One of the leading websites of the Counter-Strike community, published globally and with hundreds of thousands of visitors every day. HLTV is banned once again in Turkey. Half-Life Television (HLTV), a news site / forum covering professional Counter-Strike e-sports news, tournaments and statistics, has been unavailable since yesterday (October 4).
The First Ban on HLTV Came in March 2022!
The first ban on Half-Life Television (HLTV) in our country came in March 2022. By the decision of the Spor Toto Organization Presidency No. 18 dated March 14, 2022 access barrier The site was no longer accessible as of Wednesday, March 23. The access block, which lasted about a week, was lifted at the end of March.
Furkan Güven, Founder of Eternal Fire As a result of the long and intense efforts of the Counter-Strike community, especially the Counter-Strike community, the issue was conveyed to the Vice President of the time, Fuat Oktay, and the problem was resolved after he listened to the issue from his interlocutors. After a 1-week break, the site started to be accessed from our country again.
Latest esports news You can take a look here.
HLTV Has Been Disabled for the 2nd Time in Turkey
With the process that started yesterday Half-Life Television (HLTV) It was banned once again in our country. As of October 4, access to HLTV has been blocked from Turkey. The reason was again given as “illegal betting and gambling”. This time, the ban decision was taken by the decision of the Information Technologies and Communications Authority.
Visitors trying to access HLTV encounters the following message:
“Illegal betting can be used to finance terrorism. The money you send to illegal betting sites may make you a criminal. Additionally, illegal betting and gambling are crimes.”
Warning text At the top, the decision taken by BTK as of October 4, 2023 is stated in Turkish and English. Subsequently, the above warning text was included. Below this, the articles of the law in question are stated and sanctions are specified for several other crimes, especially “illegal betting and gambling”.
Counter-Strike Community Reacts
Following the blocking of access to HLTV, users who expressed their opinions on social media sharing platforms claimed that the decision taken was wrong. Eternal Fire It is a matter of curiosity how the leading teams of Counter-Strike in our country will react to the issue.
Why Was HLTV Banned?
It is thought that the reason why HLTV was banned was the advertisements of foreign betting sites on the site. Apart from the “warning text” on the site, no official statement has been made yet on this issue.