December 2, 2019

The report analyses consumption of copyright-infringing music, films and TV programmes in the 28 EU Member States between January 2017 and September 2018. The data collected covers both fixed and mobile devices, as well as the main methods of access: streaming, downloading, torrenting and stream ripping.

The report finds that digital piracy is declining. Between 2017 and 2018, access to pirated content fell by 15% overall, with the sharpest drop being seen in music (32%), followed by film (19%) and TV (8%).

However, piracy remains a significant problem, and more so in some Member States than others. The report seeks to explain why this is so by analysing some of the socio-economic, demographic and other factors that could influence consumption of pirated content. Among the socio-economic factors, per capita income and the level of income inequality seem to have the greatest impact on consumption of pirated content: high per capita income and a narrow income gap are associated with lower levels of illicit consumption.

The overall size of the market, as measured by the number of internet users in a country, also matters: where all other things are equal, average consumption of pirated content is lower in larger Member States. A higher acceptance of digital piracy, as evidenced in the EUIPO’s IP Perception study, is also associated with higher consumption of pirated content. To read EUIPO’s press release in full and for a link to the report, click here.