“Consumer fury” is contributing to the rise in dodgy box usage across Ireland, a journalist has said.
Legal notices have been served to 13 operators of so-called dodgy boxes – which provide cheap, illegal TV streaming services.
The notices threatened consequences including criminal prosecution if operators do not immediately cease their illegal operations.
These 13 legal notices were issued in an operation which took place over two weeks in December across Dublin, Cork, Donegal, Offaly, Limerick, Louth, Clare, Westmeath and Laois.
On The Hard Shoulder, consumer journalist Siobhán Maguire said these legal notices probably won’t have much of an effect.
“If somebody loses their provider, they're just going to find someone else and they are very easily had,” she said.
“I mean, there are people you know who will know of people who can put you in touch [with someone] where you can reach out and you can have somebody providing you with another service by the end of the day.
“What it means now is that it's readily available, it can be had and it's very, very cheap, and lots of us do it.
“I mean, I read some statistic that one in five of us have a dodgy box now.”
@newstalkfm'It's not a victimless crime' Reaction as legal notices issued to 13 TV 'dodgy box' providers
"Consumer fury"
Ms Maguire said that “consumer fury” comes into play with dodgy boxes.
“We live in the age of streaming - we've had Netflix in Ireland since 2012 and it started off at €6.99 you're now looking at €16.99 for a standard package,” she said.
“On top of that, you've got your Disney's, your Apples and there's something that everyone's talking about on a different platform - you want to have it all.
“If you were to buy every single one of these streaming providers, you're looking at around €70 a month, which is crazy, on top of a television subscription.
“I have to say that this is where a lot of consumer fury creeps in relation to getting one of these dodgy boxes.”
Icons for various television viewing apps, © PA Archive/PA ImagesMs Maguire said some television packages are extremely expensive and could be priced much better.
“The cost comparison is that, you know, you spend your €70 on your TV package plus your Netflix or you spend anything from €8 to €10 on one of these dodgy boxes,” she said.
“There is a little bit of getting one over on the man, the man being the television service providers and you know, they've not been without their criticisms in the past, but people simply feel that it's just simply not affordable.
“You pay for your broadband, that's fine, [but] why does the television package have to be double that on top of everything else?
“So there is a sense that, you know, there could be a fairer price point from these companies.”
"More competition"
Ms Maguire said that while consumers using dodgy boxes can’t deny what they are doing is illegal, saving money is rightly more important to them than worrying about the effect on TV service providers.
“Perhaps we need more competition in the area to shake things up a little bit because they've all been able to sit down and relax like they're sitting down in front of a nice movie on an evening, knowing that Irish consumers basically have very little choice when it comes to choosing what they need to pay for or what they want to view,” she said.
“[Service providers] are making a lot of money from the television services, their broadband services and various other offerings that they have on the go - they're not short of a penny here.
“I think within this whole discussion, you know, you have to say, first and foremost, you are infringing copyright by using one of these dodgy boxes, from the outset - you can't hold up your hands and say, ‘Well, I didn't know what I was doing was illegal’, because of course you do.
“But the feeling of being able to save a whole lot of money, having access to everything and anything at the touch of a button, is far more inviting than worrying about what somebody sitting in their big corporate office is worrying about with one of the big television service providers.”
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A television with video streaming services and a remote control. Picture by: Michael Zech / Alamy Stock Photo
