Man sentenced to 10 months in prison for selling devices providing unauthorized access to copyrighted content.
A Singaporean man, Ge Xin, was sentenced to 10 months in jail on October 24, 2024, for selling illegal streaming devices at Sim Lim Square. This marks the first such prosecution under Singapore’s Copyright Act, which targets commercial dealers involved in the distribution of unauthorized devices. Ge Xin, who operated two retail shops, MT Gadget+ and Grandnew, was found guilty of infringing on the copyrights of major organizations, including Disney, Netflix, Paramount Pictures, and the English Premier League (EPL).
The devices sold by Ge Xin provided users with illegal access to popular movies like Top Gun: Maverick and Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, as well as live EPL matches. In addition to his prison sentence, Ge Xin’s businesses were fined $200,000 and $100,000, respectively. These prosecutions followed coordinated raids in Sim Lim Square in October 2022, which resulted in the seizure of over 2,500 illegal devices, valued at approximately $500,000.
The devices, typically pre-installed with software for unauthorized access to copyrighted works, also posed cybersecurity risks, as they sometimes contained malware, exposing users to potential scams and online threats. Ge Xin’s shops had previously been warned in 2020 and 2021 by the Premier League to cease selling the devices, but he continued the operation.
This conviction highlights Singapore’s commitment to enforcing intellectual property laws and deterring illegal streaming activities. The Premier League also emphasized the importance of the case in upholding intellectual property rights, noting that this prosecution is part of a broader effort to combat the illegal streaming of sports and media content.
