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Online piracy decreases, but pirated content is still accessed six times a month

According to the latest EUIPO report, digital piracy, Measured by the average number of monthly accesses per Internet user to offending websites, it decreased by 34% in 2020 compared to the previous year.

The decrease in piracy occurred in all types of content. Film was reduced by 51%, musical by 41% and television by 27%. Television is the most pirated type of content, and accounted for 70% of infringing website hits in 2020, followed by cinema (20%) and music (10%).

The report confirms the downward trend in piracy that was also observed in the previous 2019 study. Overall, piracy in Europe decreased by 11% in 2017, 20% in 2018, 6% in 2019 and 34 % in 2020.

The study also highlights that there was a temporary spike in film piracy during March and April 2020, coinciding with the confinement by COVID-19 in various EU countries. However, the increase reversed after the lockdown and gradually decreased during the summer and fall of 2020.

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It has been proven that the availability of legal offers and the awareness of citizens regarding said offers have an impact on the reduction of these criminal acts.

Despite the positive figures, piracy remains a major problem across the EU, with differences between Member States. The typical EU surfer accessed copyright infringing content 5.9 times per month in 2020. Latvian users accessed such websites twice, almost fourteen times per month, while Polish users accessed less than four times per month. Although slightly lower, Spain is close to the EU average, with users accessing pirated content 5.7 times a month.

The most used method to access pirated content is the visualization in real time through internet or streaming. More than 80% of the total piracy in the EU in 2020 was carried out through this method. The music, television and film sectors are undergoing major changes in recent years, with an increase in internet-based streaming services.

Among the factors that could influence the consumption of pirated content in the EU, the report notes that the level of income per capita and the degree of income inequality can have an impact. Likewise, the general attitude of citizens towards piracy and the infringement of intellectual property rights influences the consumption of pirated content.

According to Christian Archambeau, Executive Director of EUIPO: «Widespread Internet access across Europe is a boon for citizens’ access to cultural content. Unfortunately, it also facilitates copyright infringement. Piracy, and the associated loss of revenue, is a matter of great concern and poses a direct threat to the creative industries. Despite the positive and continuing decline in the consumption of pirated content shown in the study, there is still much work to be done to address infringement of intellectual property rights online. At EUIPO, we will continue to raise awareness and provide data to assist decision makers in developing new policies and solutions in this area. ‘

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