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Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance

AAPA

To support members in fighting audiovisual piracy through effective collaboration and having recourse to effective legislation and its implementation.

Lobbying Activity

Meeting with Mario Furore (Member of the European Parliament)

21 Jan 2026 · Piracy matters

Response to A strategic vision for sport in Europe: reinforcing the European sport model

8 Dec 2025

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) welcomes the opportunity to contribute to the Commissions consultation on a strategic vision for sport in Europe. AAPA represents broadcasters, rights-holders, and technology providers committed to securing the audiovisual value chain and ensuring the sustainability of the European sport ecosystem. AAPAs contribution focuses on a single, critical area where the organisation has unique expertise: the impact of illegal live-event streaming and digital piracy on the sustainability of the European Sport Model. More information in the attached submission.
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Response to Consumer Agenda 2025-2030 and Action Plan on Consumers in the Single Market

31 Aug 2025

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA), representing Europes lead broadcasters, rights holders and technology providers in their joint efforts to combat audiovisual piracy, welcomes the opportunity to provide its input to the European Commissions Call for Evidence on the Consumer Agenda 20252030. Piracy has become one of the most pressing and fast-growing threats to Europes digital ecosystem, with unauthorised live retransmissions of audiovisual content causing widespread consumer harm and undermining the sustainability of legitimate services. Piracy poses serious risks to consumers. Users of illegal services are systematically exposed to scams, phishing attempts, identity theft, malware infections, and data breaches. Pirate streaming sites frequently host malicious advertising (malvertising), install spyware or ransomware without user consent, or unlawfully harvest personal data. A 2022 study conducted by AAPA demonstrated that a large share of piracy-related domains expose users to malware, deceptive advertising and fraudulent payment pagesoften within seconds of access. Unauthorised IPTV subscriptions, marketed as low-cost alternatives to licensed services, are routinely linked to organised criminal networks and provide no consumer guarantees such as refund rights or continuity of service. For more information, please see the attached submission.
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Response to Assessment of the effects of the Recommendation on combating online piracy of sports and other live events

4 Jun 2025

AAPAs Answer to the European Commission Call for Evidence on the Combating online piracy of sports and other live events assessment of the May 2023 Commission Recommendation Brussels, 4 June 2025 Context The sports and audiovisual sectors collectively contribute over 5% of the European Unions total Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 5% of the continents employment. These sectors are integral to the EU economy, fostering not only economic growth but also cultural and social cohesion. Notably, sports rights represent the largest expenditure category for private broadcasters and have experienced a significantly faster growth rate compared to other programming categories. These investments have direct implications for employment, taxable income, reinvestment in content, and grassroots sports development. Economic loses However, a 2022 study conducted by AAPA revealed that pay-tv operators incurred losses amounting to 3.21 billion in 2021 due to Illicit IPTV piracy alone, with illegal operators gains estimated at 1 billion and this is only a fraction of a much bigger problem involving numerous different methods (the study does not include website or social media piracy, for example). In Germany, a 2022 study by Vaunet examining the German market exclusively reported annual economic losses of 1.8 billion attributable to live piracy. An Arcom study dated reveals that the consumption of illegal content in France generated a loss of 1.5 billion for the AV and sports industry in 2023 with a 420 million impact of lost tax and social contributions for the French state. The broader implications of piracy extend beyond immediate economic losses. They undermine the financial viability of legitimate services, reduce the quality and diversity of content available to consumers, and weaken the overall economic fabric by evading taxation and social contributions. Moreover, pirate websites are gateways for criminals to infiltrate financial accounts, steal money, lure consumers into sophisticated financial scams, and expose children to adult content. It is a sophisticated enterprise carried out by highly organised criminals, making it a security issue in the EU. Solution The only foreseeable solution is a targeted legislative response by the European Commission, addressing the specificities of live content piracy while building on the Digital Services Act (DSA). The legal provisions would seek to: Impose faster takedown on hosts by clarifying that, for live content, expeditiously means immediately, and in any event no later than 30 minutes as set by the Dutch District Court in the 2018 FAPL v Ecatel case. Impose a strong Know-Your-Customer obligation to all online intermediaries. Target all types of online intermediaries used and manipulated in the retransmission of illegal content - as shown in the attached submission.
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Meeting with Axel Voss (Member of the European Parliament, Rapporteur) and Google and

6 May 2025 · Copyright and generative AI

Meeting with Thomas Schmitz (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Henna Virkkunen)

11 Apr 2025 · Copyright /Piracy

Response to Evaluation of the Geo-blocking Regulation

11 Mar 2025

AAPA represents companies involved in the provision of protected audiovisual services, including rights owners and broadcasters, security technology for such services, and the manufacturing of products which facilitate the delivery of such services. AAPAs mission is to lead the fight against audiovisual piracy across Europe and beyond through effective lobbying, supporting law enforcement and building partnerships to better tackle piracy. In light of the European Commissions evaluation of the geo-blocking regulation, we assert the critical need to maintain the exemption for audiovisual services. Geo-blocking is essential for protecting our members' intellectual property and exclusive agreements, which are foundational to their business models. More details in the attached submission.
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Response to Fighting against online piracy of live content

10 Feb 2023

Please find enclosed the feedback from the AAPA.
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Meeting with Maria Elena Scoppio (Cabinet of Commissioner Pierre Moscovici)

25 Mar 2015 · Customs and piracy hardware

Meeting with Robert Madelin (Director-General Communications Networks, Content and Technology)

16 Feb 2015 · Digital Single Market