{"id":31375,"date":"2025-10-14T19:49:22","date_gmt":"2025-10-14T19:49:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.lacnic.net\/?p=31375"},"modified":"2025-10-16T16:53:48","modified_gmt":"2025-10-16T16:53:48","slug":"website-blocking-differing-perspectives-on-content-piracy-at-lacnic-44","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.lacnic.net\/en\/website-blocking-differing-perspectives-on-content-piracy-at-lacnic-44\/","title":{"rendered":"Website Blocking: Cross-references on Its Use to Combat Piracy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Miguel Ignacio Estrada<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A panel on Website and IP Blocking as a Strategy against Content Piracy<\/a> was organized as part of the LACNIC 44<\/a> event. The session was moderated by Roc\u00edo de la Fuente (LACTLD) and brought together technical, legal, and public policy experts to analyze the scope, limitations, and impacts of a practice that is gaining ground in several countries in the region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The panel addressed the expansion of domain and IP address blocking as a way to combat the unauthorized distribution of audiovisual and sports content on the Internet. While the panelists agreed that piracy causes significant economic harm, they differed on the technical effectiveness, legal proportionality, and potential effects of these measures on Internet stability and openness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Between Protection and the Risk of Overregulation <\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Jorge Bacaloni, Regional Anti-Piracy Manager at DirecTV Latin America and president of Alianza, the Alliance Against Audiovisual Piracy, acknowledged that, while controversial among the technical Internet ecosystem, website and IP blocking is considered an effective tool to combat audiovisual piracy. He argued that piracy not only involves violations of intellectual property rights but can also serve as a gateway for other crimes such as illegal gambling, child pornography, or malware distribution. In this sense, Bacaloni stated that blocks are a legitimate instrument within a broader set of measures. He rejected the idea that they \u201cbreak the Internet\u201d and compared their use to measures against other serious crimes such as drug trafficking or child exploitation, where blocking is routinely implemented without questioning their validity or effectiveness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/a>Technical and Operational Challenges<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Next, LAC-ISP President Basilio Rodr\u00edguez P\u00e9rez explained that Internet service providers in Brazil receive multiple court orders requiring them to block IP addresses, domains, or URLs, which creates a significant operational burden for companies in the sector. He noted that many of these blocks are ineffective, as some affect legitimate services, while others target domains that are beyond the reach of the provider.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rodr\u00edguez also highlighted that the use of VPNs reduces the effectiveness of these measures and recalled cases, such as the temporary blocking of Twitter (now X) in Brazil, which many users easily bypassed. Although mechanisms with defined timeframes have been implemented, technical challenges and a lack of understanding of the complexity of the process among judicial authorities persist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/a>The Case of Uruguay<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

From a regulatory perspective, Gonzalo Balseiro, president of the Uruguayan Communications Services Regulatory Unit (URSEC), described the three types of blocks that currently apply in the country, each with a different origin and nature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n