📰 New article from TorrentFreak
DNS Resolver Quad9 Will Leave France After Court Orders Piracy Blocking Penalty
It turns out that being a “neutral” internet service provider in France is getting incredibly expensive.
Quad9, the Swiss non-profit DNS resolver known for its privacy-first approach, has decided to pull the plug on its services in France. The reason? A legal showdown with beIN Sports over pirate tennis streams.
A Paris court recently ruled that Quad9 must block certain domains or face daily fines. While the court was slightly more lenient than beIN’s massive demands—setting the penalty at €1,000 a day rather than the requested €10,000—it’s still a headache Quad9 isn’t willing to swallow.
Here is the crux of the conflict:
- Principle over profit: Quad9 views DNS as a neutral utility. They refuse to “lie” to users by altering responses to satisfy censorship orders.
- The “Stadium” Problem: They argue that blocking domains for French users is useless; if people want to watch pirate streams, they’ll just switch to a different DNS provider.
- The Slippery Slope: With about 20 other blocking cases pending in France, Quad9 fears a “death by a thousand cuts” scenario.
If you’re using Quad9 in France, you might want to find a new digital home before November 24.