France Escalates War on Sports Piracy with Real-Time IP Blocking

The French Senate has passed a new anti-piracy bill that opens the door to automated IP-address blocking. This legislative push is bolstered by a parallel, "secret" agreement between sports rightsholders and major ISPs, which aims to automate anti-piracy efforts and streamline direct blocking requests. Rightsholders hope these new powers will help to tackle the "mafia-like" piracy economy.