In 2021, more than 4 out of 10 Italians were "pirates": they illegally enjoyed a film, a TV series or a football match. While the “acts of audiovisual piracy” are down 24% compared to 2019 (half compared to 2016). However, the damage to the media sector and to the country as a whole remains very significant. This is what emerged from the new survey conducted by the company Ipsos on behalf of FAPAV – Federation for the Protection of Audiovisual and Multimedia Content Industries.
Essentially, piracy in Italy is advancing in terms of audience but decreasing in terms of frequency: films remain the most illegally viewed content with 29% incidence among the adult population, followed by series/fiction with 24% and programs with 21%. A separate discussion for live sports, if in 2019 for this type of content the percentage of use stood at 10%, in 2021 it will rise to 15%.
Increasingly digital audiovisual piracy and for all ages
Among the declining modes download/P2P and illegal streaming, the number of those who have used illicit IPTV at least once is growing sharply, going from 10% in 2019 to 23% in 2021. This is 11,7 million individuals, even if there are 2,3 million subscribers to at least one illicit IPTV.
In this edition, the research also wanted to investigate the phenomenon of sharing emails login credentials of legal content platforms, recording that 41% of pirates happened to use subscription audiovisual content at least once through access with someone else's credentials, not considering it a form of piracy.
Even among adolescents, the same trend as adults is confirmed. In 2021, the incidence of younger pirates (10-14 years) rose to 51% while the frequency of the acts decreased sharply (-20% compared to 2019) with a strong preference, in terms of content enjoyed, of events of live sports, followed by films, series/dramas and programmes.
The economic damages of audiovisual piracy
Audiovisual piracy remains a phenomenon of great concern also in relation to the recovery of the audiovisual sector after two years of the pandemic: Ipsos data show that the potential damage of the illegal phenomenon with regard to films, series and fiction is equal to 673 million euros, with almost 72 million lost uses. As far as live sporting events are concerned, the estimated economic damage caused by piracy is equal to 267 million euros with around 11 million lost uses.
Looking at the country, the phenomenon of widespread illegality in the use of audiovisual contents causes considerable damage, both in terms of turnover, about 1,7 billion euros; both how pil, about 716 million euros; and as tax revenues for the State, approximately 319 million euros, which could be used in public services available to the community. Instead, piracy is not only a brake on development but also puts employment at serious risk: an estimated loss of jobs equal to 9.400 units.
Awareness of piracy as a crime is growing
The alarming consequences do not only concern the economic and industrial front but also the safety of users: in fact, there are numerous risks, above all if we think of access to illegal platforms, linked to cyber attacks with personal and banking data breaches, as well as the dangers on devices through malware e virus.
On the subject of the perception of piracy as a crime, there has been a growing awareness of the illegality and risks associated with accessing unlawful platforms, even among the youngest. With respect to forms of deterrence, 36% of pirates have found themselves in the last year faced with blocked illegal websites and of these, 43% have chosen to resort to a lawful alternative (pay-TV and legal streaming above all ).
How to counter the phenomenon?
Federico Bagnoli Rossi, FAPAV president and general manager commented: “In addition to the necessary enforcement actions, we believe it is essential that synergistic communication initiatives are implemented such as the recent 'We Are Stories' campaign, promoted by the Federation to protect and support the entire audiovisual industry, together to ANEC, ANICA, APA, MPA and UNIVIDEO. We look with interest and attention at the unified text on the Draft Laws on the subject of contrasting piracy, under discussion in the Chamber, with the hope that the process can continue expeditiously leading to a necessary adaptation of the tools available", concluded Bagnoli Rossi .
“It is clear that the phenomenon must be kept constantly under control, since the impact on various economic dimensions of our country generates impressive numbers. Disseminating these numbers helps to counteract the 'culture' of illegality: even today, half of pirates mistakenly believe that their behavior is not serious, even though it is known that it is a real crime. Evidently there is still the belief that the extent of the damage is contained and that the probability of being discovered and punished is not high", he underlined Nando Pagnoncelli, president of Ipsos Italy.
