In a bold crackdown on digital piracy, the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (ACE)—a coalition of entertainment giants including Amazon, Netflix, Disney, Paramount, and other major Hollywood studios—filed two separate copyright infringement lawsuits, targeting the alleged operators of illicit IPTV services in the United States. The legal actions, lodged in federal courts in Pennsylvania and California, accuse the defendants of running pirate operations such as “Outer Limits IPTV,” “Shrugs,” and “Zing,” which have been profiting from unauthorized streams of copyrighted content. The plaintiffs are seeking injunctions to halt these activities and damages that could soar into the millions, according to a report from TorrentFreak and a post from ACE.
“These lawsuits demonstrate ACE’s unwavering commitment to protecting the creative industry from digital piracy from coast to coast and around the world,” said Karyn Temple, Senior Executive Vice President and Global General Counsel for the Motion Picture Association. “Illegal IPTV services not only harm creators and legitimate streaming platforms but also expose consumers to potential security and fraud risks. We will continue to take decisive legal action to shut down these operations and hold infringers accountable.”
The first lawsuit, filed in Pennsylvania’s Middle District, names Mechanicsburg resident Brandon Weibley as the mastermind behind multiple IPTV brands, including Beast Mode Live, GreenWing Media, Viking Media, BTV, and the recently rebranded “Shrugs” and “Zing.” According to the complaint, Weibley’s infringing ventures date back to 2017, when he registered beastmodebuilds.com to sell subscriptions to pirated streams. Despite efforts to mask his identity, investigators traced his personal email in subscriber invoices, linking him to services offering over 9,000 pirated channels, including live sports and international content. The plaintiffs allege that after a cease-and-desist demand in December 2023, Weibley merely shifted operations to a new domain, vonwik.com, and continued unabated. Citing titles like The Boys, The Witcher, and Forrest Gump, the studios claim “massive scale” infringement and are pursuing up to $150,000 per violated work—potentially millions in total damages.
Simultaneously, a second lawsuit in California’s Central District targets Murrieta resident Zachary DeBarr, the alleged operator of “Outer Limits IPTV.” This service reportedly provided access to over 4,000 live channels and a vast VOD library boasting 13,000 movies and 3,000 TV series, sold for as little as $20 monthly or $200 annually. DeBarr’s history of piracy stretches back to 2017, with the complaint detailing his resale of modified Fire TV Sticks and subscriptions to services like Nitro TV and Glitch TV. Since 2020, he has allegedly run Outer Limits IPTV, promoting it through his iTrustStream YouTube channel, which boasts over 100,000 subscribers. Despite repeated outreach attempts by ACE, DeBarr has not responded, prompting this legal action. The plaintiffs, including Apple alongside the usual ACE roster, demand an injunction and significant statutory damages.
Karyn Temple, Senior Executive Vice President of the Motion Picture Association (MPA), which oversees ACE’s anti-piracy efforts, emphasized the coalition’s resolve. “These lawsuits demonstrate ACE’s unwavering commitment to protecting the creative industry from digital piracy from coast to coast and around the world,” she said. “Illegal IPTV services not only harm creators and legitimate streaming platforms but also expose consumers to potential security and fraud risks.” The dual filings underscore the growing threat of cheap, unauthorized IPTV services flooding the internet, offering vast content libraries at cut-rate prices—deals too good to be legal. As the cases proceed, the industry watches closely, hoping to send a clear message to infringers nationwide.
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