Amazon Bans Streaming Devices Sales With Pirated Content

Amazon sells a variety of electronics, but the online retailer now plans to take a stricter approach to the types of streaming devices vendors can sell.

After a revision to its sales policy, Amazon has banned third-party streaming boxes that endorse or allow for pirated content, according to TorrentFreak. Under the new rules, Amazon explicitly prohibits streaming boxes that advertise illegal content and vendors who sell devices risk having their inventory at Amazon warehouses destroyed and having their payments canceled from Amazon.

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Amazon’s new policy takes a stricter approach to streaming devices:

Products offered for sale on Amazon should not promote, suggest the facilitation of, or actively enable the infringement of or unauthorized access to digital media or other protected content. Any streaming media player or other device that violates this policy is prohibited from sale on Amazon.

It is your responsibility to source and sell products that do not promote, promise the facilitation of, or actively enable the infringement of or unauthorized access to digital media or other protected content. If you sell these products, we may immediately suspend or terminate your selling privileges and destroy inventory in our fulfillment centers without reimbursement. In addition, if we determine that your account has been used to engage in fraud or other illegal activity, remittances and payments may be withheld or forfeited.

The new policy targets streaming devices commonly found from overseas and third-party manufacturers that illegally feature TV shows, current-run movies or other multimedia content. These devices are similar to common streaming devices like the Apple TV and Roku. While these devices often feature open-source multimedia or streaming platforms, they’re often preloaded with content that’ll appeal to buyers.

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As TorrentFreak notes, Amazon has typically taken a hands-off approach to these types of devices, which are commonly found on third-party sales sites like Amazon and eBay. But with piracy being a continued concern for content providers, Amazon’s move is aimed at keeping its catalog clean from these issues.