While the Mayweather-McGregor fight trended on twitter this past weekend, so did Periscope as it became a hub of choice for people to watch the fight without paying. Despite receiving a court order enjoining certain websites from showing the fight, the issue of individuals streaming the event is something that needs enforcement.
Showtime filed a preliminary injunction against a variety of web sites with domain names that essentially advertised that it would show the fight for free. For example, Livestreamhdq.com, mayweathervsmcgregor.livestreamhdq.com, mcgregorvsmayweather.livestreamhdq.com, Mayweathermcgregorlivefight.us and Mayweathervsmcgregor2017live.us. The companies with the web sites were sued for alleged copyright infringement, contributory copyright infringement and vicarious copyright infringement. Despite receiving the signed order, it did not prevent individuals from finding individuals from streaming it live on Periscope.
TRO Order by JASONCRUZ206 on Scribd
Payout Perspective:
The move is a sign of the need for intellectual property owners to be more proactive and vigilant in protecting its copyrighted material. I recent wrote a law review article about the issues related to streaming. The hard reality is that technology in the form of Facebook Live and Periscope are enabling individuals to take advantage. While the preliminary injunction focused on the threats that Showtime could find, it cannot police individuals or those that decide to live stream at a moment’s notice. It’s hard to catch everyone and this is something that will stifle rights holders like the UFC and Showtime in the future.
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