At what point Sky\u2019s investigation linked Hannigan to piracy is unclear but at his sentencing last week, his Facebook groups \u2013 including one with 4,775 members \u2013 were described as \u201cshop windows\u201d for his sales of pirate IPTV subscriptions. Reportedly using streams sourced from an operation in Europe, Hannigan\u2019s Android app provided 3,500 channels (including those belonging to Sky) for \u00a328 for six months or just \u00a350 per year. Payments for subscriptions were recorded as \u201cpaid adverts.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to\u00a0local news outlet MEN<\/a>, business was good.<\/p>\n \u201cThe court heard how Hannigan had previously gloated about his success in text messages, claiming that \u2018business was booming\u2019 and \u2018phones were blowing up\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n On March 23, 2022, what\u2019s described as a Sky-led investigation culminated in Hannigan\u2019s arrest. He reportedly confessed to providing \u2018links\u2019 but denied breaching copyright laws, \u201carguing he wasn\u2019t in control of the system,\u201d MEN reports.<\/p>\n \u201cOne of the \u2018mother systems\u2019 used to facilitate the operation was based in Europe, serving 50 million people globally,\u201d the publication continues.<\/p>\n The investigation eventually traced 2,644 payments made directly into Hannigan\u2019s bank account, together worth around \u00a3152,000.<\/p>\n His arrest in March 2022 apparently came as a relief; the now 35-year-old said being a \u2018downstream middle man\u2019 was \u2018very difficult\u2019 and took its toll. He was reportedly glad to see an end to the stress it had caused him but with a potential prison sentence looming at his sentencing last Thursday, would the stress return?<\/p>\n At Preston Crown Court, Hannigan received a two-year sentence suspended for 24 months, and was told to carry out 250 hours of unpaid work. So perhaps some stress, but nothing compared to the stress of a Manchester prison. For a legal system that currently hands down years in prison for offensive tweets, Hannigan might consider himself lucky.<\/p>\n He pleaded guilty to offenses that began in 2019 and only ended upon his arrest three years later; participating in a fraudulent business, concealing and transferring criminal property, and providing a service contrary to copyright law.<\/p>\n Local news reports published Friday following Hannigan\u2019s sentencing are notable for something else; the complete absence of official commentary.<\/p>\n No statement from Sky is unusual, something that also raises questions about the nature of the prosecution. In common with the Premier League, Sky often carries out private prosecutions and the mention of a Sky-led investigation does seem to point in that general direction. If that\u2019s indeed the case, balancing the prospect of future prosecutions against community service may be a difficult exercise.<\/p>\n The absence of any commentary from regional police is unusual too, even when considering the lack of a custodial sentence. The absence of both Sky and police is even more unusual but whether the suspended sentence dampened enthusiasm is unknown.<\/p>\n Whether Hannigan\u2019s mitigation tipped the scales is unclear, but a closer look at his portrayal in the media is certainly interesting.<\/p>\n Even before his arrest in 2022, Hannigan had appeared in national media. In April 2021, an\u00a0interview<\/a>\u00a0with prominent broadcaster ITV revealed how 11 years earlier, Hannigan found himself homeless and living in a second hand \u00a3250 car.<\/p>\n A 2023 interview<\/a>\u00a0with national newspaper The Sun revealed that those days were long gone.<\/p>\n \u201cA chef who makes thousands from sharing recipes online used to be homeless and living out of his car,\u201d the interview begins.<\/p>\n \u201cSimon makes between \u00a32,500 \u2013 \u00a35,000 per post, collaborating with some of the UK\u2018s biggest supermarket and homeware brands for sponsored content. His creative endeavor began as a bit of fun two years ago when he set up an Instagram teaching people how to cook during lockdown.\u201d<\/p>\n The article also mentions how Hannigan made the leap from sleeping in a car to selling lots of them. Hannigan told The Sun he sold the car after being motivated by a kind stranger and then immediately launched a new business.<\/p>\n \u201cI turned that one car into eighty cars with six months, buying and selling them, for \u00a32,000 each,\u201d he said, adding that landed him a job at Ford and at just 24, he became \u201chead of business\u201d at Ford UK on a salary of \u00a3150,000. Then he started his own recruitment company, a\u00a0a post on LinkedIn<\/a>\u00a0reveals.<\/p>\n During mitigation, the Court heard that prior to the pirate IPTV business, Hannigan had been hospitalized with a burst appendix. When he returned home, he discovered that his partner had left him for his friend, and once again found himself in \u2018dire financial straits\u2019. Looking for work, he reportedly posted on Facebook and stumbled into IPTV sales, initially catering to family and friends.<\/p>\n MEN reports that Hannigan is now proposing to \u201cassist Sky News and the British Copyright Council\u201d to help deter others so that they don\u2019t end up in a similar predicament. Yet as deterrent messaging goes, his case may not be the best example.<\/p>\n Instead of news that Hannigan will be sampling prison food for the next few months, any hope of sending a deterrent message on TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram, lies in shreds. Even Hannigan\u2019s entrepreneurial spirit and never say die attitude may not be especially motivational, at least according to the paperwork.<\/p>\n From a car retail business, recruitment company, clothing and vodka businesses, to Dad the Dish Limited and his latest venture, Munch Box, the overwhelming majority were incorporated and then\u00a0dissolved by the government<\/a>\u00a0for failing to file even their first set of accounts.<\/p>\n Source: \u00a0Sky Investigates, Police Step in to Make the Arrest<\/h2>\n
Sentencing<\/h2>\n
Get Knocked Down, and Keep Getting Back Up Again<\/h2>\n
A Changed, Copyright-Aware Man<\/h2>\n
![\"TorrentFreak\"](\"http:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/torrentfreak.png\")
<\/a> TorrentFreak.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"