Man gets more than three years in prison for loading illegal streaming services on Amazon Fire Sticks

A 29-year-old man has been jailed for more than three years for loading illegal TV streaming services onto Amazon Fire Sticks.

Jonathan Edge, from Liverpoolpleaded guilty to three offenses under the Fraud Act.

He was sentenced to three years and four months in prison, including a separate concurrent sentence of two years and three months for opening and viewing the content he provided.

Edge ran a service that uploaded illegal services to Fire Stick devices in return for cash payments at his home, Liverpool Crown Court heard.

He used Facebook advertising and word of mouth to run his operation.

He ignored multiple warnings about the illegal activity, which were referred to by the judge and treated as an aggravating factor in sentencing.

The prosecution was carried out by the Premier League and supported by several other organisations, including FACT (Federation Against Copyright Theft) and Merseyside Police.

Premier League general counsel Kevin Plumb said: “The significant sentence imposed on the individual involved further underlines the seriousness of his actions.

“We will continue to take legal action against those who provide unauthorized access to Premier League football, regardless of the scale or method of operation. Ignoring warnings to stop has only made the consequences worse for the individual.”

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Detective Sergeant Steve Frame of Merseyside Police said: “Merseyside Police is committed to working together to investigate theft of intellectual property and we welcome the sentence imposed on Edge today.

“Many people see no harm in illegally streaming TV services, but they are wrong, and this outcome should serve as a further warning of how seriously such copyright theft continues to be taken.”