Kodi says add-on site ‘brings nothing but misery’ as it hopes for streaming SHUTDOWN

Kodi has lashed out against popular online add-on repository, TVAddOns.

The hugely-successful media player said it hoped TVAddOns would be “shut down” because “they bring nothing but misery to everyone”.

For those who do not know, Kodi is an open-source media player that’s available to install on a range of devices.

The software was previously known as XBMC, or Xbox Media Centre, since that was the only hardware is was designed to run on.

In a nutshell, it turns any desktop computer, server, smartphone, tablet or set-top box into a media player able to stream files from the internet, your home network or local HDD storage.

The Kodi software itself is perfectly legal, however, it does enable users to install additional applications (dubbed add-ons) that allow them to access copyrighted material – uploaded, shared or streamed from other users across the globe.

Unlike the Apple TV, Google ChromeCast or others, the Kodi media player is not restricted by licensing agreements, or a curated app store.

That means Kodi users can download a plethora of community-built apps, that might not be approved under the guidelines that govern the Apple App Store, Google Play Store, and others.

This enables some users to abuse the media player to gain access to copyright-protected content providers, including Sky Sports HD, BT Sport, Sky Cinema, Netflix, BBC Worldwide and others.

TVAddons is a hugely-popular repository for these Kodi add-ons, offering software solutions for Kodi that enables users to access illegal streams of premium sports and movie channels for free.

The website went offline back in early June, with its website and Facebook page unceremoniously shut down.

However, TVAddons has recently re-emerged online.

Kodi community and project manager Nathan Betzen has previously spoken-out about streaming content illegally on the open-source Kodi media player.

“Even though pirate streaming appears to be illegal in Europe, we still stand by our neutral policy,” he wrote in the official blog.

“We are developers and not the police, and we have no interest in acting as police for our own software.

“Kodi will remain as free and as open as it always has. Feel free to continue using Kodi however you want.

“To us Kodi is and always will be just a tool, like a hammer, and how you choose to use that tool is up to you.”

He added: “We do ask that if you decide to use Kodi in a way that’s illegal, please leave us out of it.

“People who steal cars don’t tweet a picture of their stolen car to Ford Motor Co. We ask that if you watch pirate streams, that you not tweet us about those streams.”

The recent tweet about TVAddons suggests Kodi’s view on online piracy has toughened somewhat.

TVAddons was quick to respond, tweeting that whoever was in charge of Kodi’s social media account “is definitely not in touch with your userbase”.

The news comes days after new research by FACT revealed that there are now one million Kodi Boxes in use across the UK.

The FACT research was conducted in association with the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit, Intellectual Property Office, Police Scotland, and anti-piracy outfit Entura International.

It estimated that up to 25 per cent of Britons who view content online, access content illegally.

According to the FACT report, the UK is one of the countries most affected by the increasing demand for Kodi boxes.

Those supplying the Kodi Boxes range from individuals building boxes for a select few friends and family, to sprawling organised crime networks.

There has been a steady stream of reports of individuals who have been arrested for selling these devices, however, FACT claims these are just the “tip of the iceberg”.

According to FACT, there are a number of large-scale operations currently in the early stages.

However, the organisation is unable to specify any other details at the moment. The crackdown on so-called Kodi Boxes in the UK is likely to carry severe penalties.

Back in April, the EU Court of Justice judgement in the Filmspeler case included confirmation that streaming by end users on illicit set-top boxes, like those powered by Kodi, constitutes an infringement of copyright.

The new Digital Economy Act, which comes into effect in the UK on October 1st 2017, has extended criminal penalties for online copyright infringement to match those of physical copyright infringement – maximum sentences will increase from two years to 10 years.

This change could result in longer custodial sentences for the criminals involved in distributing illicit streaming devices.