Italian authorities have shut down Italia TV, an illegal IPTV service operating in Italy and other countries in the European region.
Unlike in the past, where individuals behind the illegal streaming service got away, the ringleaders were arrested and are facing lengthy fines. Subscribers, too, have not been spared, and several of them are facing stiff fines.
We cover everything about the Italia TV shutdown, from the ringleaders’ arrests to convictions, and what this means for illegal IPTV services.
Italia TV was shut down in December 2024
Italia TV was shut down in December 2024 after a raid by the Guardia di Finanza (Financial Police Unit) and the Special Unit for the Protection of Privacy and Technological Fraud in Rome.
The operation closed the curtain on a vast illegal streaming network, which was providing pirated content to thousands of subscribers.
The service reportedly offered access to content from major copyright holders, such as Hollywood Studios, Disney+, Amazon Prime, and Netflix. It also offered illegal live sports streams from DAZN and Sky Sport, which included Serie A football matches.
Italia IPTV charged users €10 a month (or €80 annually) for the illegal content. It is estimated that the illegal service generated over €850,000 in the four years it was in operation.
Despite the vast amounts of revenue generated, the pirated service’s gang leader did not declare his income.
Authorities had targeted the illegal IPTV service before the shutdown
The shutdown of Italia TV did not come as a surprise. Before the raid that took it offline, the IPTV service had been on the radar of Italian authorities, in an investigation led by the Naples Public Prosecutor’s office.
During the investigation, authorities identified 46 website domains through which users accessed illegal streaming content. Nineteen of the websites were blocked, with another 27 seized.
Among the websites targeted was the IPTV service’s parent website, which had a complex redirection system that allowed users to access illegal content, even after original web pages were blocked.
Ring leaders facing prison sentences
During the raid on the illegal Italia TV streaming services, three individuals were arrested. These include:
- Cristian Fidato (a 23-year-old Naples resident)
- Anatoliy Perrotta (Ukrainian)
- A third unnamed individual.
Following the conclusion of the investigations, all three individuals were convicted. Fidato, who was identified as the ring leader, received the harshest sentence of four years and four months, plus an €22,000 fine.
Anatoly Perrota received a suspended sentence of one year and four months. Meanwhile, a third individual, who pleaded guilty, received a one-year prison sentence.
Fidato and Perrotta’s sentences were lenient as they opted for a summary trial procedure. Therefore, their sentence lengths were automatically reduced by one-third.
The illegal IPTV owner ran other illegal “side businesses”
During the raid on Italia TV, Italian authorities discovered that Cristian Fidato was engaged in other criminal activities.
The authorities searched his home, where they discovered around 1,600 child sexual abuse images and videos, which Fidato was reportedly selling via several WhatsApp groups.
The police also discovered an indoor greenhouse, equipped with sprinklers, an irrigation system, lighting, and temperature control, used to cultivate cannabis.
Also seized was an illegal server room with high-tech hardware and computer equipment suspected of being used in cryptocurrency mining.
While the authorities did not reveal details of the hardware seized, Fidato regularly showcased his setup on TikTok.
Italia TV subscribers have been identified and fined
In the past, authorities have mostly focused their attention on piracy promoters, with illegal streamers often escaping scot-free. However, this time, Italian authorities also targeted subscribers of the illegal IPTV service.
During the investigation, the authorities analysed subscriber payments, which included crypto transactions, and identified 6,000 subscribers.
These users have reportedly received notices of fines, with penalties ranging between €51.33 and up to €5,000. The fines are one of the first applications of Italy’s new anti-piracy law.
As reported by Sky Sport, many stakeholders have welcomed the application of the law to punish illegal streamers. According to Andrea Duilio, the Sky Italia CEO, the fines mark the beginning of a cultural shift in combating piracy.
“These sanctions represent the beginning of a much-needed cultural shift: they address a sense of impunity that is still too widespread and combat a phenomenon that destroys value and jobs in many sectors, from sports to audiovisual.”
AC Milan’s president, Paolo Scaroni, also welcomed the move, reiterating the need to enforce the new anti-piracy law fully.
“We have an excellent law, but it needs to be enforced. Enforcing it means punishing those who provide piracy, but also those who use and buy it.”