The individual or organisation which owns the media content are known as the copyright owners. When an individual streams or downloads a torrent of a TV show or movie, they are downloading (and in many cases uploading) digital content that a company or individual owns and usually distributes for a fee.
You will not be criminally charged, convicted or sentenced for downloading or sharing Game of Thrones. However, streaming or torrenting Game of Thrones is not a criminal offence. Can I go to prison for digital piracy?ĭigital piracy in Australia is often referred to as being ‘illegal’. In this article, we’ll explore some of the basic concepts, and set out the legal status and potential consequences for pirating Game of Thrones. This leads to a lot of confusion and misinformation regarding digital piracy in Australia. Leading up to the release of the previous seasons, there was a lot of talk in the media regarding digital piracy, streaming, torrenting, and the potential legal consequences. Australians are renowned worldwide as pirates of digital content to such an extent that in 2013 the US Ambassador to Australia requested Australians stop torrenting (peer to peer sharing) Game of Thrones. 11am, Monday 15 April 2019 marks the release of Season 8 of Game of Thrones in Australia.
