Belgian and Dutch ‘card sharing’ pirates jailed

A court in Tongeren, Limburg, has sentenced a Dutchman and a Belgian to 12 months in prison for operating a card sharing server, reports Broadband TV News. Card sharing allows multiple clients or digital TV receivers to access a subscription-only television network with only one valid subscription card, which is shared, usually for a fee. The method is increasingly used to illegally receive free satellite TV. The Belgian court sentenced the two men to a prison term of 12 months, of which six months are on probation. In addition, the court imposed a fine of €5,500, on top of potential damages of more than €26,000 to be paid to Luxembourg media company M7 Group SA, which owns the DTH platforms Canal Digital and TV Vlaanderen. Late last year, a Belgian man was sentenced to 10 months in prison for a similar offence. European TV providers see the ruling as a catalyst to continue the fight against card sharing. “The prison sentence against these two men gives a signal to people who are currently registered with card sharing services. They can now be traced and prosecuted,” said Ton Herremans, lawyer for the M7 group.