Amazon Is Cracking Down On Illegal Streaming On Its Fire Tv Stick

Amazon says it is blocking apps that let users to illegally watercourse contented connected its Fire TV Stick, according to reporting by The Athletic. The clampdown will use to caller and aged devices and it’s already begun successful France and Germany, pinch a world rollout group for nan adjacent weeks and months. 

The Fire TV Stick, and akin plug-in streaming devices made by different companies, person agelong been associated pinch pirated content, specifically sports. Unauthorized third-party apps tin beryllium “side-loaded” onto devices and connection users entree to forbidden streaming platforms astatine little prices than ineligible sports providers. 

But a device-level prohibition of piracy apps will render useless hacks attempting to skirt location-specific bans pinch a VPN, Tech Radar reported. 

The move to prohibition apps identified pinch piracy landed weeks aft Amazon launched nan Fire TV Stick 4K Select, which runs connected Linux instead of nan easily-modified Android package utilized connected erstwhile TV streaming hardware. The latest streaming stick, nan institution told The Athletic, includes beefed up information measures and limits app downloads to only apps successful nan Amazon app store. 

The Athletic reported a connection from Amazon via an unnamed spokesperson: “Piracy is forbidden and we’ve ever worked to artifact it from our app store… We’ll now artifact apps identified arsenic providing entree to pirated content, including those downloaded from extracurricular our app store. This builds connected our ongoing efforts to support creators and protect customers, arsenic piracy tin besides expose users to malware, viruses and fraud.”

Roughly 9 percent of adults successful nan UK person illegally streamed sports successful 2025, according to a six period study that ended successful October. That’s astir 4.7 cardinal people, and is astir 200,000 group much than nan canvass conducted 2 years ago. The study was conducted by marketplace investigation institution YouGov Sport and commissioned by The Athletic.

Fire Sticks, nan catchall word that includes Amazon streaming sticks, is nan 2nd astir communal measurement that UK adults devour pirated sports streams, according to nan YouGov survey. Unauthorized websites classed first pinch 42 percent of respondents citing it arsenic nan astir communal measurement to watch sports illegally, compared to 31 percent of respondents who classed plug-in devices.