Anyone involved in the illegal streaming of live Premier League matches has "been warned they face prosecution after five people were arrested in dawn raids on Wednesday," according to Ben Rumsby of the London TELEGRAPH. The arrests took place amid "dwindling audiences" across Sky Sports and BT Sport and "a rise in the number of armchair fans finding ways to watch games without paying for the privilege." Wednesday's action focused on traders accused of "selling modified set-top boxes." It was coordinated on behalf of the Premier League and its TV partners -- Sky, BT and Virgin Media -- by the Federation Against Copyright Theft, which believes the five people involved made around £250,000 ($312,500) selling the illegal Kodi devices online. F.A.C.T. Dir Kieron Sharp said that the arrests "sent a warning" to anyone involved in illegal streaming. Sharp: "Set-top boxes loaded with apps and add-ons allowing access to copyright infringing material are very much illegal and anyone involved in selling these boxes should not be surprised to receive a knock on the door." One Premier League match this season was said to have "netted a record streaming audience of more than one million." At the same time, Sky Sports' Premier League ratings were recently revealed to be down 13% year on year and 25% down since '10 (TELEGRAPH, 2/9).
