As Kodi crackdown continues there's more news for illegal streaming fans

KODI add-ons continue to be put under pressure but a new crackdown has stopped more people from streaming illegally.

Despite Kodi being a totally legal TV player, it continues to come under huge scrutiny.

With its open platform able to adapted via so-called add-ons it has been the cause of concern for rights holders and the authorities for some time.

In fact, recent crackdowns have seen many of these services shut down with the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment ramping up its efforts to stop this online activity.

Charles Rivkin, the CEO of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), recently spoke about the ongoing piracy crackdown in an interview with World Screen.

Rivkin discussed how rights holders joining forces under the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (ACE) has helped combat piracy.

The former diplomat explained that the ACE’s efforts has already helped shut down the operations of major website 123Movies.

Now it seems another service has come under the scrutiny of ACE with a popular IPTV provider being taken offline.

As reported by TorrentFreak, it seems that IPTV provider OneStepTV.com, which offered thousands of movies and TV channels for has been closed down.

It appears the service had grown rapidly over a short space of time with it offering access to hours of content for a $25 per month fee.

When users now try and access the site they are faced with a message from ACE which states "THIS WEBSITE IS NO LONGER AVAILABLE DUE TO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT.

"YOU WILL BE REDIRECTED TO ALLIANCE4CREATIVITY.COM IN 5 SECONDS."

It's unclear if the service will return or what penalties the team behind it will face but it's another victory for those trying to stop streaming online.

Although this latest crackdown is not targeting Kodi users the team behind the player have recently tried to distance themselves from illegal streaming.

In a blog post, they said: “It's noteworthy to point out that most third-party add-ons aren't illegal.

“They are authored by legitimate developers that, like us, give their free time to the benefit of the community.

“Those developers choose not to submit the add-ons to our repository for a variety of reasons, but the add-ons are legal. Just not official.

“But some are illegal. A few are both illegal and just downright nasty, and some rogue developers even think your hardware is their hardware.

“These developers and the surrounding ecosystem only care about popularity or money.

“Yes, they do make money from you, selling that marvellous VPN that you so desperately need to feel safe, showing you ads galore, promising everything for free.

“We know the story. A work colleague told you about some wonderful software that makes it very easy to watch your favorite sports, movies and TV shows online and for free.

“You go out and buy a Kodi box.

“You plug it to your TV set and voila - instant free entertainment!

“Now, if it sounds like it can't be legit because it literally sounds too good to be true, and that they must be dodgy or bonkers doing all this for nothing, I can tell you your spidey senses are absolutely correct.

“It is too good to be true and there is no such thing as a free lunch.”