A ruling from Barcelona’s Commercial Court Number Six has approved a new measure that will permit the immediate blocking of domains belonging to more than 40 pirate IPTV and cardsharing platforms. Spain’s leading internet providers – Vodafone, Orange, MásMóvil (R, Telecable, Euskaltel) Digimóbil and Telefónica España – are now obliged, as a result of this sentence, to block the domains shown to be linked with these pirated platforms.

The ruling is a response to a joint complaint from TAD-Movistar+ and LaLiga, one that was presented as part of the mission to protect the content of these organisations, with LaLiga Santander and LaLiga SmartBank football matches broadcast on Movistar+’s channels.

The complaint asked for judicial authorisation for a more agile and immediate means of fighting against the piracy of exclusive sporting events and it was in line with legislation that had already been approved by the European Parliament, which this May urged member states to enable these kinds of legal measures.

The ruling from the court in Barcelona grants LaLiga and Movistar+ authorisation to send weekly requests for the blocking of new domains within an agreed timeframe. This will make it possible to act swiftly, at the speed required to combat the ever-evolving platforms that exist in the world of football piracy.