A Tanzanian court has found the operators of a large piracy network guilty of content piracy, marking a victory in the fight to eliminate illegal pirate networks that harm the continent’s entertainment industry.
The Karagwe District Court in Kagera, Tanzania, recently sentenced two Tanzanians, David Peter Sembosi and Sebastian John, to pay a TZS 20,000,000 fine or face a 5-year prison sentence for content piracy in violation of the country’s cyber-crime laws.
The cybercrime unit’s investigation revealed that the professionally-run illegal website was viewed not only in Tanzania but also in other countries, with an estimated 200,000 visits per month.
MultiChoice’s DStv, a Sub-Saharan African direct broadcast satellite service, was offered through an illegal website to provide access to subscription-based content. The website provided its subscribers with unauthorized passwords to access the DStv services and view content.
The investigation’s findings and ruling are regarded as significant advances in Tanzania’s fight against content piracy, which is on the rise.
In Tanzania, copyright infringement costs the broadcasting industry a lot of money because investors don’t get the desired return on investment and the government loses a lot of money. Because content piracy is illegal, pirates are not licensed and thus do not pay any government taxes.
In response to the case’s outcome, MultiChoice Tanzania Managing Director Jacqueline Woiso stated that copyright infringement is a serious threat to Tanzanian business and denies the government significant revenue.
She stated that the ruling will serve as a wake-up call to all those involved in copyright infringement acts and urged all parties to play their part in combating content piracy.
