Rabe: “Europe
should consolidate
against streamers”
Interagency
cooperation dismantles
piracy network
Thomas Rabe, chief executive and chairman of
media group Bertelsmann, says regulators should
allow European media companies to scout mergers
and partnerships to enable them to compete with US
streaming giants such as Netflix and Disney+.
Rabe told the FT that the economic impact of
coronavirus on the industry had strengthened his view
that it will be necessary to redraw the European media
landscape.
An alleged criminal network of copyright infringing hackers,
responsible for pirating movies and hosting illegal digital
contents worldwide, has been dismantled in a coordinated action
between US authorities and their counterparts in 18 countries around the
world, with Eurojust and Europol support.
Over 60 servers were taken down in North America, Europe
and Asia and several of the main suspects were arrested. The
alleged illegal activity was causing tens of millions
of dollars in losses on an annual
“There is a strong case and a need for consolidation,”
he said. “I’m convinced that partnerships are more
important than ever, especially after the coronavirus,
which hurt European TV broadcasters and has helped the
US streaming platforms.”
US streaming services have seen their subscriber
numbers and revenues boosted as lockdown measures
around the globe meant millions more turned to watching
content online. Although audiences also grew among
European TV broadcasters for the same reason, these
groups have suffered from a sharp drop-off in advertising.
Bertelsmann division RTL Group reported a 16.4% fall
in revenue to €2.7 billion in the six months to June. Net
profit slumped 65% to €156 million.
Rabe, who also chairs RTL, did not offer an annual
“I’m convinced
that partnerships
are more
important than
ever.”
rescuing their battered economies.
forecast, saying that
conditions remain
unpredictable because of
the pandemic, although
he believes future
lockdowns are more likely
to be local than national
as governments focus on
Nevertheless, he added that the rise of US streaming
services will be a challenge that outlasts the crisis, and urged
European regulators not to adopt strict interpretations of
competition law in order to take into account a new era of
competition. “We should be allowed to create national TV
champions,” he said, adding that RTL was “open-minded
to exploring such possibilities” in the markets where it
operates.
basis mainly to the US movie, television, and supporting industries.
Based on allegations contained in court documents, the organised
crime group (OCG) called the ‘Sparks Group’ dismantled on August 25th
was one of the biggest online piracy groups in the world.
Through fraud they obtained legal copies of DVD and Blu-Ray disks
of blockbuster movies, television shows, and other content in advance of
their release dates, compromised their copyright protections and then
uploaded and distributed copies via servers operated by the OCG. The
content was made available prior to its retail release date and further
distributed via streaming websites, peer-to-peer networks, torrent
networks, and other servers accessible to the public, causing major losses
to the film production industry.
“Thanks to the
long-standing
partnership
between the US
and the European
authorities, we
managed to deal a
significant blow to
online piracy.”
‘This case is an excellent example
of what can be achieved if we
work together across borders and
continents,” stated Ladislav Hamran,
president of Eurojust. “Thanks to the
long-standing partnership between
the US and the European authorities,
we managed to deal a significant
blow to online piracy. My sincere
congratulations go out to all countries
involved in this joint action.”
“In an investigation that spanned
several time zones, the Department of Justice and law enforcement
agencies in the United States worked very closely with national
authorities from all other countries involved, exchanging necessary
information in real time in a highly dynamic landscape,” advised Vaughn
Ary, director of the US Department of Justice’s Office of International
Affairs. “The Department extends our gratitude to Eurojust, Europol, and
our international partners, who played a critical role in the investigation
and takedown of these alleged cyber criminals.”
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