A man who made tens of thousands of pounds selling so-called ‘fully loaded’ Kodi set-top boxes has been handed a suspended prison sentence in Court.
Brian Thompson, Middlesbrough, reportedly made almost £40,000 by selling the unlawfully enhanced boxes – which can be manipulated to provide access to copyrighted films and television programmes – to customers at his TV shop.
The 55-year-old found himself before Teesside Crown Court, after Trading Standards officers visited his outlet and made a test purchase.
Later, Mr Thompson’s premises were raided and he was accused of selling an estimated 400 Kodi boxes which had been reconfigured to enable users to access Sky TV channels.
Losses to Sky were an estimated £200,000 in subscription fees, the Court heard.
Prosecutors also drew attention to the audacious advertisements Mr Thompson had placed in his shop window promoting the unlawfully-enhanced boxes.
A report in the Yorkshire Times suggests that one read: “Sick of paying monthly subscriptions? Free Sky, Virgin, Box Nation, Racing UK.”
Mr Thompson pleaded guilty in Court and was handed an 18-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, according to reports.
Judge Armstrong said that the rogue trader had “done a disservice” to the many hundreds of thousands of Britons who “lawfully have to pay £50 a month or more on Sky and BT subscriptions.”