Skip to main content

HBO’s not happy about Periscope users livestreaming Game of Thrones

Game of Thrones Season 5
Game of Thrones Season 5
HBO is pressuring Twitter-owned Periscope to take action against users who’re livestreaming shows such as the new season of Game of Thrones, it emerged this week. Periscope, an iOS app that launched just three weeks ago, lets users stream video via their smartphone’s camera, with pretty much anyone hooked up to the Internet able to watch.

So concerned is HBO about what it sees as blatant copyright infringement that the cable company has started sending takedown notices to Periscope.

“In general, we feel developers should have tools which proactively prevent mass copyright infringement from occurring on their apps and not be solely reliant upon notifications,” HBO said in a statement that suggested it was less than happy with Periscope’s current method of dealing with piracy on its platform.

Periscope says in its terms of service that it’ll “respond to notices of alleged copyright infringement” and reserves the right “to remove content alleged to be infringing without prior notice and at our sole discretion,” adding that it’ll also terminate a user’s account “if the user is determined to be a repeat infringer.”

However, the very nature of Periscope means the startup has its work cut out to prevent copyright infringement, which is likely to become an increasing problem as the app continues to build its user base.

Periscope users have the option to leave their streams up on the service for 24 hours, which should give the startup a better chance of tracking down infringers. It could also employ technology similar to that being used by YouTube, which in many cases can spot copyrighted content pretty much right after it’s been uploaded to the site.

While HBO will likely be more concerned about high-quality copies of its shows hitting torrent sites than wobbly streams in portrait mode on Periscope, the network evidently wants the startup to take action early on rather than wait till it becomes a bigger issue further down the road.

[Source: Hollywood Reporter]

Editors' Recommendations

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
How House of the Dragon saved Game of Thrones’ tarnished legacy
Alicent and Rhaenyra clutch each other in House of the Dragon.

May 19, 2019, is a date branded on the pop culture lexicon. The finale to Game of Thrones, the television phenomenon that single-handedly revitalized the fantasy genre and redefined what "event television" meant, aired to the collective disappointment of millions of fans. The show's decline in quality had begun in season 7, with some questionable choices happening as far back as season 5, but the train wreck that was season 8 was beyond words. Consistency went out the window in favor of spectacle, resulting in a rushed season that reduced the world's greatest TV show into a sad shadow of its former self.

The controversial finale put a seemingly permanent stain on Game of Thrones. In the years leading up to its conclusion, HBO expressed interest in creating a franchise based around George R. R. Martin's World of Ice and Fire. However, the episode's terrible reception put the network's plan in doubt, with many wondering if the Game of Thrones brand was in a healthy enough place to support a franchise. Things got worse when the first spinoff, starring Naomi Watts, got unceremoniously axed -- even after shooting a $30 million pilot -- spelling doom for the would-be franchise. Alas, not all was lost; GoT still had an ace up its sleeve, and it was called House Targaryen.
Mother of Dragons

Read more
Game of Thrones deserves to be a great video game like Elden Ring
Tyrion and Daenerys on Dragonstone with Rhaegal and Drogon on either side.

After the generational success that Game of Thrones brought the overall HBO brand, the face of original premium TV has begun a broader expansion of the dark fantasy world of author George R. R. Martin with House of the Dragon. The prequel has reinvigorated the strengths of the flagship show, with more projects underway -- including the Jon Snow-led sequel series. But aside from more TV prequels and a sequel, as ambitious as that all sounds, the video game medium should be something else that's at least on HBO and Martin's radar.

Given the tumultuous merger between Warner Bros. and Discovery, it's hard to say what the likes of Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment will look like in the near or distant future, but the world of A Song of Ice and Fire is teeming with a mythology that would lend itself well to gaming. Whether it's through the roleplaying or real-time strategy genres, there are plenty of avenues developers can take this IP.
The Elden Ring factor

Read more
The 10 most powerful Game of Thrones characters ever, ranked
Daenerys and Jon meeting together in her room.

House of the Dragon ended its hugely successful first season with an episode that included everything, from plots to steal the Iron Throne to dragon battles and a violent death. In short, it was just another day in Westeros. Yes, House of the Dragon was a resounding success, but it owes much of it to Game of Thrones. The show that single-handedly revived the fantasy genre and redefined what the word "spectacle" meant in television, GoT was a game-changer.

The show conquered fans' and critics' hearts with a successful mix of political intrigue and good, old-fashioned drama; there was nothing like it on television or film. Game of Thrones featured a seemingly endless parade of morally-dubious characters vying to seat on a pointy chair, and we couldn't get enough of them. Indeed, the pursuit of power was at the heart of GoT, with every major player wanting to get their share of the glory. But what is power in Westeros? Varys said it best: it's an illusion, a shadow on the wall. And these characters certainly cast a very large shadow. Whether because of their resources, armies, gold, or charm, these figures were the most powerful in Westeros and the beating heart of the game of thrones.
10. Jon Snow

Read more