A Liverpool man has been jailed for ‘sideloading’ Amazon Fire Sticks.
Jonathan Edge pleaded guilty to three offences under the Fraud Act after modifying the steaming devices to receive illegal streaming TV services.
The 29-year-old advertised the service on Facebook and Instagram, charging customers £30 per Fire Stick between April 2020 and December 2023.
A case brought by the Premier League claimed that Edge ignored multiple warnings to cease the activities, which earned him an estimated £15,000.
Copyright watchdog FACT issued several takedown notices over one of his social media posts advertising his streaming service in October 2020.
A cease and desist order was issued in August 2022 which was signed a month later but he soon complained on Facebook about being ‘grassed on’.
Further takedown requests were made by FACT, who later obtained several of Edge’s Fire Sticks through an undercover investigator posing as a customer.
The findings of the devices were passed onto Merseyside Police leading to a search warrant for Edge’s Anfield Road property on December 13 last year.
At Liverpool Crown Court, the father-of-two was sentenced to three years and four months in prison with Judge Andrew Menary rejecting his case for the defence.
He said: “Many broadcasters and other media outlets make TV content available online, which can be accessed legitimately if users pay for a subscription.
“This revenue stream is vital to allow the companies to continue to provide the services, and to avoid this subscription is not only dishonest but also threatens the operations of these services.
“People like you seem to think it’s clever or funny or a legitimate con if you can get away with it. But the reality is broadcasters lose millions through such activity.
“The defence submits on your behalf you were operating at the bottom of the chain, a somewhat wretched and pathetic individual; out of his depth.
“I do not accept that. Your activities were blatant, and probably because you never thought you would be held to account.”