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After several consecutive years of increase, the growth of audio-visual content piracy reversed in 2018. This turning point can largely be explained by the expansion of legal video services that are meeting the needs of audiences. However, the opposite situation was observed in the field of sport - and football in particular - where piracy was on the rise. For some years now, this phenomenon has been closely monitored by Médiamétrie on behalf of ALPA (a French association that combats audio-visual piracy).

Piracy in decline

In 2018, there were on average 15.4 million “pirates” each month in France, i.e. one internet user in four. They used a computer, tablet or smartphone to access a website dedicated to audio-visual copyright infringement at least once.

Between January and December 2018, that proportion had dropped by 19%. This dip in the consumption of illegal content correlates with an increase in legal usage, particularly via SVoD services. In January 2018, only 16% of video consumers watched their programmes exclusively via legal sites; by December that figure was 35%, evidence of the increasing popularity of these solutions as opposed to illegal services.

According to Lloyd Mullender, Médiamétrie’s Research and Clientele Manager: “The direct effect of a legal service that meets user demand is a decrease in piracy. Factors other than price, such as the user-friendliness of the service, its content range and even the option to store content are key to the adoption of these legal practices.”

In fact, whilst still important, price is far from being the only motivation to access pirated content. Other significant factors are the avoidance of a contract commitment, and the timeliness and breadth of content on offer.

The pirate: a content fan

In terms of content, these internet pirates are massive consumers of movies and series. In total, 3.8 billion pages and 760 million videos were viewed illegally in 2018. The vast majority of these pirates use a computer, although this device is declining in favour of the mobile phone: in 2018, the number of pirate users watching content illegally on their phones increased four and a half fold compared to 2015.

Almost half of pirate internet users (44%) - i.e. almost 10 million people - used streaming to find programmes, no matter which device they watched on; and the streaming audience hit a new high in 2018. Three in ten of these users downloaded directly and one in five used peer-to-peer sharing (both of these practices declined). Additionally, 8% used Live Streaming which expanded significantly in 2018, driven by live sports viewing.

Nowadays, all types of people are involved in piracy. In general, pirates are fans of content and watch much more of it than other internet users. It is not unusual for them to combine illegal viewing with subscriptions to SVoD platforms (27%). They are also keen viewers of films on catch-up services, VoD, cinema, DVD and TV. In general, pirate users are younger than the internet population, with an average age of 38, and the majority are men.

In 2018, two-thirds of illegal consumption was concentrated on the top 20 piracy websites, based on a total of 1,500 users tracked each month in Médiamétrie’s 3-screen digital audience measurement. This proportion was 15 points lower than in 2017, which can be explained in particular by the legal actions brought by copyright holders that have led to the closure of piracy websites and a partial transfer of audiences to other less popular sites.

Piracy of sporting events is growing

At the same time as fictional content piracy is on the decrease, in France there has been a rise in the piracy of sporting events. Predominantly, internet users resort to illegal streaming platforms to watch live football matches that are broadcast on pay-TV channels. Accordingly, the Champions League is the most-watched programming on live streaming sites, garnering an average audience of 677,000 internet users on each day, and it is well ahead of France’s Ligue 1 and the Europa League.

Besides football, internet pirates also watch Formula 1 and rugby on illegal streaming sites. In 2018, 174,000 unique visitors on average watched Formula 1 illegally and 144,000 viewed France's Top 14 rugby league.

Lloyd Mullender gave this analysis: “The availability of football on TV has been in a state of flux for some time now. Viewers need time to adapt before they subscribe to a paid-for service. We have noticed that it takes a few months for pirates to take the plunge and subscribe. Right now, we are observing this phenomenon in sport".

Laure Osmanian Molinero

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Three questions for Frédéric Delacroix, Managing Director of ALPA

Do you think that the downward trend in piracy will continue?

We believe that this decline will intensify. Indeed, we are at a stage now where legal actions brought by ALPA and its members to block a number of piracy websites and de-index them on search engines will soon reach a successful conclusion. The impact of their enforcement will be seen in the coming months and we expect to see a significant decline in piracy. In addition, we are noticing that quite a few internet users who habitually access content illegally are moving over to legal services.

What actions are you taking in the fight against audio-visual piracy?

The main actions carried out by ALPA are:

• Criminal proceedings against the administrators of piracy websites, as was previously achieved with iconic torrent sites such as Zone-Telechargement and T411. We will continue to pursue this type of action wherever possible.
• Civil proceedings in support of copyright holders under Article L 336-2 of France’s Intellectual Property Code which calls on a judge to block piracy sites (via the ISP) and de-index them (on search engines). Recent legal precedents in this domain have enabled us to bring legal action against around 100 websites dedicated to audio-visual and cinema copyright infringement on all protocols.

What challenges do sports pose?

Pirated sports content accounts for 8% of pirate usage. Some months ago, ALPA brought criminal proceedings against the administrators of the biggest live streaming sites. These proceedings are under way and others will be initiated soon.

The greatest challenge with sports is the instant withdrawal of access to the servers on which the sports content is broadcast. This complex issue requires the active collaboration of ISPs, search engines and social networks.

However, the first step in combatting this type of piracy has to be the removal of access to "shopfront” websites which redirect users to illegal sports broadcasts, by means of blocking and de-indexing those sites on search engines. In order to achieve this, it may be necessary to clarify the rights of copyright holders in sport so that they can avail of opportunities to take direct court action themselves to demand that sports live streaming sites are blocked and de-indexed on search engines.

Another challenge is the fight against IPTV piracy. This practice could be the next to escalate in France.