The Delhi High Court has granted an ex-parte ad-interim injunction in favour of JioStar India Private Limited against rogue websites that are illegally broadcasting live broadcasts of ICC cricket matches. The court has ordered immediate and immediate blocking of such websites that are infringing on the exclusive broadcast reproduction rights of JioStar.
The court has held that the television, digital broadcasting and streaming rights for the ICC Under-19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2026 to be held from January 15 to February 6, 2026 and the ICC Men’s T20 Cricket World Cup 2026 to be held from February 7 to March 8, 2026, belong exclusively to JioStar. As per the media rights agreement signed with the International Cricket Council (ICC), these rights are being exploited through JioStar’s broadcast channels and its OTT platform JioHotstar.
Considering the time-bound nature of live sports events and clear evidence of continued unauthorized broadcasting, the court observed that such fake websites operate on an organised and systematic piracy model and repeatedly appear through mirror domains and redirect domains. The court stated that any delay in blocking such platforms would result in irreparable loss, loss of revenue and erosion of exclusive rights.
Therefore, the court directed domain name registrars, Internet Service Providers (ISPs), Department of Telecommunications (DoT), and Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY) to immediately block access to identified fake websites. Notably, the order allows for dynamic and real-time enforcement—action can be taken immediately against newly discovered illegal websites during the tournament period, based on the information provided by JioStar, without the need for fresh court proceedings each time.
The court reiterated that injunctions in digital piracy cases should be effective, dynamic, and technically responsive, especially in situations where content is created and infringed in real time. This order strengthens India’s anti-piracy system by paving the way for speedy action against digital piracy and protecting the credibility and integrity of legitimate sports broadcasting systems.
