the significant impact that coordinated law enforcement efforts can have on combating digital piracy,” said Kieron Sharp, CEO of the Federation Against Copyright Theft (FACT), as reported by The Independent.

“The message is very clear: if you sell a device that provides access to content that is not licensed to you or owned by you, you could face criminal investigation, prosecution and conviction.”

Video piracy seems to be on the rise, despite efforts to stop it. Muso, an anti-piracy platform, and consultancy firm Kearney found that piracy increased by 12% from 2019 to 2023, with about 141 billion visits to piracy platforms in 2023.

Last year, Edinburgh and Glasgow witnessed police raids to stop online piracy, resulting in four arrests.