Two individuals have been taken into custody in relation to Waka TV, an illicit streaming service. This week’s most recent arrest took place in Gauteng, South Africa.
The MultiChoice Group has applauded the detention of a person connected to Waka TV, a pirate network. Only a few weeks had passed since police in the Western Cape detained a suspect, before the most recent arrest in Gauteng.
Thanks to an ongoing investigation by MultiChoice, broadcasting cyber security anti-piracy company Irdeto, and local law enforcement agencies, the suspect was taken into custody by the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (the Hawks) in Gauteng earlier this week. The suspect was accused of breaking several laws, including the Cybercrime Act and Copyright Act.
He was given bail and has until June 18 to appear in the Kempton Park Magistrate’s Court.
MultiChoice claims that the guy illegally supplied live TV channels, including multiple DStv channels, movies, and series, in addition to managing a number of pirate consumers and resellers.
“The disruption caused by this raid is a significant blow to the illegal streaming industry in Africa,” claimed the organization.
This significant achievement comes after a successful operation in May in the Western Cape resulted in the arrest of a major suspect.
According to Frikkie Jonker of Irdeto, digital piracy has proliferated.
“Piracy is the violation of intellectual property rights that undercuts the efforts of software companies and content providers. It can take many different forms, from illicit streaming to black-market digital piracy. Additionally, he stated, “they present a digital threat to the commercial distribution of content.”
The arrests, according to MultiChoice, are merely the beginning of a series of planned operations against unlicensed streaming providers across the nation.
“While investigations into the thousands of people linked to these pirate networks continue, MultiChoice is actively collaborating with the South African Police Service.” Investigations are also underway into the resellers who facilitate these illicit activities. The group stated, “This cooperative endeavor seeks to bring all of the offenders to justice and dismantle the entire network.
