The Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (ACE) helped secure a $9 million legal judgment against a Pennsylvania man accused of running a large-scale pirate television operation.
The man, Brandon Weibley, is the alleged mastermind behind a number of unauthorized online streaming services, including Beast Mode Live, Viking Media BTV, Shrugs, Zing and Outer Limits. He was sued by ACE last year and served with a copy of the complaint, but failed to show up for court dates.
A federal judge this week entered a default judgment against Weibley, which requires him to pay $9 million in statutory damages. The judge also authorized the transfer of domain names associated with Weibley’s alleged services to the custody of ACE.
ACE said Weibley had been linked to piracy operations dating back to at least 2017. Online profiles for Weibely describe him as an entrepreneur and a car enthusiast who, at one point, reached more than 1.3 million followers on Instagram.
“We commend Judge Wilson’s ruling holding Weibley accountable for copyright infringement,” Jesse Martin, the Senior Vice President and Associate General Counsel for Global Litigation and Intermediaries at the Motion Picture Association, said in a statement. “Protecting the intellectual property rights of creators and content owners is essential and this decision reinforces that stealing copyrighted materials carries serious consequences.”
ACE has pursued a number of civil actions and enforcement efforts in recent years targeting operators of illegal streaming services, IPTV platforms and piracy networks around the world.
