Your Fire TV Stick just lost an often abused feature – Amazon's anti-piracy crackdown continues

Amazon is taking further steps to block the installation of particular types of apps which provide access to unlicensed content. The move is a continuation of Amazon's crackdown on rampant piracy taking place using cheap Fire TV Stick hardware.

One of the attractions of the Amazon Fire TV Stick is the affordability. Combine that with the ability to sideload apps because it's an Android-based system and it's been a delight for those wanting to gain access to content without paying for it.

Now, according to a report from AFTVNews, the installation of these apps is being blocked. Where previously apps that were suspected of using unlicensed content would trigger a warning, this escalated to blocking them launching and now they can't be installed at all.

Hacking Fire TV Sticks has been a huge problem for the company and has seen the company switch operating system on its cheapest 4K device. Called Vega OS, it made its debut on the Fire TV Stick 4K Select late last year.

Vega OS doesn't change the experience, but it does block sideloading, so only apps from the official Amazon Appstore are supported.

That doesn't help with devices that are already in circulation, which is what this move seems to be all about. Commenters are furious that Amazon is making it more difficult to access pirated content and those comments do make for amusing reading.

There be pirates off the starboard bow

Some of the disaffected users have suggested blocking updates to the Stick, but another comments that they found their device had rebooted and installed an update automatically. Some suggest moving away from the Fire TV Stick to other devices.

Despite those users falling out of love with the Fire TV Stick, it remains one of the most popular streaming devices. The Fire TV Stick 4K Max remains one of the best choices for streamers, offering snappy performance and access to all the (legal) streaming services you might want.

The Fire TV Stick 4K Max also offers access to Xbox Cloud Gaming and, thanks to a recent update, Amazon Luna for Prime subscribers. However, the need for an external streaming device could be in decline as pretty much all new TVs have a smart platform that gives access to streaming apps – often offering a better performance than using an external device.

For those with older TVs that haven't been updated, the Fire TV Stick remains top choice – but Amazon is intent on stopping the "dodgy" Fire TV Sticks in their tracks.