OTTAWA – BCE, Rogers and Videotron have added 11 new defendants to their legal action against the sale of TV set top boxes pre-loaded with applications that they claim allows access to their copyrighted content.
The three big TV companies last month joined forces against named defendants iTVBox.net, My Electronics, Android Bros Inc., WatchNSaveNow Inc. and MtlFreeTV.com and won a temporary injunction to stop them from selling the loaded boxes until the matter is resolved. According to a CBC News report, 11 Android box dealers were added on June 20.
The Android boxes, ranging in price from $40 to $250, are often marketed as a way for consumers to get "free TV" and cut their TV subscription bills. The devices are similar to Apple TV but their added software enables customers to stream an array of unauthorized TV content.
The report quotes an unnamed source who says that the TV companies are targeting the dealers because they’re unable to track down the programmers who make the software for the boxes. The source added that the case is actually working against the plaintiffs because it has made more consumers aware of the loaded Android boxes and what they offer.
