The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) has welcomed a recent ruling made by Kenya’s High Court in June 2022 which ordered a series of internet service providers (ISPs) in the country to permanently block access to sports pirate websites which contain materials infringing copyright.MultiChoice Kenya, who filed the case, won the the court battle when Justice Wilfrda Okwany directed Safaricom and Jamii Telecom to pull down content which the company says should be viewed exclusively on its SuperSport channel which broadcasts the European competitions in Kenya.Bad news for football live streamers after Multichoice won a court case that will compel Safaricom to block content on over 141 websites that host content owned by DSTV.This is the first time the court ordered has blocking of websites over copyright.— Business Daily— Moe (@moneyacademyKE) June 24, 2022 Efforts in the fight against the pirate websites began in late 2019 when MultiChoice Kenya filed a lawsuit requesting that ISPs restrict live sports streaming services on their networks.Following an initial interim phase of the court process, the High Court, on 23 June 2022, imposed a permanent injunction compelling certain ISPs in Kenya to permanently block these sports pirate websites with UEFA welcoming the ruling as they noted that the making available of its competitions footage without authorization is an infringement of its intellectual property rights.Tough times ahead for illegal sports live streamers after Multichoice won a court case that will compel Internet Providers to block content on over 141 websites that host content owned by DSTV. pic.twitter.com/Zu1paPIMyk— @EbruTVKenya (@EbruTVKenya) June 24, 2022 “UEFA fully supports the injunction issued by the Kenya High Court to protect media rights owned by MultiChoice. It is a major step forward in the fight against audiovisual piracy in the region. The protection of our intellectual property and the legitimate interests of our rights holders is a top priority for our organisation,” said UEFA marketing director, Guy-Laurent Epstein in a statement posted on UEFA’s official website.“This is a red-letter day in the fight against piracy in Africa,” said MultiChoice Kenya Managing Director, Nancy Matimu. “We have been fighting for years to ensure that there are legal copyright protections and that those protections are enforced. The court has reaffirmed the stance of the law that copyright must be protected. With this verdict, Kenya is saying that any business looking to invest in Kenya can rest assured that their intellectual property will be protected.”##NAJAVA_MECA_6487824##The resolution of the landmark case, and following submissions made by interested parties including UEFA, marks the first time that a Kenyan court has sanctioned the issuance of takedown notices under provisions of its copyright legislation, which are aimed at preventing unauthorized access to, and use of, creative works by means of the Internet.
