Greeks have no longer access to some of the most famous websites where one could download films and TV series, including subtitles. Greece’s Commission for Internet Infringement & Intellectual Property has ordered internet service providers to cut access to specific domain names. A total of 38 sites have been so far “taken down”, among them the famous thepiratebay that runs on at least three different domain names..
The Commission issued its decision on November 6th and gave internet providers a 48-hour deadline to “take down” these websites.
The fines that forced internet companies to cut assess was 850 euro per day that they would not comply with the regulation.
The banned access is for a duration of three years.
In an interview with state news agency, the president of the Hellenic Copyright Organization, Yannis Antoniadis, justified the decision saying:
“There are studies by private entities representing the studios, producers or directors. It is not just the damage to directors, producers, and lost revenue. They have ads and the question is how can advertisements run on an illegal site? Advertisements are given to Ireland and other places and are not given to legal reproductions in Greece.”
According to torrentfreak, the blocking request was filed this spring by the Society for the Protection of Audiovisual Works (EPOE), a local anti-piracy group which represents the interests of major Greek copyright holders.
The group filed an application with the IPPC, a special commission that falls under the Greek Ministry of Culture and Sports, which decided that ISPs must block a total of 38 domain names.
The order stands for three years and it specifically states that offenses committed by users are not covered.
List of banned domains
1. xrysoi.online
2. xrysoi.se
3. xrysoi.eu
4. gamatotv.me
5. thegmtv.org
6. gamatotv.to
7. onlinemoviestar.xyz
8. onlinemoviestar.com
9. tainies.online
10. tenies.online
11. https://tenies-online.com
12. teniesonline.ucoz.com
13. https://oipeirates.οnline
14. oipeirates.eu
15. oipeirates.se
16. tainio-mania.com
17. tainiomania.ucoz.com
18. liomenoi.com
19. moviecinema.gr
20. moviecinematv.online
21. tainiesonline.tv
22. magico.info
23. subs4free.com
24. small-industry.com
25. medium-industry.com
26. subztv.club
27. reeksubtitles.info
28. subtitles.gr
29. thepiratebay.org
30. thepiratebay.se
31. thepiratebay.me
32. thepiratebay3.org
33. yts.am
34. 1337x.tο
35. 1337x.st
36. 1337x.ws
37. 1337x.eu
38. 1337x.se
list via newsit.gr
The decision triggered an outrage among Greeks who have already posted on social media advice on how to how to bypass the ISP blockades and the targeted site offer alternative domains.
It is really funny to see Greece ‘struggling for internet infringement and copy right protection’ when there are thousands of websites make a living through copy paste material only!
Many Greek internet users saw one more attempt to control the internet.
The European Parliament is preparing a new Copyright Directive that should worry every internet user, not just those in the EU.
Just one especially weird example via boingboing.net:
Article 13 of the Copyright Directive requires online services to crowdsource a database of “copyrighted works” (anyone can add anything to these databases, with no penalties for falsely claiming copyright over public domain works, or works that don’t belong to you).
If a user tries to post something that appears to match an item in the blacklist database, the service has to censor that user’s post.
The problem is that the online platforms don’t have “European services” and “non-European services,” they just have services, and users from the EU and outside of the EU freely mix there, posting material and commenting on it.
PS All Greece cared about revenue losses from advertisement? Or did it want to boost cable TV subscriptions and local movies theaters?