Delhi HC Grants Anti-Piracy Relief To JioStar Ahead Of IPL 2026

The Delhi High Court (HC) has granted an interim relief to JioStar India for blocking illegal streaming of the tournament days before the commencement of the IPL 2026. 

The court passed ex parte ad interim injunctions via two separate orders dated March 25 (Wednesday) against rogue websites and Android-based apps accused of pirating IPL content. The tournament is scheduled to run from March 28 to May 31, with 84 matches planned.

The court noted that JioStar holds exclusive digital and broadcast rights for the IPL from 2023 to 2027, acquired via Viacom18 and approved by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

It held that any unauthorised streaming would infringe these rights and lead to revenue loss that cannot be easily recovered.

The court said there is a clear risk of piracy based on past incidents, where similar platforms streamed matches without permission.

In one case, the court restrained websites like daddylives.nl and related domains from streaming IPL content. In the second case, it targeted Android apps including Abbasi TV, CricFY TV, RTS TV, CricPK and HD Streamz, which distribute pirated streams via APK files.

The HC said that these apps are designed mainly to provide free access to copyrighted content, bypassing paid platforms.

The court’s “dynamic injunction” allows JioStar to flag new infringing websites during the IPL. After identification, these sites would be blocked quickly by domain registrars and internet service providers.

In the case of mobile apps, it issued a “dynamic+” injunction. This covers not just existing apps but also future versions, mirror links and similar platforms that may emerge to bypass the order.

The court said such real-time measures are needed because piracy networks keep changing domains and formats to avoid detection.

The court directed domain registrars to suspend infringing domains and share details such as registrant information, payment data and KYC records. Internet service providers have been asked to block access to identified platforms within strict timelines, in some cases within 36 hours.

It also asked the Department of Telecommunications and the MeitY to issue notifications to ensure compliance.

Notably, the IPL media rights for the 2023–2027 cycle were sold for a combined ₹48,390 Cr, making it one of the most expensive sports leagues globally on a per-match basis, at about ₹118 Cr per match. 

Under this deal, Disney Star retained TV broadcast rights for ₹23,575 Cr, while Viacom18 (Jio) secured digital streaming rights for ₹20,500 Cr, along with an additional ₹3,273 Cr for exclusive digital packages.

This marked a sharp jump from the previous 2018–2022 cycle, where rights were valued at around ₹54.5 Cr per match. The current deal covers more than 410 matches across five years, reflecting the IPL’s growing commercial scale.

Meanwhile, in a separate development, the Delhi High Court recently ordered the blocking of 21 domains linked to fake fantasy gaming apps that were copying Dream11’s branding and interface. 

The court found that such platforms could mislead users into believing they were associated with the official app, and held that continued operation could cause irreparable harm to the company.

The post Delhi HC Grants Anti-Piracy Relief To JioStar Ahead Of IPL 2026 appeared first on Inc42 Media.