beoutQ seller convicted of fraud and copyright offences DetailsJoseph O'Halloran | 04 October 2019 The legal fight back by rights holders against beoutQ continues with the conviction of a London retailer for selling illegal streaming devices (ISDs) which gave access to unauthorised English Premier League broadcasts and other content including that of the pirate sports service.Ammar Al-Silawi was found guilty at the City of London Magistrates’ Court on two charges of copyright breach and two charges of fraud, having been found to sell ISDs which provided unlawful access to a number of channels including those of beoutQ.The Premier League prosecuted the case following an investigation conducted in conjunction with the Federation Against Copyright Theft (FACT), with the assistance of the Metropolitan Police. This is the first case of its kind, with the Premier League — which has been working collectively with other footballing bodies such as beIN Sports to combat beoutQ— successfully arguing that in selling the set top boxes, Al-Silawi was guilty of the offence of communicating infringing copies of copyright works to the public.The trial took place on Thursday 12 September, with sentencing heard at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on 3 October. Al-Silawi received the maximum 300 hours of unpaid community service and was ordered to pay legal costs to the Premier League and was warned that failure to comply with the community order in any way would result in an immediate custodial sentence.Commenting on the trial and the verdict, Premier League director of legal services Kevin Plumb said: “The law is very clear that the sale of ISDs is illegal and it is an issue taken very seriously by both the police and the courts. We will continue to investigate and pursue all suppliers of illegal streaming services, regardless of the size or scale of their operation, to protect the intellectual property that enables the Premier League to be so competitive and compelling. Addressing the issues created by the unprecedented beoutQ situation remains a key priority of the Premier League and we will work tirelessly to support beIN Sports, as well as all other broadcasters and fans who acquire our content legitimately.”