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The European VOD Coalition , which represents video-on-demand ( VoD ) companies active across the entire EU , has suggested the EU legal regime “ needs further strengthening to help us protect its members ’ content , arguing that the increasingly important role that VoD platforms play within the entertainment industry is threatened by the growing risk of piracy .” “ As such , we take note of the recently announced EU Commission Recommendation on Piracy of Live Content … and take this opportunity to contribute advice and experience ahead of its publication ,” says the Coalition : 1 . Fighting piracy should be an important policy priority for Europe . Piracy harms every part of the European economy and hampers the competitiveness of our sector and the economic and consumer benefits we bring . 2 . Existing Notice and Action procedures should be tightened to make sure pirate content is taken down immediately after being flagged . The latter is easily identifiable and , without near-real-time takedown , the economic value of our rights can be seriously damaged . This |
VoD Coalition lobbies EU piracy policy is especially true for all time-sensitive
content .
3 . Trusted flagger mechanisms should
be expanded beyond online platforms ,
with the same immediate take down
requirement as above .
4 . The varied interpretation and
application of existing tools in some
Member States , such as Poland and
Germany , at national level , needs to be
addressed . As an example on one key
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tool : dynamic injunctions under Article 8 ( 3 ) of the Information Society Directive are one of the most powerful tools for rights holders across the Member States . 5 . Because a pirate whose operations are disrupted by the suspension of one server will rapidly cycle to another , hosting providers should be required to introduce Know-YourBusiness- Customer obligations . 6 . Criteria determining the effectiveness of the Recommendation ought to be listed in an Annex accompanying the document . Over the years , our sector has built considerable expertise in analysing piracy trends , which we hope to be able to share . 7 . Setting a specific period after which the EU Commission is to decide based on facts and data on whether to introduce binding rules . This would incentivise online intermediaries to put in place efficient piracy-mitigation measures in place sooner rather than later and to work better with the content sector . The Coalition and its members remain available to meet and discuss any of the points raised and encourage the Commission to effectively tackle all forms of piracy . |
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Study : Europe takes € 3.21bn IPTV piracy hit
An independent study
undertaken by Bournemouth
University on illicit IPTV
in Europe for trade body
the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy
Alliance ( AAPA ) estimates that
the legitimate industry lost
€ 3.21 billion in 2021 alone as
a result of consumers using
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illicit IPTV piracy services . The illicit IPTV service providers gained € 1.06 billion .
The study , Illicit IPTV in Europe , indicates that 17m Europeans – slightly fewer people than the population of The Netherlands - accessed illicit IPTV services . The use of illicit IPTV services was even higher among the 16-24 age group with 5.9
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million – slightly more than the population of Finland - consuming illicit IPTV .
“ This study highlights the very real damage done to legitimate pay-TV providers by widespread use of illicit IPTV piracy by Europe ’ s citizens ,” states Mark Mulready , co-president of AAPA , and VP cyber services at Irdeto , said . “ It is clear that our industry , law enforcement and legislators must take more stringent steps to stem the growing use of this form of piracy . Consumer awareness must play a central role too . AAPA will continue to devote itself to fighting this crime .”
“ This Bournemouth University study provides an update of research done
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for the EUIPO Observatory on Intellectual Property Infringements three years ago ,” advises Sheila Cassells , executive vice-president of AAPA . “ Despite the efforts of industry and law enforcement more needs to be done . Legislators and policymakers must take every opportunity to help reduce piracy and , in that context , it is regrettable that the Commission has responded to the calls for legislation to mitigate live event piracy by proposing a non-legislative Recommendation . Antipiracy legislation must have real teeth if we are to make serious inroads into reducing its impact . It is important to note that the study addresses only one method of accessing pirate services and , hence , the impact will be even larger .” |
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4 EUROMEDIA |