So-called ‘dodgy’ Fire TV Sticks have boomed in popularity in recent years, and it’s not hard to see why. These devices often arrive pre-installed with software that allows homes to stream premium content for free or a small yearly fee. Millions are now thought to be in use across the world as consumers try to avoid paying high monthly subscription fees to firms such as Sky and Virgin Media.
It’s been a growing problem for content providers, with Sky even venting its frustration at the ease at which Fire TV Sticks are so readily available.
Speaking earlier this year, Sky’s chief operating officer Nick Herm said: “If you speak to friends and colleagues, [or] you watch football, people will know that you can get jail-broken Fire Sticks, and you can access pirated services on Fire Sticks.
“There are football fans who literally have shirts printed out that say Fire Sticks on them.”
Amazon has kept quiet on the subject, as it simply sells the devices with pre-installed apps – such as Prime Video and Netflix – that are entirely legal.
The problem for rights holders is the ability for crooks to then side-load other software onto the stick, which then lets consumers watch premium channels without paying.
It’s clearly an issue that isn’t going away. However, Amazon’s latest update appears to be changing this streaming boom. The firm has just announced the launch of a new Fire TV Stick called the 4K Select.
Along with offering Ultra HD visuals at a slightly cheaper price, this gadget runs on a new operating system called Vega. That’s instead of the usual Fire OS platform that powers all of Amazon’s current Sticks. Perhaps the biggest change to this new software is it’s compatibility with apps.
As spotted by the team at Cordbusters, it appears only approved software can installed. That means unofficial applications won’t work, and that could spell the end of streaming illegally on these devices.
“For enhanced security, only apps from the Amazon Appstore on Fire TV are available for download,” Amazon confirmed.
Of course, this won’t block current Fire TV Sticks from dodgy apps, but it could change things in the future.
This latest update comes after another illegal service has just been shut down and one provider of content sent to jail.
Nishan Silva appeared at Inner London Crown Court on Thursday, 2 October, having pleaded guilty to offences including distributing an article infringing copyright and acquiring or using criminal property Silva, who previously worked as an accountant, was involved in running the illegal subscription-based platform which provided illegal access to a number of streaming services.
Investigators established that the platform had approximately 2,600 followers and had raked in hundreds of thousands of pounds.