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Brian Thompson, a Middlesbrough trader, has been prosecuted for selling set-top boxes running Android that come pre-installed with the Kodi/XBMC open source media centre software.
A Middlesbrough trader is set to make legal history as the first person to be prosecuted for selling Android boxes. Following an 18-month investigation, Brian Thompson has been told Middlesbrough Council is taking him to court in what could prove a landmark case.
The council claims the boxes are illegal, but Brian said: "I am pleading not guilty and I'm going to fight this."
The kit - also known as a 'Kodi box' - allows viewers to watch copyright material like Premier League football and Hollywood movies for free. As such there are major question marks over both their legality, and exactly just what people can safely watch.
What seems to be at issue here is that some traders, perhaps Thompson, were selling these set-top boxes preloaded with third-party Kodi add-ons that permit access to media in violation of copyright law. More coverage at the BBC.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by jmorris on Tuesday September 27 2016, @11:13PM
This moron wasn't even going for the "adding 'on the Internet' changes everything" gambit. This clown was selling pirate stuff in a physical location outside of Asia. Duh, of course this was going to end badly. Why is this newsworthy Android settop boxes are legal. Kodi is legal. Selling Kodi on a settop box is legal. Loading it up with 3rd party plugins to access warez with zero knowledge required to locate and install them isn't. We all know (or should) that selling warez is the fastest way to attract law enforcement, selling a turnkey "click here to watch bootleg movies" solution is close enough to directly selling bootleg DVDs as to not matter.
Installing that stuff yourself isn't legal either but nobody is going to get charged for what they do at home. They might lose Internet access for copyright violations but they won't go to jail or be broken in the courts.
(Score: 3, Informative) by JoeMerchant on Tuesday September 27 2016, @11:16PM
Yep, headline is misleading as usual. It's the plug-ins that make it a problem, not Kodi.
🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday September 28 2016, @03:00AM
The KODI dudes are not happy with this situation either.
https://kodi.tv/the-piracy-box-sellers-and-youtube-promoters-are-killing-kodi/ [kodi.tv]
KODI's brand is hurt by these guys.
Then to top it off someone buys one of these things off craigslist or ebay. Then when it messes up (and KODI will do that). They ask for a log. If there is even 1 hint of one of these plugins in the log they say 'sorry we will not support you talk to whomever you bought it from'. At that point the KODI team looks bad because a customer is in the lurch. The customer can not complain back upstream because more than likely the dude who sold it is long gone.
The problem KODI can never address though is that the whole project is kinda 'grey'. It started off as an unauthorized xbox program. It plays pretty much every rip/stream format out there. It is designed to play content. The problem is from pretty much day one that content was from a torrent/swarm/usenet/ftp sources. It also as a project attracts people who try to flip a free program into a money paying one. Plex and Boxee spring to mind. It also attracts people who like to get their metadata services up and running to sell (ie discogs). It also attracts 'all in one' integrators. The 'get your jailbroken firestick' guys and the one off all in one installers with all the plug ins ready to go.
Plugins have enabled this whole thing. Its amazing! I have bought a good amount of media to rip. It is amazing how much extra money you have when you get rid of cable. I have a box that can manage my 2500+ movie collection and 1000+ cd collection. Nothing else commercial comes close to the cost and ease of use KODI is. The closest commercial item was a netgear neo tv 550. That got burned by licensing from the mpeg and sony patent guys.
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday September 28 2016, @03:55AM
Fuck their brand, I want to watch what I want to watch, and if Kodi gets compunctions about plugins that help me do that, I'll go with a fork.
(Score: 2) by Aiwendil on Wednesday September 28 2016, @06:38AM
Which actually is what they want you to do (that is - stop using their name if you want to use the program for negative-PR stuff [so, if you're going to sell it to Joe Schmucks it is preferred that you rebrand it]).
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 29 2016, @04:13AM
piratel.ly domain is available (pirate+telly)