A long-time effort to boost penalties for pirated video streams may have finally met its moment, that being the combination of the explosion of streaming content and over-the-top distribution channels and a COVID-19-sequestered populace for whom online video has become an entertainment lifeline. Free State Foundation’s Seth Cooper, in a blog post late Thursday pointed out that the bipartisan Protecting Lawful Streaming Act, which would up those penalties, was at press time still attached to an omnibus spending bill that needs to pass to prevent a government shutdown.
