The nearly 5,000 page Covid-Relief bill has a lot to unpack. Hidden away in the bill is a new law that punishes illegal streamers up to 10 years in prison. This law is called the ‘Protecting Lawful Streaming Act’, introduced by Senator Thom Tillis.
Don’t be alarmed if you illegally stream from time to time though, as the law doesn’t target casual internet users or someone who streams unauthorized copies without their knowledge. According to CNN, The law applies more to “commercial, for-profit streaming piracy services.” This is due to the fact that illegal for-profit streaming costs the economy nearly $30 billion a year. Just last year, a man admitted to earning more than $1 million from his piracy. If someone gets caught being a part of this, they could get up to 10 years in prison as well as getting fined.
This law is coming after the Department of Justice charged two computer programmers from Las Vegas last year for illegal pirating shows from Netflix and Hulu. The websites that these shows were being streamed on were called iStreamItAll and Jetflicks. The bill has been co-sponsored by five Democratic and four Republican senators. The “Protecting Lawful Streaming Act” could become a law as soon as this week when Donald Trump signs the stimulus legislation.
Leave a Comment