MANILA, Philippines — The government has ordered internet providers to block local access to websites associated with the peer-to-peer sharing brand YTS, a move that will cut access to 11 of its online portals where movies can be downloaded for free.
The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) issued a memorandum on May 16 directing internet service providers to immediately block the said websites.
The NTC issued the order in response to the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines’ (IPOPHL) site-blocking request against those domains and subdomains.
According to the IPOPHL, the sites associated with YTS include yts.mx, yts.rs, yts.do, ytsuproxy.to, yts.dirproxy.com, yts.unblocked.love, ytssss.jamsbase.com, yts.lt, yts.ag, yts.am and torrents.yts.rs.
It said YTS is one of the world’s most prolific sites involved in the illegal replication and distribution of copyright content.
It cited a 2015 report from the Motion Picture Association (MPA) of America that the site has a library of about 4,500 infringing motion picture titles.
Copyright infringement
The IP rights body said these YTS sites committed piracy or copyright infringement, violating Section 216 of the Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines.
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“Millions of netizens visit this website so this is a major win for the creative industry. We encourage more stakeholders to come forward, file a complaint, and further disrupt access to piracy websites,” IPOPHL Director General Rowel Barba said in a statement.
The IPOPHL said the issuance stemmed from a complaint filed by the MPA, whose member studios include Netflix Studios LLC; Paramount Pictures Corp; Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc.; Universal City Studios LLC; Disney Enterprises Inc., and Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.