MADRID, 7 Jun. (EUROPA PRESS) –
“Google, Amazon, to repeat it. We will put an end to this phenomenon. Someone is going to end up behind bars, I have no doubt,” said the leader at the South Summit conference, which is being held in Madrid.
Tebas reiterated that in the sports industry “a lot of people steal”, with “about 46,000 IPs broadcasting illegal content from LaLiga and other sports.” “These IPs are hosted on servers, the vast majority, of large companies. Amazon, sometimes even Telefónica. There are people who take a space and from there dedicate themselves to transmitting. But these companies receive our requests to remove it, some they do it faster and others don’t. But there are people who are benefiting with names and surnames,” he denounced.
“People see the link to watch it ‘pirated’ on Telegram or Facebook, and for 5 euros a month they watch all the competitions. They download applications on Google, Apple, which participate in the theft because they put in place the mechanism so that the user can access and steal the signal. And, through advertising, they also collect money. From the moment we report it until they remove the app, days and even weeks pass. In that period, the user who steals has downloaded the application. the Play Store, he already has it on his smartphone, it continues to work and he continues to steal,” he said.
In August 2023, LaLiga reported some 138 applications, with 800,000 downloads “in Spain alone.” Even on social networks, like ‘X’ (former Twitter) “matches are being broadcast.” “The Classic was broadcast through some accounts where there were audiences of 400,000 people. In other words, Google, Apple,
“And for me they are the main actors in solving the problem, because we continue fighting against the scoundrels who are with their 46,000 IPs, but those who are providing shelter and content are these big technology companies, who are also responsible,” he added.
Given this, Tebas recalled that the employers have a case in a court in Spain in which the judge has already told these companies that “they have to not only remove the applications from the Play Store, but they have to remove them from the phones.” . “They have been paying no attention for six months, since we have asked that Google Spain decree disobedience of the people responsible and that the appropriate arrest measures be taken,” he wished.
“The damage that is being caused is terrible and they are currently endangering the industry. Spain has the title of European champion of stealing audiovisual content, they are endangering the value of the rights. This year, this football season, it has there has been much greater growth than what came before,” he lamented.
A solution for Tebas would be national legislation with the “figure of the reliable whistleblower”, as Italy has already done, since 2023. “They lack some technology to be much more perfect, but it is what we must turn to. The only thing I I ask the Government of Spain to heed the recommendation of the European Union, what other countries in the European Union are doing, because once that recommendation is implemented we will greatly reduce illegal consumption,” he warned.
“The Robin Hoods who think that football is expensive are the excuse of the bad thief, the bad thief. If I’m going to have a drink at a nightclub, it’s because it seems expensive to me, so I won’t pay you for it, and I’ll leave.” Well, this is what’s happening. Hey, if it seems expensive to you, then don’t buy it, but don’t steal it. I get tired of hearing, ‘it’s just so expensive, if only it were a little cheaper…’ “If the Ferrari Testarossa, instead of being worth half a million euros, was worth 50,000, then I would buy it, but I’m not stealing the Ferrari Testarossa,” he gave as an example.
Finally, Tebas denounced the ease of access to illegal content. “You go to the Google Chrome search engine and type child pornography, nothing comes up. You put I want to sell cocaine, nothing comes up. I want to watch football for free, a lot comes up. Can you collaborate in defending intellectual property? Yes. It’s very clear. Can you collaborate in defending intellectual property? Yes. It’s very clear. Do they want to? No, because they have significant economic income through advertising or other systems that are created around web environments, from applications,” he concluded.