India's streaming giant lodges criminal complaint against Express VPN over alleged copyright-breaching marketing | Tech Radar

Overview

India's streaming giant lodges criminal complaint against Express VPN over alleged copyright-breaching marketing

Jio Star accuses the VPN service of being a "knowing facilitator" of piracy

Details

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Världens bästa VPN-tjänst blir bara bättre och bättre - här är allt du behöver veta. (Image credit: Express VPN)

Jio Star has filed a criminal complaint against Express VPN in India

The complaint argues the VPN actively markets the ability to bypass blocks

Jio Star alleges Express VPN is an "inducer" of copyright infringement

India's largest streaming and entertainment company, Jio Star, has reportedly filed a criminal complaint against Express VPN, marking a significant escalation in the battle between rights holders and privacy tools in India.

According to a report by Storyboard 18, the complaint was lodged at the Noida Cyber Crime Police Station. It alleges that Express VPN has engaged in marketing practices that effectively abet copyright infringement by encouraging users to bypass geo-restrictions.

The complaint reportedly targets the specific language used in Express VPN’s advertising. While VPNs are often defended as privacy-preserving utilities, Jio Star contends that Express VPN's promotion of "unblocking" capabilities crosses a legal line.

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"This is not a case of a neutral tool being misused," the complaint argues, alleging that the provider has assumed the role of a "knowing facilitator and inducer" of geo-restriction bypass.

Jio Star, which holds exclusive digital and broadcast rights to premium sporting events like the IPL, argues that by explicitly marketing the ability to virtually change locations to access content "for free" or from unauthorized regions, the VPN provider is complicit in the resulting piracy.

Tech Radar has contacted Express VPN for comment on the allegations and will update this story when we receive a response.

The distinction between a "neutral tool" and a "facilitator" is central to modern copyright law. Typically, technology providers argue that they cannot be held liable for how customers use their software, much like a VCR manufacturer isn't liable for a user pirating a movie.

However, Jio Star’s complaint appears to challenge this defense by focusing on inducement. By allegedly advertising features specifically designed to defeat the geo-blocking measures employed by streaming services, the complaint suggests Express VPN is stripping itself of the "neutral intermediary" status.

This development is particularly notable in India, a market that has become increasingly hostile to VPN providers. In 2022, the Indian government’s CERT-In directives forced many providers, including Express VPN, to remove physical servers from the country to avoid mandatory data logging.

Now, providers face legal challenges not just over data retention, but over their core value proposition to streaming audiences.

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This case in India is not an isolated incident; it represents a growing global trend where rights holders are moving beyond targeting "rogue" pirate sites and are instead targeting the infrastructure that enables access to them.

In Europe, the pressure is mounting. The MPA presses for VPNs to have a role in the anti-piracy row in Europe, arguing that services must do more to verify that their users aren't engaging in copyright theft.

Similarly, sports leagues are taking aggressive action. La Liga has just won a court order requiring Nord VPN and Proton VPN to block illegal football streams in Spain — a move that VPN companies criticized for being technically unfeasible and a privacy overreach.

Furthermore, a French court has already issued three blocking orders against popular VPN services, Express VPN included. Another signal that courts are increasingly willing to place the burden of policing content on the VPN providers themselves.

Jio Star's criminal complaint suggests that India is now joining this global front, using criminal law rather than just civil injunctions to pressure VPN services into compliance. If successful, this could force a major change in how VPN providers, which frequently top our lists of the best VPN services, market their abilities to unblock global content.

We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example: 1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service). 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad. We do not support or condone using a VPN service to break the law or conduct illegal activities. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.

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Rene Millman is a seasoned technology journalist whose work has appeared in The Guardian, the Financial Times, Computer Weekly, and IT Pro. With over two decades of experience as a reporter and editor, he specializes in making complex topics like cybersecurity, VPNs, and enterprise software accessible and engaging.

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Key Takeaways

• India's streaming giant lodges criminal complaint against Express VPN over alleged copyright-breaching marketing

• Jio Star accuses the VPN service of being a "knowing facilitator" of piracy

• When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission

• Världens bästa VPN-tjänst blir bara bättre och bättre - här är allt du behöver veta

• Jio Star has filed a criminal complaint against Express VPN in India