Without any warning to their users in advance, Kodi’s website has become no longer available for the time being. Trying to download addons from Kodi’s official repository will also prove to be in vain.
Online visitors who will try to access Kodi’s official Web address (https://kodi.tv) will be presented with a message by the U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency.
The charges: “Willful copyright infringement” and “trafficking in counterfeit goods”.
“Willful copyright infringement is a federal crime that carries penalties for first time offenders of up to five years in federal prison, a $250,000 fine forfeiture and restitution (17 U.S.C 506, 18 U.S.C 2319).”
“Intentionally and knowingly trafficking in counterfeit goods is a federal crime that carries penalties for first time offenders of up to ten years in federal prison, a $2,000,000 fine, forfeiture and restitution (18 U.S.C 2320)”
Apparently, this is not the first time that ICE law agency seizes Internet domains. In the past there seems to have been a number of other similar cases, so it’s definitely not unprecedented.
Trying to retrieve more information on ICE’s official website regarding the case, unfortunately, yields no results regarding Kodi.
No results for “Kodi” on ICE website
The keen-minded among you however, might also notice that this sudden take-down just so happen to be taking place at an unusual date: April 1st.
So it all could eventually turn out as an April fools joke…
[Update 2/4/17] indeed Kodi’s take-down turned to be an April fools joke.
