Roku is cracking down on illegal content.

People who attempt to illegally watch sports matches, films and TV shows on Roku are set to have their shows cut off without warning.
The manufacturer has said that it will shut down any channels that it believes are streaming illegal content.

It follows a similar move by the Premier League which cut off streams for people illegally watching football matches on Kodi devices.


Roku has already removed some channels and and threatened it could pull others containing illegal material without prior notice - warning newcomers to watch 'only legal content'

Roku sticks and boxes allow you to watch digital programming on your TV.

But cyber criminals are using the private channel functionality on the Roku operating system to get access to online streams illegally.

The feature was originally meant to allow developers to test their channels ahead of sending to Roku’s channel store.

Now, a warning will appear whenever someone creates a private channel.

It reminds them that they use a channel to stream 'only legal content,' and warns that Roku can pull channels with illegal material 'without prior notice.'

It won't, however, actively scan for piracy.

The impact of the change in stance from Roku is already being felt, according to TechCrunch.

One piracy channel iStreamItAll, which has been operating in a legally grey area, says it will remove support for the Roku platform in 2019.

The move follows illegal broadcasts of the Premier League matches being cut of for many viewers.

At least three paid for Internet Protocol Television Services (IPTV) are reported to have been affected.