K League taps Sportradar to fight piracy and illegal streaming
The Korea Professional Football League (K League) has brought on sports data intelligence company Sportradar as its global media rights distributor.
Sportradar will provide intelligence and investigation services to support the K League.
The multi-year deal will see Sportradar provide intelligence and investigation services to support the K League in the protection of its intellectual property through anti-piracy and illegal streaming investigations.
“We are delighted to partner with Sportradar and believe this partnership will provide enriched possibilities and further awareness for the K League. This is a comprehensive deal that looks to increase international exposure and improve our efforts in protecting the integrity of the K League brand,” said Yeon Sang Cho, the general manager of K League.
“By building up opportunities in sports media and marketing with Sportradar in a long-term partnership, we look forward to developing the continued growth of the K League and reaching out to new audiences around the world.”
The English Premier League (EPL) is also taking on piracy. It opened its first international office in Singapore to take on piracy in the country and across the Asia Pacific.
A study produced by GumGum Sports in partnership with Muso, a digital piracy authority, at the behest of an unnamed EPL team, found that clubs could be losing out on as much as £1m in sponsorship media value per match as a result of illegal online streaming.
Earlier this month, two people were charged with infringing EPL's copyright in Thailand and have been fined a total of THB 15 million (US $495,376), in addition to almost THB 7m of their funds being forfeited to the State.
They were sentenced to pay over THB 3m and to a total of three-and-a-half-years’ suspended prison sentences for crimes related to running the illegal operation.
The operation was jointly conducted by EPL and Thailand’s Department of Special Investigation.