According to the report “Illicit IPTV in Europe”, illegal IPTV services in Europe generated EUR 1.06 billion (SEK 12 billion) in 2021. In Sweden, the revenue is estimated at almost EUR 35 million (SEK 390 million) annually.
Sweden is, as always when it comes to piracy, one of the countries where the problems are the largest. As much as 7.2% of Sweden’s population buys illegal IPTV services, according to the report. Only the Netherlands and Luxembourg have a higher proportion. In total, in the EU and the UK, the corresponding figure is 4.5%, which means just over 17 million people. Since 2018, the number of users has increased by 25%. Among young people (16–24 years old), the percentage is even higher: 11.8% (almost 5.9 million people). On average, a single user spends EUR 5.22 per month to access illegal IPTV. In Sweden, the amount is slightly higher, around SEK 60.
Illegal IPTV damages private actors such as TV providers, rights holders and creators. In the report, the damages for legal providers of pay TV are estimated at EUR 3.21 billion (SEK 36 billion).
Lower profits lead to less investment in innovation and creativity, which affects consumers. Consumers can also suffer from malware and loss of personal information. In addition, illegal IPTV also leads to significant losses in the form of missed jobs and tax revenue. The proceeds of the criminals are not taxed and can fuel other forms of organized crime, including fraud, corruption, money laundering and drug trafficking.
Rights Alliance Sweden works on a broad front against illegal IPTV. We analyze, investigate, report sites to the police and try to block specific IPTV services and/or specific content. We also work to highlight the problem and show the consequences of piracy and other intellectual property rights violations. The study above was carried out by the Center for Intellectual Property, Policy & Management at Bournemouth University in collaboration with Gobelin House, on assignment of the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA). You can find the report here.
2023-01-11