Piracy in India has surged, with the nation’s piracy economic system reaching Rs. 224 billion in 2023, in keeping with a report by EY and the Web and Cellular Affiliation of India (IAMAI). The report, titled The Rob Report, signifies that Rs 137 billion of this got here from pirated film theatre content material, whereas Rs 87 billion was generated from unauthorised OTT platform content material. The rise in piracy is of a significant concern for the Media and Leisure trade. They face a number of
Piracy Developments and Viewer Preferences
India’s rising urge for food for pirated content material is evident, with a median of 9 hours per week spent on consuming pirated media. Streaming platforms are the biggest supply of unlawful content material at 63 p.c, adopted by cellular apps at 16 p.c, with torrent and social media making up 21 p.c. A notable 51 p.c of Indian media shoppers are utilizing pirated sources, with 76 p.c of these within the 19-34 age group. Whereas males usually desire older movies, girls lean extra towards OTT content material. Hindi and English are probably the most pirated languages, accounting for 40 p.c and 31 p.c of content material respectively.
A wide range of causes drive folks in direction of pirated content material, together with excessive subscription charges, the trouble of managing a number of accounts, and the unavailability of particular content material on-line. Many additionally keep away from paying for film tickets or subscribing to OTT providers.
Trade Considerations and Name for Motion
Rohit Jain, Chairman of the Digital Leisure Committee at IAMAI, warned that piracy is reducing the potential of India’s leisure sector, The sector is projected to succeed in 146 crores. Mukul Shrivastava, Companion at EY Forensic and Integrity Companies, referred to as for stronger enforcement and technological options to deal with piracy, urging trade stakeholders to unite on this combat. With a big portion of pirated content material being consumed in Tier II cities, points like earnings disparity and restricted entry to authorised content material are additionally contributing elements.
