Mass. Man Sentenced To Two Years in Prison For Selling Device to Decode Satellite TV Signals

Could it happen for stealing satellite radio?
The Department of Justice said a Massachusetts resident was sentenced in federal court for possession and sale of illegal access devices used to decode satellite TV signals.
U.S. District Judge Reginald C. Lindsay sentenced James V. Goggin, 35, Saugus, Mass., to two years in prison, to be followed by 3 years of supervised release, and a $5,000 fine. Goggin pleaded guilty June 10 to operating a business that sold electronic devices for the unauthorized decryption of satellite TV services.
At the earlier plea hearing, the prosecutor told the federal court that, had the case proceeded to trial, evidence would have shown that along with installing and servicing satellite TV receivers, Goggin assisted customers to illegally obtain DirecTV’s services without paying fees. Goggin sold DirecTV access cards programmed to allow customers to unscramble satellite TV signals, and provided customers with programming updates and with “bootloaders” and other hardware designed to defeat signal scrambling programs, the U.S. Attorney’s office in Boston said.