Delhi High Court’s Ruling Against Unauthorized Streaming
In a significant legal development, the Delhi High Court on July 1, 2026, delivered a ruling to block several unauthorized websites that were found illegally streaming cricket matches and other sporting events. These events are exclusively broadcasted by Sony Pictures Networks India. The case, Sony Pictures Vs Cricfree, was presided over by Justice Jyoti Singh, who issued an ex parte ad interim injunction favoring Sony Pictures Networks India Private Limited.
Websites to Be Blocked
The court ordered the blocking of websites including cricfree.cyou, thegamesurf.com, topstream.pro, crichd.top, cracksports.me, mainstreams.io, qatarstreams.me, and vipstand.cc. Justice Singh noted that Sony had convincingly established a prima facie case warranting interim protection.
Justice Singh’s Comments on Piracy
The court emphasized the need to curb piracy, stating, “There is no gainsaying that piracy must be curbed and needs to be dealt with a heavy hand.” The legal action was pertinent to various ongoing events such as the India Tour of England (Women’s) 2026 and the India Tour of England (Men’s) 2026, along with The Hundred, Asia Cup tournaments, and India’s tours of Sri Lanka, New Zealand, Ireland, and the Asian Games 2026.
Sony’s Exclusive Broadcast Rights
Sony Pictures, a part of the global Sony Group, operates nearly 29 channels across different genres that include SONY TEN, SONY SIX, Sony Entertainment Television, and others. The company holds exclusive rights to broadcast and commercially exploit a range of sporting events, including the New Zealand tour of England 2026 and other high-profile cricket tours and tournaments.
Allegations Against Rogue Websites
Sony argued that these defendant websites were consistently uploading and streaming unauthorized broadcasts of its sports content. The websites, labeled as “rogue,” lacked verifiable ownership details and were using domain privacy services to conceal their operators’ identities. The court concurred, noting the urgency due to the ongoing India Tour of England (Women’s) and (Men’s) matches.
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Immediate Relief and Dynamic Injunction
The court prohibited the defendant websites from any form of unauthorized communication, hosting, streaming, or dissemination of the sporting events. Furthermore, domain name registrars were instructed to block these domains and reveal any available details of the operators in a secure manner. Internet service providers were also mandated to block access to these websites. The Department of Telecommunications and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology were directed to implement necessary blocking measures.
Additionally, the court granted Sony a dynamic injunction, which allows the company to block newly discovered infringing websites throughout the duration of the sporting events. Sony was represented in court by Advocates Siddharth Chopra, Yatinder Garg, Akshay Maloo, Ishi Singh, Manish Singh, and Shudhata from Saikrishna & Associates.
