The video will start in 8 Cancel

Day or night, you won't miss a story with the Liverpool Echo newsletter Sign me up now Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice Invalid Email

People who are misusing Kodi boxes could be targeted by piracy fighters, a report has suggested.

Users of the service - as well as other set-top box software - will find themselves at the middle of a new battle against piracy.

The emergence of Kodi or certainly those who use it illegally is now seemingly the top priority for rights-holders.

The boxes have proved a huge hit with people desperate to watch PPV events, movies - and even the top football matches of the week.

But, worryingly for users, a trader is being hauled to court in a potential landmark case over their legality.

The Federation Against Copyright Theft (Fact) said approximately half of its current investigations centred on the devices.

It said boxes which are configured to receive premium content for free are illegal.

(Image: Daniel Law/PA Wire)

The statements came in the annual crime report of the government's intellectual property office (IPO).

Fact said set-top boxes configured to receive premium content for free were "an emerging threat to the audiovisual industry".

"This is becoming an epidemic," Kieron Sharp, director general of Fact, told the BBC.

"If you are not paying for Sky, BT or one of the pay-TV providers for your subscription channels, you are clearly in possession of an illegal box."

The IPO said the increased availability of such devices was now a "significant challenge".

"We are aware that set-top boxes, while perfectly legal in their own right, are frequently adapted by criminals to illegally receive TV channels protected by intellectual property rights," a spokesman told the BBC.

"The government is working with its partners in industry and with police forces across the country to target criminals looking to profit from this activity.

"We are also working closely with our international partners to target the cross-border infrastructure that underpins illegal streaming."