Dubai shut down 144 websites illegally showing Mayweather v Pacquiao fight

Dubai authorities blocked 144 websites trying to illegally broadcast the May 2 boxing match between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr., after complaints from TV broadcaster OSN, according to a report by Khaleej Times newspaper.

After the complaint was lodged by the TV broadcaster OSN who had paid to secure exclusive Middle East rights to broadcast the Las Vegas event - which was dubbed 'the Fight of the Century' - the Department of Economic Development - Dubai (DED) and the General Authority for Regulating the Telecommunications (TRA) stepped in to clampdown on the websites illegally showing the match.

“The taskforce caught not less than 144 online websites trying to show the world boxing match live, which could have incurred a huge financial loss for the broadcasting service company that held the exclusive rights to air it. The company had spent a big sum of money to televise the event live,” Mohammed Lootah, director of the Commercial Compliance and Consumer Protection sector at the department, was quoted as saying.