AAPA News and Views

Safeguarding Europe’s cultural future: AAPA backs EU Action on online piracy

Mon, 24 Nov 2025 10:34:55 GMT

24 November 2025

Online piracy has evolved into a structural threat to Europe’s cultural sovereignty, competitiveness and consumer safety. The Commission’s report recognises that existing voluntary and non-binding approaches to online piracy have not delivered the intended results. Piracy continues to grow in scale and sophistication, exploiting new technologies and digital distribution models. It undermines the foundations of Europe’s audiovisual ecosystem and weakens the Union’s ability to invest, innovate and compete globally.

Online piracy contributes nothing to Europe’s cultural or economic fabric. Instead, it:

• Diverts value away from legitimate creators, broadcasters, distributors while also depriving Member States of significant tax income.

• Exposes consumers – including millions of EU citizens – to significant risks.

• Connects to fraud, cyber-enabled crime and other illegal activities are well documented.

Protecting Europe’s citizens and safeguarding the integrity of the Single Market requires decisive and coordinated EU-level action across its institutions.

AAPA strongly welcomes the Commission’s renewed focus on the role of online intermediaries

To be effective, the Digital Services Coordinators – supported by the Commission – must drive meaningful engagement and structural change across the intermediaries whose infrastructures are routinely leveraged by illegal operators. This involves not only hosting providers but also:

• Digital infrastructure (CDNs, data centres, IP and domain registries, hardware providers)

• Platforms and services (social media platforms, streaming services, e-commerce platforms)

• Monetisation and reach enablers (payment services, online advertising networks)

Clear expectations, transparency obligations and proactive measures are essential. Experience shows that where intermediaries engage constructively, significant progress follows. With many of these actors established within the EU, Commission’s leadership – supported by Parliament and the Council – is indispensable.

AAPA also welcomes the Commission’s recognition of the growing use of dynamic blocking injunctions across Member States

National authorities have taken important steps to safeguard cultural and creative sectors – through judicially supervised cooperation with residential ISPs, which has delivered:

• Effective protection for live content

• Reductions in the visibility and accessibility of illegal streams

Fragmentation however limits impact. Only a coherent, EU-wide approach anchored in full chain engagement can deliver consistency, predictability and genuine deterrent effect. This is a natural area for EU leadership, completing work already underway in Member States.

The Commission should therefore play a leading role in promoting a European framework for piracy blocking and coordinated action across the value chain.

AAPA is ready to work with the Commission, Parliament and Council

AAPA can support the institutions in shaping meaningful legislative solutions that reinforces Europe’s audiovisual sector and secure a resilient, competitive and culturally rich digital future for all Europeans.

AAPA Calls for Stronger Legislation as EUIPO Hosts Meeting on Online Piracy of Live Events

Fri, 02 May 2025 11:38:41 GMT

30 April 2025

Alicante, Spain – 30 April 2025 – The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) is urging policymakers to take decisive action against online piracy of live events following a key industry meeting hosted by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO).

This gathering brought together leaders from the European Commission, Member States, rights organizations, media companies, and tech platforms to assess the impact of the Commission’s Recommendation on combating online piracy , issued on 4 May 2023.

Despite ongoing industry efforts, findings from the most recent second Grant Thornton study (March 2025) reveal:

Little to no reduction in piracy levels since May 2023
No meaningful action from online intermediaries to curb piracy
The Digital Services Act remains underdeveloped in addressing live content piracy

Critically, Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and technical intermediaries have not participated in data collection, their silence serving as an indicator of the Recommendation’s limited impact.

The Urgent Call for Legislation

AAPA and industry stakeholders insist that voluntary measures are failing. To protect content creators and broadcasters an concrete update of legislation is mandatory, potentially through an extension of the DSA, including:

A precise definition of “expeditious” action for live event protection
A clear and enforceable Know Your Business Customer (KYBC) provision
Broad inclusion of all relevant intermediaries

Oliver Pribramsky, co-President of AAPA , Head of IP & Content Protection and Committees, DFL Deutsche Fußball Liga GmbH stated: "We welcome the discussion, but talk is not enough. Without concrete regulation, rightholders will continue to hemorrhage resources, limiting their ability to reinvest in valuable content. The time to act is now. Thank you to our esteemed colleagues from 2 CANAL + and Premier League, both members of our association, for representing the live rightholders’ point of view during the debate"

AAPA looks forward to contributing to the recently opened Call for Evidence on Piracy of Live Content to plea once again that the fight against piracy demands urgent legislative support—industry efforts alone are not enough. For more information, contact Miruna Herovanu , Executive Director AAPA

Leadership Changes at the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA)

Fri, 25 Apr 2025 05:13:39 GMT

24 April 2025

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) announces significant changes within its leadership team following recent elections.

Stepping into the role of Co-President is Cameron Andrews, Legal Director for Anti-Piracy at beIN MEDIA GROUP - a leading independent global media group and one of the foremost sports & entertainment networks in the world – which distributes and produces entertainment, live sport and major international events across 5 continents, 40 countries and in 9 different languages spanning Europe, North America, Asia, Australasia and the Middle East & North Africa (MENA). Mr. Andrews brings a wealth of expertise and a passionate commitment to protecting audiovisual content. His leadership is anticipated to bolster the alliance’s efforts in facing evolving piracy challenges on a global scale.

The elections also reaffirmed the appointment of Oliver Pribramsky, Head of IP & Content Protection and Committees at DFL, as Co-President for another mandate. Mr. Pribramsky’s continued service represents a steadfast dedication to safeguarding audiovisual rights and advancing collaborative anti-piracy strategies across the industry.

Mark Mulready, Vice President - Cyber Services at Irdeto BV, has decided not to seek re-election for a fifth term as Co-President of AAPA, after 8 years of dedicated service and remarkable contributions to the alliance’s mission. He will continue to support AAPA’s mission as the Irdeto Board member.

The alliance extends its deepest gratitude to Mr. Mulready for his unwavering commitment to combating audiovisual piracy, fostering industry collaboration, and championing innovation in anti-piracy measures. His leadership has been instrumental in driving the alliance’s success and advancing its objectives

The AAPA remains resolute in its mission to protect intellectual property and support its members in combating piracy, ensuring a robust and secure future for the audiovisual sector.

For more information contact Miruna Herovanu , Executive Director, AAPA

Cameron Andrews is a recognised industry leader with over 20 years’ experience at the leading edge of antipiracy and intellectual property rights enforcement for the creative industries. He is currently Legal Director, Anti-Piracy at beIN MEDIA GROUP, where he leads antipiracy strategy, enforcement and operations across the beIN group’s live sports and entertainment pay TV business. Prior to joining beIN, Cameron had been legal counsel for the international recorded music industry’s trade body, IFPI, acting in ground breaking antipiracy legal actions around the world, and advising the industry on the impact of new technology and online platforms. He trained and practiced as a lawyer in the intellectual property litigation group at Gilbert + Tobin in Sydney, working on a number of high profile cases for the broadcasting, music, film, and gaming industries involving piracy, counterfeiting and new technology.

Joint statement by a coalition of authors, performers and other rightsholders active across the EU’s cultural and creative sectors regarding the third draft of the EU AI Act’s GPAI Code of Practice

Fri, 28 Mar 2025 06:00:00 GMT

27 March 2025

The third draft of the GPAI Code of Practice undermines the objectives of the AI Act, contravenes EU law and ignores the intention of the EU legislator – we cannot support it.

Brussels, 28 March 2025

A key objective of the AI Act is to give authors, performers and other rightsholders tools to exercise and enforce their rights by requiring General-Purpose AI (GPAI) providers to put in place measures to comply with EU copyright law and provide a sufficiently detailed summary of the content ingested and used for training. This was recognised by the EU legislator as a key means to support the development of AI in Europe and protect the EU’s creative sectors that drive its cultural and economic landscape.

However, the third draft of the GPAI Code of Practice represents yet another step away from achieving this objective. It creates legal uncertainty, misinterprets EU copyright law and undercuts the obligations set out in the AI Act itself. Rather than providing a robust framework for compliance, it sets the bar so low as to provide no meaningful assistance for authors, performers and other rightsholders to exercise or enforce their rights. Even more fundamentally, it would also not ensure that GPAI providers comply with either EU copyright law or the AI Act.

We have participated constructively in the drafting process and provided substantive comments to the previous drafts of the Code of Practice, underlining severe deficiencies affecting all creative sectors. However, the drafters of the Code have largely ignored or dismissed those comments. Regrettably, the third draft does not meet the adequacy requirement provided by the EU AI Act, and, therefore, should not be approved without substantial improvements. No Code would be better than the fundamentally flawed third draft.

The third draft further reduces the obligation to ensure compliance with EU copyright rules and the AI Act itself. In several places it states that GPAI providers merely need to make “reasonable efforts” to ensure compliance with EU copyright law. However, “reasonable efforts” or mere encouragement for GPAI providers to take measures is not sufficient to ensure compliance with EU copyright law or the AI Act.

The draft waters down GPAI providers’ responsibility to undertake proper due diligence to ensure that the third-party datasets they use to train their models do not infringe copyright. Not only would this eliminate any meaningful due diligence obligations to comply with EU copyright law and the AI Act, but it would also risk guiding GPAI providers towards copyright infringements.

The third draft continues to render meaningless the right of authors, performers and other right holders to choose how they reserve their rights. It also fails to provide meaningful guidance on what GPAI providers must do to comply with such reservations. The draft further suggests that GPAI providers could comply with the “lawful access” requirement solely by adhering to technical access control measures, combined with “reasonable efforts” to exclude only a narrow and incomplete set of piracy sites from training. Given that lawful access is a mandatory requirement for eligibility to the TDM exceptions, if they apply, this measure fails to meet the standard set by substantive EU copyright law. Moreover, it not only misinterprets EU copyright law, but also does not reflect the reality of how pirated content is accessed and distributed online.

The third draft removes entirely the requirements to demonstrate transparency regarding GPAI providers' compliance with the right reservation mechanisms; GPAI providers are not required to disclose whether or how they comply with the rights reservations expressed by authors, performers and other rightsholders. Despite strong opposition and comprehensive explanations on its inadequacy, robots.txt is still considered as the only method GPAI providers must recognise and respond to, while other reservation methods are ignored or treated as optional, in direct contradiction with EU law.

Furthermore, the measure for GPAI providers to introduce a copyright complaints process only requires the introduction of a mechanism to lodge complaints in relation to the Code of Practice alone and without any reference to the measures GPAI providers should take to resolve them, rendering it an empty gesture rather than a meaningful enforcement tool.

The Code of Practice should provide proper measures to facilitate and persuade GPAI models to respect the two basic principles of copyright law: they should seek prior authorisation and abstain from unauthorised uses of copyrighted material. The Code of Practice should also make clear, as explained also by EVP Virkkunen in her recent response to a parliamentary question, that the obligations in the AI Act apply where a GPAI provider places their model into the EU market, regardless of where they are established or where the training of that model took place.

The Code of Practice must also be coupled with an effective template for the “sufficiently detailed summary of the content used for training”, enabling authors, performers and other rightsholders to effectively exercise or enforce their rights. Meaningful, actionable transparency on the content used for training and other purposes, and its disclosure, is not only feasible but can be achieved with little technical or financial effort. Misusing trade secret law to hide infringements would render the obligation meaningless and obstruct the fundamental right of rightsholders to exercise and enforce their rights.

The intention of the EU’s AI Act was to enable the development of responsible AI and ensure that the cultural and creative sectors can continue to grow across European territories. Entirely counter to this, the third draft of the GPAI Code of Practice sets an implementation standard which undermines the objectives of the AI Act, contravenes EU law and ignores the intention of the EU legislator.

The third draft is therefore completely unacceptable. We cannot support the GPAI Code of Practice in its current version. No Code would be better than the fundamentally flawed third draft.

List of signatories

AAPA (Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance) 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. AAPA’s mission is to lead the fight against audiovisual piracy across Europe, and beyond through effective advocacy, supporting law enforcement and building partnerships to better tackle piracy.

AEPO-ARTIS is a non-profit making organisation that represents 40 European performers’ collective management organisations from 30 different countries. The number of performers (musicians, actors and dancers), from the audio and audiovisual sector, represented by AEPO-ARTIS member organisations is estimated at more than 650,000.

BIEM (Bureau International des Sociétés gérant les droits d'enregistrement et de reproduction mécanique) is the international organisation representing 60 Mechanical rights societies operating in 56 countries. Mechanical rights societies license the reproduction of songs (including musical, literary and dramatic works). Their members are authors, composers and publishers.

CEATL (European Council of Literary Translators’ Associations) is an international non-profit organisation created in 1993 as a platform where literary translators’ associations from different European countries could exchange views and information and join forces to improve status and working conditions of translators. Today it is the largest organisation of literary translators in Europe with 36 member associations from 28 countries, representing some 10,000 individual literary translators.

CEPI (the European Audiovisual Production Association) represents over 2,600 independent film and TV producers across Europe through 19 national associations across 17 European countries.

CEPIC represents hundreds of Picture Libraries and Agencies, who themselves represent hundreds of thousands of photographers whose core business is the direct licensing of visual content offline and online. Acting as rightsholders, Picture Libraries and Agencies license digital assets for all kinds of commercial uses, to newspapers, magazines, advertising, broadcasters, etc. CEPIC members are continuously adapting to innovative technology and have developed sophisticated digital platforms to both market digital content online and provide digital access to images. CEPIC’s purpose is to act as a united voice for the visual media industry in Europe and beyond.

CISAC (International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers) is the world’s leading network of authors’ societies. With 227 member societies in 116 countries, CISAC represents more than 5 million creators from all geographic areas and all artistic repertoires: music, audiovisual, drama, literature and visual arts.

EANA (European Alliance of News Agencies, founded in 1956) is a non-profit membership association representing 32 leading news agencies across Europe. EANA serves as a platform for cooperation, knowledge exchange, and advocacy, with a focus on securing a fair and safe environment for the development of news agencies in particular and of the entire news media as a whole. With a collective direct and indirect global reach of their newswires of over 750 million people, EANA members share the common goal of delivering unbiased, high-quality news and supporting a healthy media environment throughout Europe.

ECSA (European Composer and Songwriter Alliance) represents over 30,000 professional composers and songwriters in 28 European countries. With 59 member organisations across Europe, the Alliance speaks for the interests of music creators of art & classical music (contemporary), film & audiovisual music, as well as popular music.

EFJ (The European Federation of Journalists) is the largest organisation of journalists in Europe, representing over 296,000 journalists in 74 journalists’ organisations across 44 countries. The EFJ fights for social and professional rights of journalists working in all sectors of the media across Europe through strong trade unions and associations.Member of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), the EFJ is recognised by the European Union and the Council of Europe as the representative voice of journalists in Europe.

EGAIR (European Guild for Artificial Intelligence Regulation) is a network of creatives and associations from all over Europe, lobbying for the protection of artists’ works and data from AI companies. Originally founded by MeFu, the Italian association of comic book creators, EGAIR now represents over 20.000 creatives, artists and associations.

EMMA (European Magazine Media Association) is the unique and complete representation of Europe’s magazine media, enjoyed by millions of consumers on both paper and digital formats, covering automotive, business, financial, news, children, comics, teenage, general interest, home, men's and women's titles, TV guides, B2B and scientific journals.

ENPA (European Newspaper Publishers’ Association) is the largest representative body of newspaper publishers across Europe, promoting press freedom and authoritative news content on print and digital formats. ENPA advocates for 14 national associations across 14 European countries and is a principal interlocutor to the EU institutions and a key driver of media policy debates.

EPC (The European Producers Club) is an association representing nearly 200 independent European producers from 35 countries, highly specialized in international co-productions.

EPC (European Publishers Council ) is a high-level group of 27 Chairmen and CEOs of Europe’s leading media groups representing companies which are active in news media, television, radio, digital market places, journals, eLearning, databases and books. We have been communicating with Europe’s legislators since 1991 on issues that affect the health and viability of journalistically-driven media and publishing companies in the European Union, which uphold the freedom of expression, media diversity, and democratic debate.

EUROCINEMA (Association of Film and Audiovisual Producers) aims to defend and promote the fundamental role of the audiovisual industry and film-makers in a politically and economically integrated Europe.

EVA (European Visual Artists) represents the interests of authors’ collective management organisations for visual arts. 31 societies are gathered under this roof as members or observers. They manage collectively authors’ rights of close to 170 000 creators of works of fine art, illustration, photography, design, architecture and other visual works.

EWC (European Writers’ Council) is the world’s largest federation representing solely authors from the book sector and constituted by 50 national professional writers’ and literary translators’ associations from 32 countries. EWC members comprise over 220.000 professional authors, writing and publishing in 35 languages.

FEP (Federation of European Publishers) represents 31 national associations of publishers of books, learned journals and educational materials, in all formats, in Europe. FEP is the voice of the great majority of publishers in Europe.

FERA (Federation of European Screen Directors) serves as the independent voice of European screen directors in Brussels. Bringing together 46 member organisations from 31 countries, it represents over 20,000 active directors across film, television, and streaming - recognised as primary audiovisual

authors. FERA advocates for their cultural, creative, and economic interests at both national and EU levels.

FIA (International Federation of Actors) represents more than 85 performers' trade unions, guilds and professional associations in 61 countries. In a connected world of content and entertainment, it stands for fair social, economic and moral rights for audiovisual performers working in all recorded media and live theatre.

FIAPF (International Federation of Film Producers’ Associations) comprises 37 national associations representing producers of films and audiovisual programmes, including 16 national associations from the EU/EEA. Members' constituencies are involved in the development, production, marketing and in some cases distribution, of all types of films and/or other types of audiovisual productions, ranging from feature-length films, short film, documentaries, television drama and other audiovisual content, across the European Union across all distribution channels.

FIM (International Federation of Musicians) is the only body representing professional musicians and their trade unions globally, with members in about 65 countries covering all regions of the world. Founded in 1948, FIM is recognised as an NGO by diverse international authorities such as the ILO, WIPO, UNESCO, the European Commission, the European Parliament or the Council of Europe.

FSE (Federation of Screenwriters in Europe) is a network of national and regional associations, guilds and unions of writers for the screen in Europe, created in June 2001. It comprises 29 organisations from 26 countries, representing more than 10,000 screenwriters in Europe.

GESAC (European Grouping of Societies of Authors and Composers, founded in 1990) represents 32 of the main copyright management societies (authors ‘societies) in the European Union, Iceland, Norway and Switzerland, administering the rights and remuneration of more than 1.2 million authors, composers and writers in a variety of sectors (music, audiovisual, literary and visual and graphic arts) and music publishers.

IAO (International Artist Organisation) is the umbrella association for national organisations advocating for the rights and interests of the Featured Artists in the music industry. Our main interests are transparency, the protection of intellectual property rights and a fair reflection of the value an artist’s work generates.

ICMP is the global trade body for the music publishing industry; representing 77 national associations across 6 continents, indies, majors and The International Production Music Group - cumulatively representing approximately 90% of the world’s commercially released music.

IFJ (International Federation of Journalists), the world's largest organisation of journalists, represents 600,000 media professionals from 187 trade unions and associations in more than 148 countries. Established in 1926, the IFJ is the organisation that speaks for journalists within the United Nations system and within the international trade union movement.

IFPI (International Federation of the Phonographic Industry) is the voice of the recording industry worldwide. IFPI and its National Group network represents the interests of some 8,000 members across the globe.

IFRRO (International Federation of Reproduction Rights Organisations), is an international, independent, not-for-profit organisation representing collective management organisations for text and image materials (known as Reproduction Rights Organisations, or RROs), authors’ and publishers’ associations in the field of text and image-based works. RROs administer reproduction and other relevant rights, including certain digital rights, on behalf of both publishers and authors, including

visual artists. With over 160 members across nearly 90 countries, IFRRO plays a key role in the global copyright ecosystem.

IMPALA is the European association of independent music companies, representing over 6,000 music SMEs. Its mission is to grow the independent music sector sustainably, return more value to artists, promote diversity and entrepreneurship, improve political access, inspire change and increase access to finance.

IMPF is the global trade and advocacy body for independent music publishers. IMPF helps to stimulate a more favourable business environment in different territories and jurisdictions for artistic, cultural, and commercial diversity for its music publisher members and the songwriters and composers they represent.

IVF - The members of the International Video Federation are associations representing businesses active in all segments of the film and audiovisual sector in Europe. The IVF's membership is thus involved across development, production, marketing, and distribution of all types of films and audiovisual works, ranging from feature-length films, short films, documentaries, television drama and other audiovisual content, as well as the publication of such content on digital media (DVD, Blu-ray, etc.) and through all online channels ranging from transactional (TVOD/EST), subscription (SVOD) and advertisement-based (AVOD and FAST) distribution models.

News Media Europe is the voice of the progressive news media industry in Europe, representing over 2,700 news brands in print, online, radio and TV, through national associations from sixteen countries. Together, we defend key principles which are vital to us: protecting the freedom of the press, championing the digital future of our industry, and ensuring that the value of content is properly protected.

SAA (Society of Audiovisual Authors) is the umbrella association of European collective management organisations representing audiovisual authors. Its 33 members in 25 countries manage rights for over 174,000 film, television and multimedia European screenwriters and directors. The SAA supports audiovisual authors and promotes cultural diversity through policies that enable the dissemination of audiovisual authors’ works to audiences. CMOs’ role is to provide easy, legal access to these works and ensure authors are fairly paid to encourage further creativity for the benefit of society.

STM is the leading global trade association for academic and professional publishers. Our mission is to advance trusted research for the benefit of society. The membership is composed of over 140 organisations who are based globally and include academic and professional publishers, learned societies, university presses, start-ups and established players; STM members collectively publish over 70% of all journal articles.

UNI MEI (UNI - Media, Entertainment and Arts) unites over 140 unions and guilds to raise standards and enforce rights for more than 500.000 creatives, technicians and auxiliary workers. Together, our members work for a fair, inclusive, equal, and sustainable global entertainment industry and a just transformation.

 UVA (United Voice Artists) is a global coalition of voice acting guilds, associations, and unions that have united to pursue their shared goals of protecting and preserving the act of creating, in particular, through the human voice. This collaborative effort brings together prominent associations and unions from the European Union, including France, Spain, Italy, Germany, Austria, Belgium, and Poland, as well as organizations in Switzerland, Turkey, the United States of America, Brazil, Africa, Australia and in South America.

The Importance of Geo-Blocking for Audiovisual Content

Thu, 13 Mar 2025 15:25:08 GMT

12 March 2025

In the ongoing evaluation of the geo-blocking regulation, AAPA emphasises in its contribution the vital role geo-blocking measures play in protecting audiovisual services.

Maintaining geo-blocking is essential for safeguarding intellectual property and supporting exclusive agreements, which are crucial for our industry’s financial model.

Geo-blocking not only preserves cultural diversity but also protects jobs in the creative sector. It ensures that local audiences have access to tailored content while allowing for fair competition among broadcasters.

Abolishing or restricting geo-blocking poses significant risks, including potential revenue losses that could threaten thousands of cinemas and millions of jobs across Europe. To ensure a vibrant cultural landscape and protect the interests of consumers, it is imperative to maintain geo-blocking for audiovisual content. Let's keep our creative industries strong!

AAPA Executive Director, Miruna Herovanu, Reflects on an Engaging Discussion: The Truth About Online Piracy

Wed, 12 Mar 2025 15:17:28 GMT

12 March 2025

On Tuesday 4th March, I had the privilege of moderating a pivotal event organised by the Live Content Coalition on behalf of the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA). The event brought together key stakeholders from Europe's live content industry—including sports, music, and broadcasting. Our shared mission: to tackle the pressing issue of online piracy of live content with all its specificities.

We kicked off the event with insightful welcome remarks from Bogdan Andrzej Zdrojewski, MEP and Vice-Chair of the Culture and Education Committee, setting the tone for our discussion, underlining once more that the European Parliament cares about the protection of live content. Sabina Tsakova from the European Commission also provided essential context about the institutional framework surrounding the protection of live content, the Recommendation against piracy of sports and other live content and next steps.

Throughout the event, we explored what piracy looks like for rightholders in 2025 through Euan Fordyce’s presentation, shedding light on the evolving landscape. Mabel Au then shared compelling statistics, painting a clear picture of the (non)impact of the Recommendation between 2023 and 2025.

In our panel discussion, we delved deep into the societal and economic implications of piracy with experts like Mark Lichtenhein, Simon Minkowski, and Johannes Studinger. Their perspectives highlighted the urgent need for effective legislation tailored to protect live content rights.

Key takeaways from our discussion included:

1. The Importance of Legislation: Mark emphasized the necessity for ideal legislation to combat piracy, envisioning a framework that clarifies the term "expeditious" in the context of live content once and for all.

2. Understanding the Global Landscape: Simon provided insights into Canal+'s international strategy, addressing challenges faced in territories lacking effective legislative protection.

3. Impact on the AV Sector: Johannes discussed the post-COVID challenges for employees in the audiovisual sector and the pressing need for action to safeguard jobs and industry sustainability.

4. Broader Ecosystem Effects: We recognized that piracy affects not just broadcasters and rights holders, but the entire sports and cultural ecosystem, underscoring the necessity of a collaborative approach with our respective value chain.

As we wrapped up the evening with a cocktail reception, it was clear that while challenges remain, our collective commitment to fighting piracy is stronger than ever. Together, we can pave the way for a more secure future for live content.

Thank you to all the participants for their invaluable contributions! Let's continue to engage and advocate for change.

AAPA members hold their first meeting of 2025 in London to exchange on the latest developments in the piracy environment

Tue, 11 Mar 2025 15:21:34 GMT

12 March 2025

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance met in London on February 25-26th to exchange on the latest developments in the piracy environment.

We had the opportunity of having a very special guest, our friend, Davide Centonze, who presented his perspective on the specifics of the threats and the difficulties in tackling the very lucrative work of pirates that steal our members’ legitimate content. A big thanks to Davide!

We also had all our questions answered on the Italian Piracy Shield and the deployment of AI in identifying illegal activities online. Thank you Marta Giannini for being amazing as always!

AAPA Honours Law Enforcement Agencies with Annual Awards for Excellence in Copyright Enforcement

Thu, 19 Dec 2024 18:35:10 GMT

19 December 2024

Date, Brussels, Belgium The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) is proud to announce the recipients of its annual awards, celebrating exceptional contributions by law enforcement agencies in combatting online piracy and protecting intellectual property in the audiovisual sector. This year’s honorees have demonstrated exemplary efforts in the investigation, enforcement, and dismantling of illegal content distribution networks that undermine the creative industries.

The AAPA Annual Awards recognize agencies whose proactive strategies and collaborative actions have significantly advanced copyright enforcement online. These awards reflect the growing importance of international cooperation in addressing the evolving and sophisticated tactics used by piracy networks.

Oliver Pribramsky, Co-President of AAPA , praised the recipients of the awards, saying:

"We are honoured to recognise the outstanding work of these administrative and law enforcement agencies. Online piracy remains one of the most significant challenges facing the audiovisual industry, costing billions in lost revenue each year and threatening jobs across the sector. The dedication and innovation displayed by our award winners not only protect the industry but also reinforce the critical role that law enforcement plays in safeguarding intellectual property in the digital age."

Award Recipients

This year’s AAPA Awards for Excellence in Copyright Enforcement are presented to:

1. Lifetime achievement Award for Sheila Cassells:

On behalf of all AAPA members and stakeholders from all spectrums of the industry, we would like to thank Sheila for her loyalty and friendship over the last 14 years where she transformed AAPA into the organisation it is today and honour her remarkable achievements and lifelong dedication to the fight against audiovisual piracy with this Lifetime Achievement Award.

Chris Pyer of Irdeto & AAPA presenting to Sheila Cassells

2. Joint winner of AAPA Award - Massimiliano Capitanio of AGCOM:

His exceptional work, both in Parliament and AGCOM, in implementing Italy's new internet blocking system has demonstrated his unwavering commitment to combating piracy and protecting intellectual property rights. His leadership have set a new standard for anti-piracy efforts and have had a profound impact on the Italian market. Hopefully, this will establish a precedent for other EU members to implement such measures.

Massimiliano Capitanio of AGCOM

3. Joint winner of AAPA Award - The Patras Security Directorate of the Hellenic Police, for its excellent achievement in the fight against piracy and, in particular, Police Officers Bantzis Georgios and Delimaris Konstantinos

Two officers with extensive expertise in police investigations led the special team against organised subscription piracy groups in Greece. The Patras Unite has developed an active and effective presence in the fight against subscription piracy, with a track record of dismantling multiple criminal organisations throughout the Greek territory. In doing so, they have also contributed to enforcement efforts and jurisprudence in piracy cases and a significant contribution to raising public awareness of the positive effects of police raids. As a result of their activities and success, other teams from the Hellenic Police are consulting the Patras team in similar investigations.

Hellenic Police, Ministry of Citizen Protection, Patras Security Sub-Directorate

4. High commendation for the Federal Bureau of Investigation / Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation / DOJ Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section for the successful prosecution of Bill Omar Carrasquillo AKA Omi in a Hellcat

Bill Omar Carrasquillo along with his co-defendants operated a large-scale internet protocol television (IPTV) piracy scheme in which they fraudulently obtained cable television accounts and then resold copyrighted content to thousands of their own subscribers, who could then stream or playback content. The defendants also made fraudulent misrepresentations to banks and merchant processors in an effort to obtain merchant processing accounts. During the period of their scheme, the defendants earned more than $30 million. Carrasquillo, in particular, converted a large portion of his profits into homes and dozens of vehicles, including high-end sports cars.

Mark Mulready presenting the award to Ryan Dickey, Trial Attorney, Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS), United States Department of Justice who accepted on behalf of the Federal Bureau of Investigation / Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation / DOJ Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section

5. High commendation for Nucleo di Polizia Economico-Finanziaria della Guardia di Finanza di Milano and Squadra Reati Informatici della Procura della Repubblica di Milano.

Nominated for their innovative investigative work in the running of a high-impact operation carried against television piracy in June of 2024, which has led to a series of searches involving 13 suspects resident in various regions of Italy. The exceptional nature of the operation, conducted by the Unit, lies in having set the objective of the investigative efforts to combat criminal organizations that use a new intrusion technique. This technique allows criminals to illicitly access the conditional access systems of the various television platforms and steal the contents which are then sold illegally through IPTV services managed by digital pirates.

From the right - Liutenant Davide D'Agostino, Marta Giannini SKY Italia & Eugenio Fusco the Deputy Public Prosecutor at the Court of Milan

From the right - Liutenant Davide D'Agostino, The General Andrea Fiducia new provincial commander of the Gdf of Milan, , Marta Giannini SKY Italia and Colonel Roberto Sciarretta commander of Nucleo di Polizia Economico-Finanziaria della Guardia di Finanza di Milano.

Building a Stronger Future Through Enforcement

The recipients of the AAPA Awards have not only displayed innovative enforcement practices but have also highlighted the importance of public-private partnerships in tackling piracy. The success of these operations is a testament to the coordinated effort between law enforcement agencies, the audiovisual industry, and international legal bodies.

Mark Mulready, co-President of AAPA , remarked:

"Piracy is not a victimless crime; it impacts creators, producers, and legal distributors across the globe. As piracy methods become more advanced, the work of these administrative and law enforcement agencies becomes even more critical. Their tireless efforts are making a real difference, and we are proud to support them in their fight against piracy."

AAPA continues to work closely with its members and law enforcement bodies worldwide to develop new strategies for effective copyright protection. As the digital landscape continues to evolve, so too does the commitment to eradicating piracy and safeguarding the creative content that powers the audiovisual sector.

AAPA MEMBERS JOIN FORCES WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT IN THE WORLD’S LARGEST-EVER OPERATION AGAINST AUDIOVISUAL PIRACY

Wed, 27 Nov 2024 16:54:29 GMT

27 November 2024

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) has supported the Catania Public Prosecutor’s Office, the Croatian State Attorney Office for Suppression of Corruption and Organised Crime and law enforcement agencies in Italy, Switzerland, Sweden, Croatia and England in dismantling the world’s largest transnational criminal organisation alleged to be serving pirated audiovisual content to over 22 million users, and generating over 250 million euros in illegal revenue per month.

The operation, conducted yesterday, was coordinated by Europol and Eurojust and involved over 270 officers from the Polizia Postale carrying out 89 property searches in 15 Italian regions. An additional 14 searches were conducted by law enforcement agencies abroad, including five addresses in England, and further searches and seizures in the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, Romania, France, Bulgaria, Germany and Croatia. 11 people were arrested by the Cybercrime Division of the Croatian Police.

During yesterday's searches, cryptocurrencies in excess of EUR 1,650,000 and cash in excess of EUR 40,000 were seized as alleged proceeds of the offences committed. These immediately seized proceeds represent only a fraction of an illegal business that is alleged to yield approximately EUR 3 billion per annum.

Digital piracy harms the entertainment and creative industries across the continent and is often run by sophisticated criminal networks that may use their profits to fund other serious forms of criminal activity. At the same time, illegal streams can expose the end user to the risks of data theft, fraud and malware.

Mark Mulready, Co-president of AAPA, said: “We applaud the efforts of the Catania Public Prosecutor’s Office, the Croatian State Attorney Office for Suppression of Corruption and Organised Crime, Europol, Eurojust, and all of the law enforcement agencies involved in these operations. The scale of these multi-jurisdictional law enforcement actions highlights the considerable challenge our industry faces when dealing with such sophisticated international pirate networks. We are proud to have collaborated with our law enforcement partners to provide technical training and in-field support to assist them in successfully tackling the world’s largest pirate network.

We are very grateful to the AAPA members who supported this action day, including Premier League, Sky Group, Nagravision, Deutsche Fußball Liga (DFL), beIN Sports, United Media, Friend MTS and Irdeto.

We will continue to closely collaborate with law enforcement agencies in Europe and beyond to enable them to successfully identify, investigate and prosecute large-scale cross-border pirate networks.”

----------

AAPA contact:

Mark Mulready

+31651246415

Co-President AAPA

Miranda Rock

+44 7957 391 498

Rocket Launch for AAPA

Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance 2024-2029 EU Manifesto

Tue, 01 Oct 2024 16:51:27 GMT

1 October 2024

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) publishes its first Manifesto, linked here .

The document aims to recognise past efforts of EU legislators when it comes to content protection and the fight against copyright infringement, whilst admitting that more can and should be done to address this growing issue.

Miruna Herovanu, Executive Director of AAPA said : " After years of laying the groundwork to combat online piracy it’s time for EU policymakers and beyond to fully acknowledge that decisive, targeted measures are needed at the European level. The rise of digital theft demands action. We call for strong political resolve to end the theft of our members' content. We're ready to support every stakeholder—law enforcement, policymakers, and industry representatives—to dismantle criminal networks and protect European consumers from harm."

AAPA ANNOUNCES NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Tue, 28 May 2024 05:00:00 GMT

28 May 2024

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) has announced the appointment of Miruna Herovanu as its Executive Director. Miruna was previously the Director at the Association of Commercial Television and Video on Demand in Europe in charge of Intellectual Property and Competition policies. She took up her position with AAPA on 27 May 2024 and will be based in Brussels.

Miruna will replace Sheila Cassells who is retiring as Executive Vice President of AAPA and will report on a day-to-day basis to the two Co-Presidents, Mark Mulready, VP of Cyber Services at Irdeto and Oliver Pribramksy, Head of IP Protection and Committees at the Deutsche Fussball Liga.

She will be responsible for the implementation of the strategy agreed by AAPA members, managing relationships with law enforcement agencies such as Europol, Eurojust, INTERPOL and the European Institutions, delivery of AAPA’s Working Group goals and general management of the Alliance.

Mark Mulready said that: “We are delighted to appoint someone of Miruna’s calibre and experience to become the Executive Director of AAPA. Miruna’s commitment to copyright protection is well-known. Her knowledge of the Brussels institutions and the EUIPO will stand AAPA in good stead for future policy developments. A priority will be for Miruna to work closely with AAPA members, the EUIPO and the European Institutions to deliver on, inter alia, the goals of combatting online piracy of sports and other live events recommendation.”

Miruna Herovanu commented that: “My professional experience demonstrated that piracy is an ever-growing issue that eats at the heart of Europe’s most important industries. This is a golden opportunity and a new professional challenge that will help further develop my passion for and commitment to protecting copyright. Being able to work with and support industry experts and practitioners in AAPA, law enforcement, the European Institutions and other trade associations is essential to the fight against piracy. I am excited to be taking on this role.”

Marking World IP Day

Fri, 26 Apr 2024 10:31:14 GMT

26 April 2024

Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance member, NOS , marks World IP Day with a powerful campaign to eliminate piracy. Spread the message!

AAPA priorities 2024 series (7)

Thu, 21 Dec 2023 06:00:00 GMT

23 December 2023

AAPA priorities 2024 series (6)

Wed, 20 Dec 2023 06:00:00 GMT

22 December 2023

AAPA IN 2023: END OF YEAR REVIEW

Tue, 19 Dec 2023 06:00:00 GMT

20 December 2023

AAPA priorities 2024 series (5)

Mon, 18 Dec 2023 06:00:00 GMT

18 December 2023

AAPA 2024 priorities series (4)

Fri, 15 Dec 2023 06:00:00 GMT

15 December 2023

AAPA 2024 priorities series (3)

Wed, 13 Dec 2023 06:00:00 GMT

13 December 2023

AAPA 2024 priorities series (2)

Sun, 10 Dec 2023 06:00:00 GMT

10 December 2023

AAPA 2024 priorities series (1)

Fri, 08 Dec 2023 19:36:27 GMT

8 December 2023

AAPA ANNOUNCES 6th ANTI-PIRACY AWARDS

Fri, 27 Oct 2023 12:37:07 GMT

Lisbon, 27 October 2023

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) has announced the 2023 awards given to an individual or team from the public sector for a successful initiative which supports the fight against audiovisual piracy. These are the 6th awards and were presented today at the Europol Intellectual Property Crime conference in Lisbon.

The winner of the 2023 award is the Dutch Fiscal Information and Investigation Service (Fiscale inlichtingen- en opsporingsdienst, FIOD) for taking down an illegal Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) service with over 1, 000, 000 users across Europe. On 23 May 2023, a series of raids were carried out across the Netherlands as part of an illegal streaming crackdown. The officers from the FIOD searched properties in various locations in The Netherlands. This operation also saw the closure of Globe Data Centre which distributed the illegal services.

Commenting on the award Sheila Cassells, Executive Vice President of AAPA, said: “ The scale of this operation illustrates clearly why law enforcement must continue to act against illegal IPTV services. And the inclusion and closure of a major hosting provider reinforces the need for a clear and robust regulatory regime, including, for example, know you customer requirements, to be imposed on such actors. ”

AAPA introduced a new category this year, giving an award to a public sector body acting in the Europol IP Crime conference host country, namely Portugal. The first such award was presented to Inspeção Geral das Atividades. Culturais (IGAC) and its General Inspector Luis Silveira Botelho. The award recognised the role played by IGAC in developing and implementing a comprehensive system of blocking orders under the framework provided by the law that entered into force on February 2022. This law regulates to control, remove and/or prevent access to illegal content, allowing, inter alia, for the imposition of blocking orders on ISPs also, thereby preventing the end user from gaining access to the illegal website or streaming service.

Mark Mulready, Co-President of AAPA and VP, Cyber Services at Irdeto said: “In presenting this award, we are pleased to acknowledge the steps taken in Portugal to implement an efficient and dynamic system for blocking orders. We have seen from other countries how helpful such blocking orders can be and we hope that countries who have not yet introduced the possibility of blocking orders will take note of the system applied here.”

AAPA also presented certificates of commendation to Podinspector Marcin Cyganek , an officer in the Central Bureau for Combating Cybercrime (CBZC), (previously the Cybercrime Unit in Katowice (Poland)) for his support and action taken to highlight the need for greater priority to be given to fighting IP crime. These actions included the closure of polsharing.com.

Bulgaria, Italy, and Spain – previous recipients of an AAPA award – also received Certificates of Commendation. For Bulgaria, this acknowledges the continued role of the Bulgarian Cyber Crime Department in driving the EMPACT programme and for Operation Pheonix which resulted in the dismantling of a local organised crime group.

The commendation for Italy for Operation Gotha involved 70 searches and seizures in 23 provinces of our country, dismantling a huge pirate IPTV network serving over 900k users , with profits estimated at 10 million euros . Operation Gotha’s investigation is a continuation of Operation Black Out.

For Spain, the commendation recognizes the role of the National Police in Operation Fagus which resulted in the disconnection of the 32 servers that were distributing/hosting illegally the signal for 2,294 TV channels.

AAPA’S SHEILA CASSELLS ON COUNTERFEIT DEVICES AND LIVE EVENT PIRACY

Mon, 04 Sep 2023 16:17:26 GMT

4 September 2023

This article first appeared on the IBC Website here .

The ongoing challenges presented by illicit streaming and the disappointments of the recent EU Digital Services Act are among the issues currently concerning AAPA Executive VP Sheila Cassells, writes David Davies.

Prior to joining the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) in 2011, Sheila Cassells was a member of Sky’s top 100 leadership team and the senior executive responsible for a broad range of EU policy matters, including technology spectrum, copyright, content, piracy, the environment, taxation and employment.

As she revealed in this interview, Cassells plans to step down from her role as AAPA Executive Vice-President at the end of this year. But before that, she shared her views on the most significant current piracy challenges to content creators, the AAPA’s ongoing cooperation with organisations including Europol and INTERPOL, and the notable omissions in the EU’s recent Digital Services Act.

How would you characterise the current severity of audio-visual piracy worldwide, and could the problem be said to have become markedly worse during the past few years?

Piracy continues to cause considerable harm to the audiovisual sector, despite its efforts and investments in anti-piracy activities and technologies. Over the past few years – and in the lockdown in particular – AAPA members did see spikes in piracy as new actors exploited changed behaviour with people working from home and diversion of law enforcement resources to other priorities such as the influx of counterfeit PPE. While the pandemic spikes have reduced, piracy remains a significant challenge and industry players – and associated stakeholders such as IBC, social media companies, hosting providers, etc – must remain very vigilant.

Could you give us a sense of the scale of piracy in 2023, and highlight any countries or territories where the problem is accelerating most rapidly?

A recent Park Associates report suggests that the cumulative loss from piracy for US streaming providers serving US consumers will be $113 billion in 2027, with a further $700million being lost to fraudulent advertising in that year. Closer to home, a study undertaken for AAPA by Bournemouth University estimated that legitimate IPTV providers lost €3.21 billion to pirates in 2021, with the pirates earning €1.06 billion. Some 17m European citizens used illicit IPTV services in that year. To put this into context the population of The Netherlands is 17.53 million - which is not to say that The Netherlands is the home of piracy.

What are the types of audio-visual piracy that are most commonplace at present, and has the changed much in recent times?

Illicit streaming (IPTV) is still by a considerable margin the most common form of piracy. Over the last few years, we have seen growth in the number and diversity of apps providing unauthorised access to audiovisual content. The use of apps is more common amongst young people who tend to use mobile devices to watch content. The EUIPO Observatory’s IP Perception Report 2023 revealed that 14% of all EU citizens had intentionally accessed pirated content (including music, books, etc) in the past year, with that figure more than doubling to 33% for young people aged 15 to 24.

How concerned should media & entertainment companies be about the role of some devices – such as ISDs, Firesticks and Android apps – as facilitators of piracy? And what would the AAPA like to see happen to address this?

Media and entertainment companies need to be very concerned about any technological development which can be used to access pirated content. At a basic level – and common to all the technical devices mentioned - AAPA would like to see the production, marketing and distribution of any device which can be used to infringe IP made illegal. There is a precedent for this in the EU in the so-called Conditional Access Directive. It is encouraging also to see e-commerce platforms such as Amazon taking action against counterfeit firesticks. However, the sector faces a particular challenge in pursuing action with many of these devices being made in China, and taking action there is not easy.

The AAPA has been cooperating with Europol, Eurojust and INTERPOL on the problem of AV piracy. What can you tell us about these collaborations?

Over the years AAPA has delivered a number of training programmes for law enforcement officers at the request of these international agencies. This started with the production of two e-training modules for the IIPCIC platform run by INTERPOL. These modules are available in six languages. Later this year we will deliver face-to-face training in Sofia under the auspices of EMPACT. This follows on from a successful event last year. We have also provided on-the-ground expert support for operations being co-ordinated by Europol and Eurojust. In relation to INTERPOL, we are very pleased to be a member of its Stop Online Piracy Digital Advisory Group.

The new EU Digital Services Act (DSA) was published in October 2022 and gives affected service providers until 1 January 2024 to comply with its provisions. What is the AAPA view on the act with regard to its anti-piracy measures, and in particular its failure to include a Know Your Business Customer (KYBC) requirement?

AAPA is disappointed that the DSA failed to deliver on many fronts. That includes the missed opportunity to adopt a KYBC requirement which would have required hosting providers, e-commerce platforms, apps stores, etc, to carry out due diligence on their potential customers. We are very aware from our conversations with these stakeholders that they often take no steps to screen out customers who facilitate piracy.

A major disappointment is the failure to legislate against live event piracy. This is a very real and current problem which is costing the sports industry, amongst others, substantial damage. Despite this – and the calls of 110 MEPs for legislation – we have a non-binding Recommendation, the impact of which will be monitored over three years before the need for legislation is accepted.

Can you outline any other significant recent developments for the AAPA?

AAPA continues to build upon its core strengths, which include the willingness of its members to share knowledge and expertise amongst themselves and with law enforcement and policy makers. Of course, the emphasis given to one or other topic can vary according to perceived and real needs.

I will step down at the end of this year following over 12 years at the helm. This provides an ideal opportunity for members and my successor to review AAPA’s strategy.

What is the significance of the IBC Show with regard to raising awareness around piracy issues?

IBC has an important role to play through the promotion of products which are “real” and through making customers aware that products which are not real can not only offer unauthorised access to many exhibitors’ legitimate content, but also convey the risk that their deployment can result in malware with the consequent identity theft, seizure of bank details, and so on. In this context AAPA is pleased that IBC organisers have screened out some well-known pirate device suppliers.

Finally, if there is one message you would like IBC visitors this year to take onboard regarding the piracy problem, what would it be?

If the offer is too good to be true it is probably not ‘real’.

AAPA’s position on the European Parliament own initiative report on the implementation the geo-blocking Regulation

Wed, 05 Jul 2023 14:26:21 GMT

5 July 2023

As the discussions on the European Parliament’s own initiative report on the implementation of the Regulation on addressing unjustified geo-blocking are picking up, the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) would like to warn policymakers against the harmful consequences of a potential ban of geo-blocking technologies used to protect the existing territorial licensing model applicable to audiovisual content and services, and dispel common misconceptions on its supposed link with piracy.

1) Geo-blocking technologies are key to protect exclusive territorial licenses

• Currently, audiovisual services providing access to high-value and premium content (sport, films, high-end drama or entertainment) are marketed on the basis of exclusive territorial licences.

• Exclusive territorial licenses allow rights holders to negotiate and sell distribution rights on a territory-by-territory basis, allowing them to accommodate the different viewing preferences within the EU by meeting the specific cultural and linguistic demands in each Member State, at a price which reflects the popularity of the content in each territory.

• Geo-blocking technologies help preserve this licensing model by preventing unauthorized cross-border access to content.

2) The financing of the whole European audiovisual ecosystem depends on the preservation of the exclusive territorial licensing model

• Exclusive territorial licenses represent the most efficient and beneficial model for the European cultural, creative and sports sector. This model continues to underpin the financing of new film and audiovisual content production in the EU, in particular by enabling presales and preserving the value of future distribution rights.

• A recent study estimated that the end of geo-blocking would have a negative impact on content production with an output reduction of 48% per year for TV content as well as a loss in revenue for producers of up to €8.2 billion euros per year.

• As recognised by the European Parliament’s own research service in May 2023, “the sector is strongly reliant on the current financing and licensing model and the extension of the scope of the Regulation would have considerable consequences for the economic sustainability of the sector”.

3) Banning geo-blocking technologies for audiovisual services would not benefit consumers

• A ban of geo-blocking for audiovisual services would end the territorial licensing model, leading de facto to a pan-European licensing model. This model would benefit to the largest media corporations in Europe or major new entrants from outside Europe who would be the only entities in capacity to bid or afford pan European licenses. The number of potential broadcasters willing to invest would be significantly reduced. One of these outcomes could result in disproportionate levels of market power being wielded by such corporations within the EU, resulting in higher prices for consumers.

• Furthermore, the end of geo-blocking would not significantly improve consumer welfare given that, less than 15% of consumers surveyed have tried to access audiovisual content for users in another EU country according to a 2019 Eurobarometer survey .

• As a matter of fact, geo-blocking technologies are a source of dissatisfaction only for consumers who want to access audiovisual content for free.

• According to a recent study , a ban on geo-blocking extended to audiovisual content would lead to a €9.3 billion loss in consumer welfare.

4) Banning geo-blocking for audiovisual services is not a response to the growing piracy of audiovisual content in the EU

• As shown in a research from Synamedia , the main driver for piracy of audiovisual content is the price of the legal offer which is considered too high by some users

• Given a ban on geoblocking would likely lead to a more expensive legal offer for consumers, we could anticipate that this would also result in a higher level of piracy of audiovisual content.

• Banning geo-blocking technologies would undermine an already difficult fight against the piracy of audiovisual content across the EU, since no harmonised framework exists at EU level to tackle audiovisual copyright infringements in a meaningful way.

• Ultimately, putting an end to geo-blocking would have damaging consequences for the whole audiovisual industry at a time when our sector is already undermined by all types of piracy and particularly by the piracy of live content.

Geo-blocking technologies refer to the use of technical measures and tools to restrict or control access to online content or services based on the geographic location of the user. These technologies employ various methods to identify and determine the user's location, for example through their IP address, and then enforce access restrictions based on predetermined rules or criteria.

AAPA is seeking a new Director

Thu, 29 Jun 2023 08:03:06 GMT

29 June 2023

Want to help chase audiovisual pirates?

A unique and rewarding opportunity to support the audiovisual industry in the fight against piracy is open to the person with the enthusiasm, knowledge and expertise to manage the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (www.aapa.eu).

As Executive Director of AAPA you will be responsible for implementing the strategy agreed by members and ensuring that the knowledge and information of AAPA’s 25 members is leveraged to support their anti-piracy activities. You will also be responsible for developing and nurturing effective relationships with third parties, including international law enforcement agencies such as INTERPOL, Europol and Eurojust, and other stakeholders who can help in the fight against piracy.

In addition to having the requisite experience the successful candidate must be able to demonstrate a passion and commitment for protecting copyright and tackling copyright infringements. Further information is here .

The closing date for applications is 31 July 2023 at 1700CET.

Interviews will be held virtually in early August.

The Problem, Challenges, and Effects of APP Piracy

Mon, 19 Jun 2023 05:00:00 GMT

19 June 2023

To download the full report, click here

AAPA statement to the adoption of Recommendation against piracy of live content

Thu, 04 May 2023 10:48:52 GMT

4 May 2023

The AAPA regrets the lack of ambition shown in the European Commission’s Recommendation on the piracy of live content

Following the publication of the Commission Recommendation on combating online piracy of sports and other live events, the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) expresses its disappointment and concern regarding the possibility that a review of the effectiveness of the Recommendation may not occur for 2,5 years.

Not only is this initiative of a non-legislative nature (while the European Parliament, supported by the AAPA and other actors, had previously called for a legislative initiative), the possibility of a 2,5-year assessment period does not address the urgency of the situation.

The possible 2,5-year assessment period in the Recommendation and the ineffective approach to piracy of live content enshrined in DSA means that the European Commission will not do anything else short term to address online piracy of live events, whose value is - by nature - consumed live. The Recommendation contains no deterrent to pirates to cease their illicit activities. It is, in essence, a green light for pirates to keep stealing live content online. It also means that de facto, European consumers will be exposed to the risks related to the consumption of – all types of – pirated content for a few more years. As demonstrated in a recent study conducted for AAPA , consumers also are the victims of piracy, through the targeted delivery and installation of malicious software (malware) onto their devices. The study found an average 57% risk of an audiovisual piracy app being installed with embedded malware. Furthermore, it carries no short-term incentive to hosting providers and other intermediaries to work with the legitimate industry to reduce piracy now.

Therefore, the AAPA calls on the European Commission to carry out its assessment of the effectiveness of the Recommendation as soon as possible.

Moreover, we regret that the European Commission also missed the opportunity to introduce a strong monitoring system and solid KPIs for the assessment of the Recommendation. Because those who facilitate piracy have no incentive to respond to soft measures, we ask the European Commission and the EU Intellectual Property Office Observatory (EUIPO) to urgently publish a set of KPIs setting out the objectives of this Recommendation. Without a clear deadline set in stone by which KPIs must be set out, online intermediaries will not be encouraged to act and step up the fight against Piracy. Given most of the data suggested below is easily available and ready to use, there should be no reason to delay the monitoring process. Therefore, we call on the EUIPO Observatory to consider the KPIs outlined in AAPA’s contribution to the Commission’s call for evidence , which includes:

• Quarterly data from rights holders on the volume of notices including success rate and whether or not these notices were processed in time.

• Quarterly data from hosting providers setting out (i) the volume of notices they have received from rights holders (ii) in how many cases they have acted to remove the content covered by the notice (iii) after what time period such removal took place, (iv) how many instances of repeat infringement they have identified and (v) how many customers they have permanently banned as a result of repeat infringement.

• Data from Member States on the extent to which blocking of live events has occurred following the Recommendation.

Finally, the Recommendation’s incentive for rights holders to “increase the availability, affordability, and attractiveness of their commercial offers”, implies that legal audiovisual content is not sufficiently available across the EU while from our perspective legal offers have never been more as widely and easily accessible than before. A recent study from the EUIPO Observatory found that European consumers increasingly choose legal offers and that both the quality and diversity of content offered on legal services is viewed as being superior to that found on illegal sources.

While the AAPA and its members will continue to contribute expertise and data to the European Commission and the EUIPO Observatory as the effects of the Recommendation are being monitored, we remain convinced that an EU legislative instrument remains the most efficient and effective way to tackle piracy of live content within and across EU Member States.

Meet the women in IP who support AAPA's fight against piracy

Wed, 26 Apr 2023 05:00:00 GMT

26 April 2023

Meet the women in IP who support AAPA's fight against piracy

Tue, 25 Apr 2023 05:00:00 GMT

25 April 2023

AAPA’s contribution to the Recommendation on the piracy of live content

Tue, 14 Feb 2023 16:46:56 GMT

14 February 2023

About AAPA

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance ( AAPA ) represents 24 companies involved in the provision of protected audiovisual services, security technology for protecting such services, and the manufacturing of products that facilitate the delivery of these services. Our membership is geographically diverse, with companies from Europe, the Middle East and America. It includes the whole audiovisual value chain, such as rights holders, platform operators, telecommunication companies, OTT providers, broadcasters, and technical service providers. Many of our members are global businesses.

Our aim is to tackle piracy, particularly regarding the development, promotion, distribution, application, or use of technologies to allow illegal access to content. Members face a concerning growth in the volume of unauthorised use of protected audiovisual content. AAPA coordinates intelligence and action through effective dialogue and interaction with other stakeholders and law enforcement.

AAPA’s input:

We thank the European Commission (EC) for the opportunity to offer our feedback. As signatories to the Call To Action to End Live Piracy Now , we would like to restate that an EU legislative instrument still remains the most efficient and effective way to tackle piracy of live content within and across Member States.

As preliminary remark, the AAPA reiterates that, given the short-term value of live events, acting as quickly as possible (and certainly before the end of the event itself) to remove illegal content is critical. Globally, in 2020, a study showed that there were more than 357 million daily visits to audiovisual piracy sites, with Europe disproportionately accounting for 45.72% of traffic [1]. Research from Synamedia and Ampere Analysis estimated that sports rights holders have forfeited around 26 billion euros due to piracy[2]. Piracy of live content represents a real risk to the whole creative and cultural industry value chain, to consumers’ welfare and to the overall EU economy.

In addition to pirated content consumed online, the surge in consumption via illicit IPTV in Europe [3] , is an alarming phenomenon from AAPA’s perspective. An independent study undertaken by Bournemouth University estimated that the legitimate industry lost €3.21 billion in 2021 alone due to consumers using illicit IPTV piracy services. The illicit IPTV service providers gained €1.06 billion. The study also indicated that 17 million Europeans – slightly fewer people than the population of The Netherlands - accessed illicit IPTV services. The use of illicit IPTV services was even higher among the 16-24 age group with 5.9 million.

Piracy can also have detrimental consequences for consumers. An independent study conducted for AAPA [4] showed that consumers are the victims of piracy, through the targeted delivery and installation of malicious software (malware) onto consumer devices, while they use audiovisual piracy sites, apps, Illegal Streaming devices and Set Top Boxes. The study found an average 57% chance of an audiovisual piracy app being installed with embedded malware. Furthermore within 71 seconds of clicking on a pirate site a consumer’s device could be infected.

Against this background, the AAPA, we would like the Recommendation to bring clarifications to the three following issues:

1. Clarify the notion of timely removals

As the Recommendation aims at “ identifying the best available means in Union law to help broadcasters and live events organisers, including sports event organisers, to prevent online piracy […] ”, it is clear that the main focus should be on the immediate removal of infringing content via the notice and take down mechanism. The issue we have always had to face is the delayed response, if any, from online intermediaries that have been notified. The recently adopted Digital Services Act (DSA) [5] makes no meaningful change to the concept of “expeditious” removal currently enshrined in EU law. The latter is open to interpretation from online intermediaries which, in many cases, means they will simply either not respond to notices or do so hours or days after the end of the live event. Many of them will exploit all ambiguities in the law to avoid acting at all – never mind expeditiously - which is why concrete measures need to be taken.

The Recommendation should take into account the nature of the content to build on the concept of “timely” removals which was introduced in the DSA. As live content is almost always watermarked and/or fingerprinted there is no question about identifying the stolen content which means the removal should be immediate and, in any case, well before the event terminates. In case online intermediaries do not remove access to the content in a timely manner, they should be held responsible for the harm caused to rights holders.

Failure to clarify the legal grounds, which would pave the way for immediate removal as an effective tool for live piracy, leaves rights holders in the position where there is no effective remedy for infringements which in turn means breaching upon rights holders’ freedom to conduct business as in Art 16. of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights.

2. Promote dynamic injunctions and identify why and where there are gaps in their application

Injunctions remain an effective tool when requests to take down the content are ignored. Yet there is room to harmonise enforcement, increase effectiveness and address existing barriers. Article 8(3) of the Information Society Directive requires Member States to ensure that rights holders can apply for an injunction against intermediaries whose services are used to infringe copyright. However, as indicated in the Call for Evidence “injunctions targeting live events, are used in certain Member States (…)" only. The issue is linked to the statutory test set out in Article8(3) which contains a discretionary element which Member States have used to create vastly divergent regimes across the European Union. The Commission should seek to create a level playing field and therefore replicate across the EU a powerful but carefully used approach to live blocking orders, bearing in mind that such actions shall not exclude rights holders who cannot act on the legal ground of copyright [6].

3. Deliver an assessment mechanism that reflects market realities

We welcome the commitment to “set up a monitoring system to assess the effects of the recommendation on the effectiveness of the legal remedies…”. However, it is crucial that the European Commission prescribes the indicators based on which this assessment will be carried out. These indicators could include:

• Quarterly data from rights holders on the volume of notices submitted to EU based hosting providers, and whether or not those notices were acted upon in a timely manner.

• Quarterly data from EU based hosting providers setting out (i) the volume of notices they have received from rights holders (ii) in how many cases they have acted to remove the content covered by the notice (iii) after what time period such removal took place, (iv) how many instances of repeat infringement they have identified and (v) how many customers they have permanently banned as a result of repeat infringement. The Recommendation should explicitly clarify that all EU based hosting providers are under an obligation to provide such data to the Commission.

• Propose assessment criteria on stated IP policies of hosting providers and their customer verification requirements, and perform a follow-up analysis of top 20 reported hosting providers from previously gathered data based on such criteria. Data from Member States on the extent to which blocking of live events has occurred following the Recommendation. Such data should be provided quarterly and should include at a minimum the following detail (i) what the Member State has done to promote the use of article 8(3) within their territory (ii) the number of cases in which blocking of illegal transmission of live rights has occurred (iii) which rights holders and which rights are involved (iv) whether there have been situations where rights holders have tried and been unable to obtain a live blocking order, and if so why, and (v) whether there are ongoing impediments to the use by rights holders of article 8(3) and if so what the Member State is doing to address those.

Moreover, the Recommendation should contain a review clause (no later than 12 months following publication). Where this review shows insufficient impact on objective market criteria, the EC should commit to proposing a dedicated legislative initiative. Without a specific deadline set in stone by which the objectives set out in the Recommendation must be achieved, none of the players in scope will be incentivised to act.

[1] “Online Piracy in Numbers - Facts and Statistics” [Infographic], go-globe.com

[2] Pricing piracy: the value of action , Synamedia, 2021

[3] Europe: EU and the UK

[4] Audiovisual piracy cyber risk for European consumers , AAPA, 2022

[5] The AAPA recommended to include KYBC obligations applicable to all online intermediaries during the debate on the DSA.

[6] As the study of the European Audiovisual Observatory ( Mapping report on national remedies against online piracy of sports content, December 2021 ) and the EPRS study ( Challenges facing sports event organisers in the digital environment ) point out, the nature of the rights held by organisers, clubs, leagues or broadcasters is quite diverse and has a direct impact on their entitlement to take legal action and on the different types of protection that can be granted.

AAPA in 2022

Fri, 06 Jan 2023 12:31:45 GMT

6 January 2023

Illicit IPTV in Europe, a report for AAPA

Wed, 14 Dec 2022 07:45:00 GMT

14th December 2022

To download the full report, click here

To download the Press Release, click here

AAPA ANNOUNCES 5th ANTI-PIRACY AWARDS

Thu, 27 Oct 2022 15:30:00 GMT

27 October 2022

Rome, 27 October 2022

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) has announced the 2022 awards given to an individual or team from the public sector for a successful initiative which supports the fight against audiovisual piracy. These are the 5th awards and were presented today at the Europol Intellectual Property Crime conference in Rome.

The winner of the 2022 award is The Cybercrime Department of the Bulgarian Directorate Combating Organized Crime for their lead in implementing the EMPACT priority on IP Crime. The award was presented to Inspector Alexander Velev for his work in leading the operational action concerning illegal IPTV and illegal streaming in the framework of the EMPACT priority

Commenting on the award Sheila Cassells, Executive Vice President of AAPA, said: “ While IP crime is an EMPACT priority it is important to keep it firmly in the spotlight and to expand the knowledge and investigative capabilities amongst Law Enforcement. The Bulgarian Cybercrime Department has always recognised the importance that private sector can play as a partner, inviting AAPA to support operations in the past. The effectiveness of collaborative working is clear to see and is evidenced by the fact that AAPA was invited to produce and deliver a 3 -day technical based training event which was hosted by the Bulgarian Ministry of the Interior in Sofia. Preparations are under way for a similar event in 2023. ”

AAPA also presented highly commended awards to Nucleo di Polizia Economico-Finanziaria della Guardia di Finanza di Milano and Squadra Reati Informatici della Procura della Repubblica presso il Tribunale Ordinario di Milano , for “The Net” operation. This operation started in December 2020 and was completed in January 2022. A huge pirate IPTV network serving over 500,000 users was dismantled and homes of 20 suspects were searched. For the first time the investigation identified the administrator of CyberGroup, an internet service provider used by several pirate IPTV suppliers.

Commenting on these awards Sheila Cassells said that “ We are delighted to recognise the continued commitment of the Italian police to fighting IP crime for a second year. The scale of the illegal network which was broken up as a result of THE NET is another successful blow against pirates. ”

The awards are the fifth to be given by AAPA. The award may be made to an individual or team working in law enforcement, including customs, market surveillance, the public prosecution service, international or national Government agencies or departments and regulatory bodies.

The AAPA expresses its disappointment following the adoption of the Commission’s work programme for 2023

Thu, 20 Oct 2022 09:21:15 GMT

20 October 2022

Yesterday the European Commission announced in its Work Programme for next year its intention to publish a Recommendation on the piracy of live content by Q2 2023.

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) deeply regrets the Commission’s decision to come up with a non-legislative and non-binding proposal to address the increasing damaging issue that live content piracy currently represents. The Commission has ignored 107 Members of the European Parliament and more than one hundred organisations from across the EU’s cultural, creative, audiovisual and sports sectors – including AAPA – who have called on the Commission to issue a legislative proposal.

From AAPA’s perspective, this non-legislative proposal represents another missed opportunity which will fail to effectively address piracy of live audiovisual content, since the legal framework offered by the Digital Services Act (DSA) will not guarantee that notified content is taken down immediately and blocked before a live event terminates. This is crucial considering that live broadcasts have an economic value which is limited to the duration of the event.

This situation is extremely harmful for the entire audiovisual value chain and a recommendation will not prevent audiovisual piracy to spread even more in the European Union, therefore contributing to funding criminal networks while endangering European consumers. It is, in essence, a green light for pirates.

AAPA and its members are grateful to the policymakers across the political spectrum and member states for their continued support. Our fight against audiovisual piracy in all its forms continues.

Remember just 71 seconds from that first click and your life could be changed for ever

Tue, 04 Oct 2022 10:31:19 GMT

4 October 2022

AAPA reinforces its commitment to audiovisual piracy training: e-training modules launched in Portuguese

Wed, 21 Sep 2022 05:02:38 GMT

21 September 2022

21st September 2022, Seoul, Republic of Korea

The AAPA sponsored e-training modules on audiovisual internet piracy make training on identifying and investigating the two prevalent forms of audiovisual piracy – card sharing and illegal streaming – available to law enforcement worldwide. Law enforcement officers from a wide range of countries have taken the courses. Recognising the value of the courses the modules are now available in Portuguese, as well as English, Spanish, French, Arabic and Mandarin.

Sheila Cassells, Executive Vice President of AAPA, said that: “The availability of the AAPA e-training modules in Portuguese reflects the fact that Portuguese is spoken by over 275 million people and is the official language in 9 territories throughout the world. These modules are available free of charge to law enforcement agents registered with IIPCIC. We will work with our global allies to encourage law enforcement to take these courses. The modules demonstrate also AAPA’s commitment to training as a key element of effective enforcement and we will continue to support INTERPOL, Europol, Eurojust and the EUIPO in this area.”

Luis Silveira Botelho, General Inspetor of IGAC - Inspeção Geral das Atividades

Culturais, (Portugal) said:

"This AAPA initiative is another important contribution in the fight against copyright violations in the digital environment. We take good note of this tool to face the very negative effects that audiovisual piracy brings to society"

Eduardo Carneiro, Head of Antipiracy at Brazil Film Agency ANCINE), said:

“This is an excellent initiative for training on audiovisual internet piracy for enforcement officers. When training is provided for officers to identify the illegal activity and how to proceed with the production of evidence and criminal prosecution, we guarantee an increase in the protection of intellectual property.”

ENDS

The modules are designed for enforcement officers and provide information needed to identify and investigate two forms on audiovisual piracy; card-sharing and illegal streaming. It comprises a description of the industry, the purpose and characteristics of content protection technologies, types of piracy and describes how to gather evidence, including live forensics, identify and seize illegal income and the importance of using experts in computer crime.

IIPCIC is a joint initiative of the Interpol Trafficking in Illicit Goods Program and Underwriters Labs (UL) and currently provides IP crime prevention training free of charge to over almost 36,500 law enforcement professionals from over 170 countries worldwide. The AAPA modules supplements the core IIPCIC curriculum which includes training on Internet Piracy and Combating Online Criminals in the 21st Century and on the Economic Consequences of Online Crime.

About AAPA: AAPA represents companies involved in the provision of protected audiovisual services, including rights holders, security technology for such services, and the manufacturing of products which facilitate the delivery of such services. AAPA’s mission is to enable the fight against piracy where this involves the development, promotion, distribution, application or use of technologies resulting in the unauthorised use of protected audiovisual content, by co-ordinating intelligence and action supported by effective legislation and its implementation.

For more information about AAPA’s work visit www.aapa.eu

AAPA contact:

Sheila Cassells:

+44 7500 243 136

Sheila.cassells@aapa.eu

Miranda Rock

+44 7957 391 498

Rocket Launch for AAPA

Miranda@rocketlaunch.co.uk

For more information on IIPCIC http://www.iipcic.org/

STUDY ON MALWARE AND AUDIOVISUAL PIRACY HIGHLIGHTS SIGNIFICANT RISKS TO EUROPEAN CONSUMERS

Sun, 18 Sep 2022 17:00:00 GMT

19 September 2022

Executive summary

Like consumers worldwide, European users of audiovisual piracy sites, apps, Illegal Streaming Devices, and Set-Top Boxes (STBs), often perceive that they can get “something for nothing” by using these services. Piracy is often perceived to be a victimless crime. The evidence presented in this study shows that the victim is the consumer, through the targeted delivery and installation of malicious software (malware) onto consumer devices, while they use audiovisual piracy sites, apps, ISDs and STBs. The impact of these malware infections can result in identity theft and fraud for the consumer, but also, lateral movement and further infection on any corporate network that they are connected to, such as remote working at home through a Virtual Private Network (VPN). Consumer behaviour is a direct threat to corporate networks, and the commercial consequences could be devastating, especially as more workers choose a flexible work pattern.

This study examined malware infection techniques across a broad range of actors targeting European consumers, finding that malware can be downloaded through malicious advertising, malicious popups, fake browser extension installations, browser notification hijacking, blocking notifications, adware, malicious software installation and banner ads. Furthermore, the study found an average 57% chance of an audiovisual piracy app being installed with embedded malware.

While European policymakers have focused on strengthening cybersecurity protections for many years, in practical terms – compared to Asian consumers in a similar study – there was no appreciable impact of these protections when visiting audiovisual piracy sites in relation to malware risk. The results of this study suggest that European regulatory frameworks need to focus on preventing consumer access to malicious audiovisual piracy sites, apps and STBs, through an expansion of regulatory site blocking, while acknowledging the risk of piracy-driven malware driving identity theft, in relation to the rollout of the European Digital Identity, and similar policy initiatives.

The full report can be downloaded from here

AAPA Mission Statement Video

Thu, 01 Sep 2022 09:03:11 GMT

1 September 2022

The AAPA welcomes the European Parliament’s adoption of the Digital Services Act (DSA) but reiterates its concerns on several provisions of the text

Mon, 11 Jul 2022 09:32:05 GMT

11 July 2022

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) welcomes the adoption of the DSA by the European Parliament. Resulting from the co-legislators’ provisional agreements earlier this year, this vote confirms that policymakers are willing to better address illegal content online. However, the DSA cannot be the full and definitive answer to online piracy since it has missed the opportunity to clarify important elements including:

• Stronger subsidiarity provisions which would have been necessary to ensure that hosting providers do not have the opportunity to escape their obligations. The AAPA is concerned that the DSA does not guarantee that notified content will ultimately be removed or its access disabled, since hosting services will have no incentive to expeditiously remove or disable access to illegal content. This situation is extremely harmful for the entire audiovisual value chain and will leave the door open for audiovisual piracy to spread even more in the European Union.

• Extended Know Your Business Customer” (KYBC) obligations to all online intermediaries which would have been an effective means to fight audiovisual piracy by allowing the collection of data and the verification of the identity of professional clients of all intermediaries.

Despite these missed opportunities, the AAPA notes that the DSA includes positive elements which will contribute effectively to the fight against audiovisual piracy:

• The extension of the trusted flaggers status to private entities, is very welcome from the AAPA perspective. This provision will now allow rightsholders and technical providers who have a strong expertise and direct legal interest in flagging illegal content to be recognized as trusted flaggers, continuing a practice which exists now.

• The final provisions introduced in the notice and action mechanism which provides that actual knowledge of illegal content is triggered when the content is notified and specifies that hosting services will remove such content without carrying out a detailed legal examination is also a key provision that is fully supported by the AAPA.

The AAPA will remain attentive to ensure that the DSA’s implementation lives up to its promise of better addressing illegal content online and will remain vigilant to ensure that the European Commission’s complementary initiative on the piracy of live audiovisual content will provide a specific regulatory framework for this type of content, that our sector has been advocating for.

About AAPA

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) represents 28 companies involved in the provision of protected audiovisual services, security technology for protecting such services and the manufacturing of products which facilitate the delivery of these services. Our membership is geographically diverse with companies from Europe, the Middle East, and America, and includes the whole audiovisual value chain, such as rightsholders, platform operators, telecommunication companies, OTT providers, broadcasters and technical service providers. Many of our members are global businesses.

Our aim is to tackle piracy, particularly pertaining to the development, promotion, distribution, application or use of technologies aimed at allowing illegal access to content. Members are facing a concerning growth in volume of unauthorised use of protected audiovisual content. Within AAPA, they coordinate intelligence and action through effective dialogue and interaction with other stakeholders and law enforcement.

The AAPA welcomes the political agreement on the Digital Services Act (DSA) but raises some concerns on the final text

Mon, 09 May 2022 14:25:47 GMT

9 May 2022

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) welcomes the political agreement reached on the DSA by the EU negotiators. We wish to convey our thoughts and reactions based on the “4-column document” dated 25 April..

First and foremost, the AAPA remains very concerned about the so-called issue of “subsidiarity” in recital 40b , which specifies that hosting services providers who cannot remove notified content for technical or operational reasons, should inform the person or the entity who submitted the notice. From AAPA’s perspective, this wording contains no guarantee that notified content will ultimately be removed or its access disabled, since hosting services will have no incentive to expeditiously remove or disable access to illegal lbroadcasts. This recital will thus be extremely harmful for the entire audiovisual value chain and will leave the door open for audiovisual piracy to spread even more in the European Union, preventing the DSA from achieving the objective of ensuring that "what is illegal offline is illegal online", using Commissioner Breton's own words.

In addition, we believe that not extending the so-called “Know Your Business Customer” (KYBC) obligations to all online intermediaries is a missed opportunity (Article 24a). In practice, the extension of the KYBC obligation would have been an effective means to fight audiovisual piracy by allowing the collection of data and the verification of the identity of professional clients of all intermediaries.

Despite these missed opportunities, the AAPA welcomes the final provisions introduced in the notice and action mechanism (Article 14) which provides that actual knowledge of illegal content is triggered when the content is notified and specifies that hosting services will remove such content without carrying out a detailed legal examination. As a reminder, our members do not face the same challenges as other sectors in terms of interpreting the legality of content as it is usually watermarked or digitally fingerprinted and we are able to provide a clear list of the licensees that are legally allowed to show it.

Finally, regarding trusted flaggers (Article 19), the AAPA fully supports the deletion of the reference to the fact that entities need to represent collective interests to apply to this status. Article 19 will now allow rightsholders and technical providers who have a strong expertise and direct legal interest in flagging illegal content to be recognized as trusted flaggers, continuing a practice which exists now.

The AAPA will remain attentive to ensure that the DSA’s implementation lives up to its promise of better addressing illegal content online. Going forward, we also very much look forward to the upcoming initiative of the European Commission on the piracy of live audiovisual content, which we hope will complement the DSA by recognizing the need for a specific regulatory framework for this type of content.

About AAPA

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) represents 28 companies involved in the provision of protected audiovisual services, security technology for protecting such services and the manufacturing of products which facilitate the delivery of these services. Our membership is geographically diverse with companies from Europe, the Middle East, Russia and America, and includes the whole audiovisual value chain, such as rightsholders, platform operators, telecommunication companies, OTT providers, broadcasters and technical service providers. Many of our members are global businesses.

DYNAMIC BLOCKING INJUNCTIONS - II LATEST APPROACHES IN GREECE & ASIA

Tue, 03 May 2022 05:55:57 GMT

3 May 2022

Click here to read the complete article.

AAPA submits its contribution to the European Commission’s Public Consultation on the Counterfeit and Piracy Watch List for 2022

Mon, 04 Apr 2022 13:45:20 GMT

4 April 2022

In February 2022, the AAPA submitted its contribution to DG Trade’s latest “Counterfeit and Piracy Watch List”. This contribution was an opportunity to highlight the main actors involved in intellectual property rights (IPR) infringement outside the European Union (EU), and to raise consumer awareness about this plague.

AAPA’s membership also underlined the harms caused by piracy of audiovisual content for the whole audiovisual value chain and reiterated that the challenge of audiovisual piracy needs to be met on multiple levels, including educational campaigns, use of technology, and increased enforcement activity. However, this needs to be led by action from legislators and policymakers using a range of instruments to create a fit for purpose regime and allow effective enforcement.

The AAPA aimed at mapping out different type actors that are involved in development, promotion, distribution, application, or use of technologies to allow illegal access to content and to complete the previous Counterfeit and Piracy Watch List, published by the European Commission in 2020. The AAPA has identified 5 main categories of actors that facilitate piracy of audiovisual content:

Cyberlockers

· A cyberlocker is an online data hosting service that provides file-storing and file-sharing services for various types of media files and data within a secure storage architecture. They can be accessed globally over the Internet and allow users to easily upload files from personal devices (e.g., computers, tablets, or smartphones) to a remote hosting server. After the uploading, the cyberlocker usually generates a URL link (sometimes more than one) for the uploaded file. The URL link(s) can then be shared with other users by different means.

· While cyberlockers can be used legally, nowadays, it can be easy to detect illegal content hosted on them. Cyberlockers give access to a substantial amount of copyright-protected content, uploaded anonymously into their hosting servers. Some cyberlockers are willing to cooperate and even have set up Advanced Takedown Tool (ATTs) to facilitate the notice and takedown process. However, this does not represent a norm.

Hosting Providers

· Hosting provider companies offer the necessary technical means to host many pirate organisation websites and streaming platforms. They can offer mutual hosting services (typically for linking/indexing websites), dedicated servers, or CDN services (streaming platforms and IPTV services).

· Hosting providers are a notable issue for live streaming piracy. One of the main problems rightsholders face is that several illegal streaming sites are hosted on the servers of those companies.

Live Streaming platforms

· A significant proportion of piracy that our members (especially rightsholders of live content and broadcasters) are facing is related to illegal streaming. Streaming sites/CDN-like platforms offer pirate streamers free/ad-supported/paid services. Some do not require any form of login/account to access their services. Pirate source streams push the live feed from a computer or encoder to the platform and receive a live stream URL they can publish on any online resource.

IPTV & Streaming APPs

· Internet Protocol Television (also known as “IPTV”) is a digital television service delivered through the Internet Protocol network. IPTV is part of a novel service designed to facilitate access to audiovisual content.

· IPTV provide access to digital TV over the IP transport medium from a “head-end” device to the final users. IPTV services work on Smart TVs, Android set-top boxes, and applications, but they may also include other services such as web access. The service providers involved in offering legal IPTV services in different countries worldwide are broadcasters, telecommunications companies, and private network operators, among others.

· However, countless illegal IPTV services accessible from most countries worldwide are often sold as low-price subscriptions on different terms (i.e., 1, 3, 6, or 12 months) providing a large number of unauthorised copyright-protected content. IPTV piracy is particularly complex and, in most cases, is related to organised cross-border crime.

· More precisely, the website hosting, customer support modules, streaming, and authentication servers of an IPTV service are rarely operated solely from one country. Determining the country an IPTV operator is headquarter in requires an extensive investigation to identify the administrators, and where they are located.

TV Operators

· Some of our members also market their offers via local subsidiaries around the world. As an example, in some African countries, several local operators with strong local ties and established reputations (having signs, brands, etc.) illegally market terrestrial television by broadcasting copyright-protected channels and programmes without the rightsholders’ agreement.

· They have deliberately infringed local IP laws and third party rights for several years. Many of the channels offered by these illegal operators (especially channels that broadcast attractive content such as African and international movies/TV series and sports channels) have been confirmed to be pirated. The channels are pirated in various ways: stolen from legitimate local distributors, or directly stolen from satellites and/or Internet signals before being illegally redistributed, causing significant damage to the rightsholders.

THE DIGITAL SURPRISE ACT - TIME FOR NEGOTIATORS TO RESTORE THE PROMISE OF DSA

Mon, 21 Feb 2022 09:14:14 GMT

21 February 2022

Click here to continue reading this article

The AAPA expresses strong concerns after the adoption of the report of the European Parliament on the Digital Services Act (DSA)

Mon, 24 Jan 2022 13:49:06 GMT

24th January 2022

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance ( AAPA ) is deeply concerned and disappointed about the European Parliament (EP) report on the Digital Services Act (DSA) which was adopted last week. The final position of the EP fails to address audiovisual piracy as one of its core issues, despite several MEPs supporting important amendments. Furthermore, the EP position represents a dangerous step back which would have strong detrimental effects on the whole audiovisual industry if it was adopted by co-legislators. Through the adoption of this position, the EP undermines the current legislative framework, while an increasing number of Member States are striving to develop and implement effective tools to fight audiovisual piracy.

More specifically, the introduction of a “stay-up principle” in article 14(3)a is totally unacceptable and would prolong audiovisual piracy in Europe. Indeed, the text provides that notified content shall remain accessible while its legality is being assessed by providers of hosting services. This new provision will inevitably lead to a longer retention of illegal content online and will thus be extremely harmful across the entire audiovisual value chain . It also negates the effectiveness of dynamic blocking injunctions which are becoming more widely used throughout the EU.

The AAPA also deeply regrets that the EP has missed the opportunity, by one vote, to extend the traceability requirements for professionals to all intermediaries (Article 22). Indeed, it is of utmost importance that this obligation applies to all digital services, regardless of their active or passive nature, by making it mandatory to collect data and verify the identity of professional clients who wish to use their services.

Despite these worrying developments, the AAPA and its members stand ready to partner with like-minded players and engage with the EU and national policymakers during the trilogue negotiations to reverse course. The coming months represent a final opportunity to ensure that the DSA does not represent a missed opportunity, (let alone a dangerous step back) and achieve its core priority, i.e. – using Commissioner Breton’s own words – to ensure that “what is illegal offline, is illegal online”.

About AAPA

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance ( AAPA ) represents 30 companies involved in the provision of protected audiovisual services, security technology for protecting such services and the manufacturing of products which facilitate the delivery of these services. Our membership is geographically diverse with companies from Europe, the Middle East, Russia and America, and includes the whole audiovisual value chain, such as rightsholders, platform operators, telecommunication companies, OTT providers, broadcasters and technical service providers. Many of our members are global businesses.

DSA – Plenary holds cards to building a safer internet

Wed, 19 Jan 2022 13:04:47 GMT

19 January 2022

With the upcoming plenary vote, the European Parliament can still turn the DSA into an opportunity for the EU to play a global role in making the internet a safer space for everyone.

Ahead of this week’s (Thursday 20th Jan) plenary vote in the European Parliament on the Digital Services Act, organisations from a range of diverse sectors call on the European Parliament not to miss the opportunity to create a more trustworthy Internet:

In proposing the Digital Services Act (DSA), the EU’s intention was to make online platforms and other internet intermediaries more accountable and to create a safer, better-functioning online environment. The text before the European Parliament plenary this week would not achieve this goal, unless improved with the voting of provisions proposed by a number of MEPs. In fact, without these proposed improvements it might even be a major step backwards.

Online platforms, hosting providers and other intermediaries should be subject to effective obligations to ensure they do not distribute or facilitate the distribution of illegal content. Some provisions in the Parliament’s IMCO text would roll-back already existing obligations, instead of strengthening them. Many of the advances made at European level in the last decade - which were already insufficient to properly protect European businesses and citizens would be undone and the resulting legislation would sadly be out of date upon approval.

With the DSA, the EU institutions have the opportunity to show global leadership in shaping the online environment for the safety and benefit of all. We therefore call on MEPs to not bow to pressure from big tech to weaken the DSA and to instead seize the opportunity provided by the plenary vote to improve the text by voting in favor of:

Amendment 510 - the “subsidiarity” principle (Recitals 26).
Amendments 512 and 514 - Know Your Business Costumer (KYBC) (Art 13a and Recital 39).
Vote in favour of deletion of paragraph 14.3a (Notice and Action) and vote in favour of Amendment 509 clarifying "expeditious" removal or disabling access to illegal content (Recital 22).
Vote in favour of deletion of last paragraph of Recital 27a (Search Engines).
Vote in favour of deletion of Art 1a paragraph 4 and the last paragraph of Recital 9 (Guidelines).

With these improvements to the text, the European Parliament will be able to lead on making online platforms more accountable and the internet safer for European citizens in the forthcoming trialogue negotiations.

ACT is the association of Commercial Television and Video on Demand Services in Europe. The ACT member companies finance, produce, promote and distribute content and services benefiting millions of Europeans across all platforms. At ACT we believe that the healthy and sustainable commercial broadcasting sector has an important role to play in the European economy, society and culture.

AEPO-ARTIS is a non-profit making organisation that represents 37 European performers’ collective management organisations from 27 different countries. The number of performers, from the audio and audiovisual sector represented can be estimated at 650,000. AEPO-ARTIS’s mission is to protect, strengthen and develop performers’ rights and to advance their collective management. AEPO-ARTIS aspires to ensure all performers benefit from the exploitation of all their performances and thus contribute to creativity and cultural diversity.

AER , the Association of European Radios is the Europe-wide trade body for commercial radio, representing the interests of companies operating over 5,000 commercial radio stations to the EU Institutions. Its mission is to promote the development of commercially funded radio broadcasting in Europe, by advocating for a fair and sustainable economic regulatory framework for radio, which will, in turn, allow commercial radio to continue to deliver significant public value and, beyond that, support media plurality, improve social cohesion and promote European culture.

AAPA represents around 30 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. AAPA’s core mission is to lead the fight against audiovisual piracy globally, by working with policymakers, supporting law enforcement authorities and building partnerships to better tackle piracy.

ANIMATION in EUROPE federates 17 Animation Producers Associations from 15 countries of the European Union to stand for the development of the animation industry in Europe and defend the interests of independent producers and distributors of series and films.

CEPI , the European Audiovisual production Association, is the voice of independent production in Europe since 1990. Today CEPI represents 19 national film and audiovisual Production associations from 17 European countries, as well as other organisations such as the Pan-European Association of Animation. CEPI role is to represent the interests of independent producers and foster a strong, independent film and television production sector.

CEPIC , the Center of the Picture Industry, federates 600 picture agencies and photo libraries in 20 countries across Europe, both within and outside the European Union. CEPIC's membership includes large and smaller stock photo libraries, major photo news agencies, art galleries and museums, video companies.

ECSA , the European Composer and Songwriter Alliance, represents 57 member organisations and over 30,000 professional composers and songwriters in 27 European countries. ECSA’s core mission is to defend and promote the rights and interests of composers and songwriters with the aim of improving their social and economic conditions, as well as enhancing their artistic freedom.

EIBF is an umbrella organisation representing national booksellers’ associations in the EU and beyond. Through its members, it speaks on behalf of more than 25,000 booksellers of all kinds, including brick and mortar retailers, chains and independent shops.

EUROCINEMA represents the interests of film and television producers to the European Union bodies concerning all the issues directly or indirectly affecting film production.

FEP , the Federation of European Publishers, represents 29 national books and learned journals

publishers’ associations of the European Union and the European Economic Area.

FIA , the International Federation of Actors represents performers' trade unions, guilds and professional associations in about 60 countries. In a connected world of content and entertainment, it stands for fair social, economic and moral rights for audiovisual performers working in all recorded media and live theatre.

FIAD , the International Federation of Film Distributors’ and Publishers' Associations, represents national associations of film distribution companies. FIAD's members operate in 14 countries where they cover 90 to 100% of the theatrical market.

FIAPF is the International Federation of Film Producers’ Associations. Its members are 36 film and TV producer organizations from 29 countries, including 15 in the EU/EEA. Their activities include the development and production of films and audiovisual content which are distributed offline and online via all forms of authorised and legal online distribution channels.

FIM , the International Federation of Musicians, founded in 1948, is the only organisation representing musicians’ unions globally, with members in 65 countries covering all regions of the world. FIM is recognised as an NGO by diverse international authorities such as WIPO, the ILO, UNESCO, the European Commission, the European Parliament or the Council of Europe.

FSE , the Federation of Screenwriters in Europe, is a network of national and regional associations, guilds and unions of writers for the screen in Europe, created in June 2001. It comprises 27 members from 22 countries, representing more than 7,500 screenwriters in Europe.

GESAC , the European Grouping of Societies of Authors and Composers, comprises 32 authors’ societies from across the European Union, Norway, and Switzerland. As such, it represents over one million creators and rights holders in the areas of musical, audio-visual, visual, and literary and dramatic works.

IAO , the International Artist Organisation, is the umbrella association for 10 National coalitions advocating for the rights and interests of the Featured Artists in the music industry. It was established to represent featured artists and lobby both for fair and balanced rights, and also for a fair share of all value stemming from the artists’ works.

ICMP is the world trade association for music publishers and companies. It represents more than 90% of the world’s published music. Its membership comprises 61 national associations, including each of the 27 EU Member States.

IFPI , the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, is the organisation that promotes the interests of the international recording industry worldwide. IFPI’s mission is to promote the value of recorded music, safeguard the rights of record producers and expand the commercial uses of recorded music in all markets where its members operate.

IFTA is the global trade association for independent film and television production, finance, distribution, and sales companies. The organization represents the independent sector before

governments and international bodies and provides significant entertainment industry services to more than 135 member companies from 23 countries.

IMPALA is the European association of independent music companies, representing over 5,000 music SMEs. Its mission is to grow the independent music sector sustainably, return more value to artists, promote diversity and entrepreneurship, improve political access, inspire change and increase access to finance.

IMPF is the global network for independent music publishers. It represents the interests of indie music publishers internationally, shares experiences and best practices, exchanges information on the copyright and legal framework in different territories and jurisdictions, and helps stimulate a more favourable environment for artistic, cultural and commercial diversity for songwriters, composers and publishers everywhere.

IVF , the International Video Federation. Its members are associations representing businesses active in all segments of the film and audiovisual sector in Europe. Their activities include the development, production, and distribution of films and audiovisual content as well as their publication on digital physical carriers and via all forms of authorised and legal online distribution channels (TVOD, SVOD, AVOD).

MPA , the Motion Picture Association, is the leading advocate of the film, television, and streaming industry around the world.

SAA , the Society of Audiovisual Authors, is the umbrella association of European collective management organisations representing audiovisual authors. Its 33 members in 25 countries manage rights for over 160,000 film, television and multimedia European screenwriters and directors.

SROC , the Sports Rights Owners Coalition, is a forum of over 50 international and national sports bodies and competition organisers, with a particular focus on rights issues.

STM is the leading global trade association for academic and professional publishers. The membership is composed of over 140 organisations who are based globally and include academic and professional publishers, learned societies, university presses, start-ups and established players.

UNIC , the International Union of Cinemas, is an international trade association representing cinema operators and their national associations across 38 European territories.

AAPA in 2021

Fri, 07 Jan 2022 12:42:56 GMT

7 January 2022

We look back on 2021 with a review of AAPA’s activities. You can read the full review here .

Here are some of the highlights…

· AAPA members, Sky Italia, Nagra, Canal +, Synamedia, Sky UK, Irdeto, the Premier League, LaLiga, NOS and others recorded significant operational successes in Italy, Switzerland, the U.K., Spain, Portugal and Latin America.

· At the request of Europol we supported the Bulgarian Cybercrime Department during an operation in Sofia.

· AAPA held bi-monthly virtual meetings with external speakers from An Garda Siochana Ireland, Cloudflare, Mastercard and INTERPOL.

SHOULD PAYMENT SERVICE PROVIDERS HAVE SELF-REGULATORY POLICIES IN PLACE TO HELP FIGHT AUDIOVISUAL PIRACY?

Wed, 05 Jan 2022 10:05:40 GMT

5 January 2022

Click here to continue reading this article

Priorities in the fight against piracy in 2022

Thu, 16 Dec 2021 00:00:00 GMT

14 December 2021

AAPA expresses strong concerns after the IMCO vote on the Digital Services Act (DSA)

Wed, 15 Dec 2021 10:26:46 GMT

15 December 2021

We, as the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance ( AAPA ), are representatives of a broad range of companies involved in the fight against illegal audiovisual content. Our membership includes the whole audiovisual value chain, such as rightsholders, platform operators, telecommunication companies, OTT providers, broadcasters and technical service providers. Our aim is to tackle audiovisual piracy, particularly pertaining to the development, promotion, distribution, application or use of technologies aimed at allowing illegal access to audiovisual content .

We are very concerned about the European Parliament Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) Committee’s draft report on the Digital Services Act (DSA) which was adopted yesterday. While the report fails to address audiovisual piracy as one of its core issues, some of the modifications proposed even represent a dangerous step back in comparison to the current legislative framework and would have strong detrimental effects on the whole audiovisual industry.

In particular, the introduction of a “stay-up principle” in article 14(3)a, which provides that notified content shall remain accessible while its legality is being assessed by providers of hosting services, will inevitably lead to a longer retention of illegal content online and would have adverse effects in the already difficult fight against audiovisual piracy. This provision will be extremely harmful for the whole audiovisual value chain , and simply catastrophic for right holders and broadcasters of live content, for whom it is of utmost importance to ensure that pirated content is swiftly removed due to the time sensitivity of such content whose value resides in the live.

Furthermore, the introduction of new transparency requirements for entities willing to become trusted flaggers (Article 19) are burdensome and would discourage more entities to apply to this status. AAPA also wishes to clarify the type of entities that can apply for this status and to extend it to include notably, rights holders, licensees, technology vendors and other relevant entities. They have demonstrated a strong expertise and a high rate of accuracy when flagging illegal content, and we believe that they should be granted the status of trusted flaggers.

Finally, AAPA also regrets that the IMCO text has missed the opportunity to:

· Clarify the wording in recital 22 specifying that “expeditious removal” of illegal online content means “as fast as possible and immediately” during live broadcasts.

· Clarify the definition of “hosting service” (article 2) to include services that not only store information but also enable the storage of information as well as services that consist in the provision of IP addresses allowing the anonymous use of domain names and websites. These include dedicated servers [1] /rental service providers, and reverse proxies [2] , where currently there is an uncertainty regarding the liability regime applicable to them although they greatly facilitate piracy.

· Extend the traceability requirements for professionals to all intermediaries (Article 22). We believe that this obligation should apply to all digital services, regardless of their active or passive nature, by making it mandatory to collect data and verify the identity of professional clients who wish to use their services.

The future financial health of the European audiovisual industry depends on the solutions that the DSA will provide to tackle online piracy. We urge the Members of the European Parliament to take our concerns into consideration ahead of the plenary vote expected in January.

About AAPA

[1] “Dedicated servers” are hosting services in which a physical server is dedicated to a single business customer.

[2] A “reverse proxy” is a common type of proxy server (i.e. a server application or appliance that acts as an intermediary for requests from clients seeking resources from servers that provide those resources) that is accessible from the public network. Large websites and content delivery networks use reverse proxies, to balance the load between internal servers. Reverse proxies are typically owned or managed by the web service, and they are accessed by clients from the public internet.

AAPA ANNOUNCES 4th ANTI-PIRACY AWARDS

Tue, 14 Dec 2021 09:24:34 GMT

14 December 2021

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) has announced the 2021 awards given to an individual or team from the public sector for a successful initiative which supports the fight against audiovisual piracy.

The winner of the 2021 award is the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) - European Observatory on Infringements of Intellectual Property Rights , and more specifically the Enforcement and SME Service team, led by Blanca Arteche, for its campaign and efforts supporting the reinstating of IP Crime in the European Multidisciplinary Platform Against Criminal Threats (EMPACT) . The Observatory team at the EUIPO embarked on an awareness-raising programme to win support and join efforts with the European Commission (DG HOME) and Member States (MSs) to have IP crime re-instated in EMPACT following its omission from the 2018-2021 cycle. The AAPA award for 2021 is given specifically to the Enforcement and SME Service team who also supported the awareness work undertaken by a coalition of private sector stakeholders. Had the campaign been unsuccessful IP crime would have remained in the law enforcement wilderness until 2025 at least.

Commenting on the award Sheila Cassells, Executive Vice President of AAPA, said: “The challenge faced by the Observatory team from the EUIPO should not be understated. Initially only a few MSs were willing to contemplate re-instating IP crime. The private sector coalition, of which AAPA was part, benefitted greatly from the advice and insight offered by Blanca and her team, reinforcing the value of the network which the Observatory represents. After the various stages were completed in May 2021 MSs agreed the priorities with IP Crime being included as a segment in the Fraud, Financial and Economic Crimes priority. This is a very successful outcome as it means there is money and other resources to take on operations, provide training, etc. to tackle audiovisual piracy – and countries recognise the importance of doing so. AAPA looks forward to supporting MSs and Europol in the implementation of the Operational Action Plans.”

AAPA also presented special recognition awards to Primo Dirigente Marcello La Bella and Sostituto Commissario della Polizia di Stato Davide Salvatore Centonze, Compartimento della Polizia Postale e delle Comunicazioni per la Sicilia Orientale for their work on Operation Black Out. Supported by Primo Dirigente Gabrielli Ivano and Ispettore Vito Cuscianna from the Servizio Polizia Postale e delle Comunicazioni the operation led to the closure of a major IPTV network responsible for around 80 percent of illegal IPTV supply in Italy. Operation Black Out was carried out by 200 specialists in 11 regions following an investigation into sellers on Telegram and other social networks. The network is believed to have generated around 15 million euros in revenue every month.

Commenting on the awards Mark Mulready, Co-President of AAPA and Vice President Cyber Services at Irdeto, commented that “We are delighted to recognise the commitment and success of the Polizia Postale e delle Comunicazioni in blocking access to such a major illegal IPTV network. The number of specialists and regions involved demonstrates the organisational and technical complexities involved in fighting such illicit activities which are increasingly accessible through social media networks. Activities such as Operation Black Out sends a clear message that piracy will not be tolerated.”

END

Notes to editors

About AAPA: AAPA ( www.aapa.eu ) represents companies involved in the provision of protected audiovisual services, rights holders, security technology for such services, and the manufacturing of products which facilitate the delivery of such services. AAPA’s mission is to lead the fight against audiovisual piracy across Europe, the Middle East and beyond through effective lobbying, supporting law enforcement and building partnerships to better tackle piracy. For more information about AAPA’s work visit www.aapa.eu

The awards are the fourth to be given by AAPA. The award may be made to an individual or team working in law enforcement, including customs, market surveillance, the public prosecution service, international or national Government agencies or departments and regulatory bodies.

AAPA contact:

Sheila Cassells:

Sheila.cassells@aapa.eu

+44 7500 243 136

Miranda Rock

+44 7957 391 498

Rocket Launch for AAPA

Miranda@rocketlaunch.co.uk

AAPA appoints Oliver Pribramsky from the Deutsche Fussball Liga as its new Co-President

Mon, 13 Dec 2021 14:08:21 GMT

13 December 2021

AAPA is pleased to announce today that Oliver Pribramsky, Head of Rights Management, Technologies and Archives at DFL has been appointed as Co-President of AAPA. Oliver also plays an active role in the Sports Rights Owners Coalition (SROC), the EUIPO Observatory Expert Group on the Impact of Technology and was instrumental in the creation of the German Online Copyright Clearance System (CUII). He is replacing Matteo Feraboli who is leaving Sky Italia.

We are sorry to see Matteo leave and thank him for his substantial contribution to AAPA and anti-piracy. Mark Mulready remains as the other Co-President .

Dynamic Blocking Injunctions - The Latest Approaches in Europe

Thu, 09 Dec 2021 00:00:00 GMT

9 December 2021

To download this article, click here

The AAPA Calls for Strengthened Anti-Piracy Measures in the JURI Committee DSA Opinion

Wed, 29 Sep 2021 13:50:07 GMT

29 September 2021

The full paper can be downloaded here

AAPA in 2021 - So Far

Tue, 21 Sep 2021 13:39:02 GMT

21 September 2021

WILL THE DIGITAL SERVICES ACT REACH ITS POTENTIAL TO BE A GAME-CHANGER?

Mon, 06 Sep 2021 11:12:42 GMT

06 September 2021

Continue reading this article here

AAPA Recommendations to IMCO Committee Members in relation to the Digital Service Act (DSA) and the Fight against Audiovisual Piracy

Thu, 02 Sep 2021 17:27:17 GMT

02 September 2021

Continue reading this article here

AAPA talks piracy with IBC

Fri, 06 Aug 2021 16:12:43 GMT

06 August 2021

https://www.ibc.org/trends/aapa-urges-increased-industry-action-as-value-of-pirate-video-services-soars/7782.article?utm_campaign=484027

AAPA appoints Matteo Feraboli from Sky Italia as its new Co-President

Tue, 27 Jul 2021 11:30:45 GMT

27 July 2021

AAPA is pleased to announce today that Matteo Feraboli, Sky Group Director Anti-Piracy Intelligence, Investigations and AP Lab has been appointed as Co-President of AAPA. He is replacing Phill Davies who is leaving Sky on 31 July. Matteo has led a number of ground-breaking anti-piracy operations in the last few years and is highly respected by colleagues in the industry and law enforcement. He has been an active member of AAPA throughout.

We are sorry to see Phill leave and thank him for his enormous contribution to AAPA and anti-piracy. He will be missed by AAPA members and many other stakeholders. Mark Mulready remains as the other Co-President .

Digital Safety Matters

Tue, 13 Jul 2021 12:02:04 GMT

13 July 2021

AAPA is delighted to support UL's Digital Safety campaign.

Blog: WHY COLLABORATION WITH INTERNATIONAL LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES IS KEY TO FIGHTING AUDIOVISUAL PIRACY

Fri, 28 May 2021 15:57:00 GMT

28 May 2021

To download, click here

AAPA WELCOMES EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT’S RECOMMENDATIONS TO FIGHT AGAINST LIVE SPORTS PIRACY

Thu, 27 May 2021 00:00:00 GMT

27 May 2021

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) welcomes the European Parliament’s resolution on “challenges of sports events organisers in the digital environment”, adopted in plenary session on the 19th of May with a very large majority.

More specifically, AAPA welcomes the call made by the European Parliament for the removal of, or the disabling of access to, infringing live sport broadcasts to be done within 30 minutes of the receipt of the notification from rightholders or from a “certified trusted flagger”. We especially welcome the fact that the European Parliament considers that those “certified trusted flaggers” can be rightholders, intermediaries and other service providers whose software tools are able to effectively and reliably identify illegal broadcasting of live sports. Finally, AAPA also salutes the emphasis put in the resolution on the need for more effective enforcement (including cross-border) of rights, notice and action mechanisms and blocking injunctions.

Against this background, we consider this resolution provides an important political signal that the fight against the growing scourge of audiovisual piracy needs to be tackled seriously and urgently. We very much look forward to the European Commission’s response to this resolution and stand ready to contribute to any policy and regulatory efforts aimed at fighting audiovisual piracy, including as part of the Digital Services Act proposal currently discussed by the EU co-legislators.

World IP Day 2021

Mon, 26 Apr 2021 05:17:51 GMT

26th April 2021

To download, click here

AAPA's Priorities for 2021

Thu, 15 Apr 2021 18:51:12 GMT

15th April 2021

Click here to download

AAPA in Partnership with INTERPOL Hosts Webinar on International Collaboration In The Fight Against Piracy – Challenges And Opportunities

Wed, 14 Apr 2021 15:15:07 GMT

14th April 2021

Over 275 participants, including representatives from law enforcement in 43 different countries across the world, joined speakers from the major international law enforcement agencies and the private sector to discuss the challenges and opportunities in fighting audiovisual piracy on a transnational basis. With Rory Corcoran, Assistant Director, Illicit Markets Sub Directorate, Organized and Emerging Crime Directorate, General Secretariat of INTERPOL, outlining its commitment to give more focus to anti-piracy activities Sergio Tirro, Head of Europol’s IPC3, Gabor Ivanics, Eurojust Liaison Officer to Europol EC3 and IPC3, and Steve Francis, Assistant Director for Global Trade Investigations, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and Director of National Intellectual Property Rights Co-ordination Center (United States) described the key ingredients in delivering successful multi-agency, cross-border operations.

Opening the webinar Sheila Cassells, Executive Vice President AAPA, said that: “We are all aware that audiovisual piracy is a global phenomenon which requires a global response from law enforcement and industry if we are to fight it effectively. While it is currently more prevalent in some countries than others as broadband speeds and penetration grow, illegal streaming will become commonplace throughout the world. The disparities we see today can be reflected in the skills, resources and priorities of law enforcement agencies and our goal in hosting this webinar in partnership with INTERPOL is to encourage all countries to develop the expertise to tackle this IP crime.”

Mark Mulready, Co-President of AAPA and VP Cyber Services at Irdeto, Phill Davies, Co-President AAPA and Director of Group Anti-Piracy Partnerships at Sky, Pascal Metral, Vice President, Legal Affairs for AAPA member, Nagra/Kudelski, Avigail Gutman, VP Intelligence and Security Operations, at AAPA member, Synamedia, were joined by Wouter van Zwieten, Chief Legal Operations Officer, Worldstream to explain how the private sector can contribute to enforcement activity through training, intelligence sharing, analytical support, and support for operations. The webinar was chaired by Chris Vansteenkiste, Commissaris, Judicial Police Department - International Police Cooperation, Belgian Federal Police.

Rory Corcoran commented that: “INTERPOL is pleased to partner with AAPA, which has been a stalwart supporter of the agency for almost 10 years, in the fight against piracy. We recognise that the private sector has a great depth of knowledge and expertise which can only help law enforcement play its role and we encourage our member countries throughout the world to work with us to tackle this issue.”

INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION IN THE FIGHT AGAINST PIRACY – OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES

Wed, 24 Mar 2021 16:38:01 GMT

24th March 2020

14 and 15 April 2021

(both 0930 EST/1430 UK/1530 CET)

A closed webinar delivered via Kudo

Participants – law enforcement, policy makers, IP attaches, prosecutors’, industry, etc.

Sessions will not be recorded or made available online.

Access will be free to registered participants.

No press access.

Moderator
Chris Vansteenkiste, Commissaris, Judicial Police Department - International Police Cooperation, Belgian Federal Police

If you would like to register for this event please email contact@aapa.eu .

AGENDA 14 April 2021 (0930 EST/1430 UK/1530 CET)
A two-hour session, each speaker will present for 20 minutes.

Welcome and Objectives
Encouraging those jurisdictions who are not active in anti-piracy enforcement
Sheila Cassells, Executive Vice President, AAPA

The Digital Piracy Initiative
Rory Corcoran, Assistant Director, Illicit Markets Sub Directorate, Organized and Emerging Crime Directorate, INTERPOL

Overview of Audiovisual Piracy
Form, Scale and harm
Mark Mulready, Co-President, AAPA and Vice President of Cyber Services, Irdeto

The Geography of Audiovisual Piracy
Pascal Metral, Vice President, Legal Affairs Nagra/Kudelski (AAPA)

COLLABORATION IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR

Creating an International Programme
Rory Corcoran, INTERPOL

Working Across Oceans
Steve Francis, Director of National IPR Centre, United States

Europol Support To IPTV Investigations
Sergio Tirro’, Head of IPC3, Europol

Online Piracy – Illegal IPTV Case Study
Gabor Ivanics, Liaison Officer to Europol EC3 and IPC3 at Eurojust

AGENDA 15 April 2021 (0930 EST/1430 UK/1530 CET)
A one-and-a-half-hour session, each speaker will present for 20 minutes.

PUBLIC -PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS

Supporting Law Enforcement - How Trade Associations Can Help
Phill Davies, Co-President, AAPA and Director of Anti-Piracy Partnerships, Sky Group

The Role of Other Stakeholders
Wouter van Zwieten, Chief Legal Operations Officer, WorldStream

Is More Intra- Private Sector Collaboration Required? How Can This Be Delivered?
Avigail Gutman, VP Intelligence and Security Operations, Synamedia (AAPA)

SUMMING UP
Rory Corcoran, INTERPOL and Mark Mulready, AAPA and Irdeto

AAPA RE-ELECTS CO-PRESIDENTS AND SETS PRIORITIES FOR 2021

Wed, 17 Mar 2021 07:07:27 GMT

17th March 2021

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA- www.aapa.eu ) has announced that Mark Mulready, VP Cyber Services at Irdeto, and Phillip Davies, Director of Anti-Piracy Partnerships at Sky Group, have been reappointed to serve as Co-Presidents for a further two- year term. The Co-Presidents, supported by the Executive Vice President, Sheila Cassells, are responsible for implementing the strategy agreed by AAPA members and for maintaining relationships with global and European law enforcement agencies, including Eurojust, Europol and INTERPOL, and other stakeholders. The management of AAPA is also supported by an Executive Assistant, Cathie Hyslop.

In announcing the re-election of the Co-Presidents, AAPA also set out its priorities for 2021. These include engaging with the European institutions in relation to the Digital Services Act and Digital Markets Act to secure outcomes acceptable to AAPA members; to build further the capacity of law enforcement to strengthen the fight against piracy, including from a cybercrime perspective; to develop a more comprehensive communications programme; and to boost the work of the AAPA Working Groups through greater participation.

In welcoming his reappointment Mark Mulready said: “We are grateful to AAPA members for re-electing us as Co-Presidents. Their support and participation are key to AAPA achieving the goals it has set itself. The member-led, focused Working Groups are fundamental to the fight against piracy and we will be working with the Co-ordinators to ensure that they can achieve their objectives in the interests of all AAPA members.”

Sheila Cassells said: “I am delighted that Mark and Phill have been re-elected and look forward to working with them over the next two years. Their commitment and enthusiasm for AAPA is unflagging and has helped us to make great strides in the fight against piracy.”

About AAPA: AAPA represents companies involved in the provision of protected audiovisual services, security technology for such services, and the manufacturing of products which facilitate the delivery of such services. AAPA’s mission is to enable the fight against piracy where this involves the development, promotion, distribution, application or use of technologies resulting in the unauthorised use of protected audiovisual content, by co-ordinating intelligence and action supported by effective legislation and its implementation.

For more information about AAPA’s work visit www.aapa.eu

AAPA contact:
Sheila Cassells:
+44 7500 243 136

Sheila.cassells@aapa.eu

Miranda Rock

+44 7957 391 498

Rocket Launch for AAPA

Miranda@rocketlaunch.co.uk

AAPA in 2020

Wed, 16 Dec 2020 17:11:02 GMT

December 16th 2020

Wiley becomes First Global Publisher to Join AAPA

Mon, 07 Dec 2020 21:49:25 GMT

December 7th 2020

HOBOKEN, N.J.— December 7, 2020—John Wiley & Sons Inc. (NYSE: JW-A and JW-B), a global leader in research and education, today announced that the company has been elected by members of the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) to join its alliance. The first global publisher to join the AAPA, Wiley shares the organization’s commitment to strengthen the fight against online piracy and the protection of intellectual property rights in Europe, the Middle East and around the globe.

“We are privileged to join AAPA’s efforts to advocate for and enforce the copyright and free expression protections so essential to the global publishing industry,” said Pascal Hetzscholdt, Senior Director Content Protection at Wiley. “At Wiley, our mission is to advance knowledge and learning through authorship, research, and education; and this wouldn’t be possible without a vibrant, independent publishing industry protected by intellectual property rights.”

Sheila Cassells, Executive Vice President of AAPA said “We are delighted to welcome Wiley to AAPA. We share a common goal and commitment to collaborate with private and public sector stakeholders to fight piracy. By working together we aim to achieve more success in this fight.”

AAPA’s mission is to lead the fight against audiovisual piracy through effective lobbying, supporting law enforcement and building partnerships to better tackle piracy. In partnership with Wiley, they aim to continue raising awareness to discourage piracy; building private and public partnerships; lobbying for better legislation and enforcement; sharing content protection strategies; and providing a unique perspective from the publishing industry on today’s piracy challenges.

This announcement underscores Wiley’s continued commitment globally to protect intellectual property rights; in the United States, working closely with the Association of American Publishers (AAP), to which Wiley’s President and CEO Brian Napack was recently named Chairman of the Board.

###

About Wiley:

Wiley drives the world forward with research and education. Through publishing, platforms and services, we help students, researchers, universities, and corporations to achieve their goals in an ever-changing world. For more than 200 years, we have delivered consistent performance to all of our stakeholders. The Company's website can be accessed at www.wiley.com .

About AAPA:

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. AAPA’s mission is to lead the fight against audiovisual piracy across Europe, the Middle East and beyond through effective lobbying, supporting law enforcement and building partnerships to better tackle piracy. AAPA’s website can be accessed at www.aapa.eu.

AAPA policy paper: Strengthening the fight against online piracy and the protection of intellectual property rights at the European Union level

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 12:36:46 GMT

November 20th 2020

In anticipation of several key Commission proposals such as the Digital Services Act and the EU IP Action Plan, the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) would like to share its position on how to strengthen the fight against online piracy and the protection of intellectual property rights at the European Union level. The AAPA welcomes policymakers’ efforts in developing a modern regulatory framework to address the spread of illegal content online and upgrade the IP system to ensure better enforcement and promote fair play globally.

Our members have been facing a concerning growth in volume of unauthorised use of protected audiovisual content, a phenomenon which dramatically accelerated during the pandemic outbreak . The functioning of the whole industry is impacted, leading to a considerable loss of revenue for the entire audiovisual value chain, including AAPA members, and prejudicing the sustainability of the creative ecosystem and, ultimately, cultural diversity.

AAPA members therefore ask for an urgent and strong response from the European Union (EU) to reinforce the fight against illegal content online:

Clarify the liability regime of internet intermediaries without questioning EU fundamental principles and case law

Provide for a comprehensive “Know Your Business Customer” obligation.

Adopt harmonised “notice and action” procedures, including stay down measures, deterrent actions against repeat infringement and specific policies related to trusted flaggers.

Include an obligation for passive platforms/intermediaries, in particular streaming platforms and providers of streaming servers (i.e. hosting providers), to provide a real-time takedown tool.

Have a robust IP Action Plan linked to an industrial strategy as part of the next Audiovisual Action Plan.

You will find additional measures in our paper, as we aim to develop a holistic approach to online piracy and the enforcement of intellectual property rights, including recommendations for transparency tools, cross-border cooperation and a strengthening of the “follow the money approach”.

Download our paper here.

AAPA partners with UL in BeSafeBuyReal campaign

Sat, 14 Nov 2020 14:44:13 GMT

November 12th 2020

AAPA Anti-Piracy Awards

Mon, 19 Oct 2020 11:38:17 GMT

October 19th 2020

More success for AAPA members in the fight against piracy

Wed, 08 Jul 2020 11:56:37 GMT

July 8th 2020

AAPA members supported a UK Police operation on Tuesday 30th June, where officers from the Cyber and Serious Organised Crime team of Norfolk & Suffolk Police conducted a search warrant whilst investigating the illegal streaming of premium pay TV channels . A 24 year old man was arrested on suspicion of facilitating others to commit the offence of obtaining services dishonestly, and concealing /converting criminal property (money laundering).

Investigations continue after the suspect was released under investigation pending further enquiries. During the warrant, officers were able to access and disrupt the online platform, disable the suspected illegal streams and deliver an on screen message to those who receive them warning that the content accessed is suspected to be unlawful, shown here.

Officers seized the streaming servers effectively shutting the service down, disrupting over 80,000 users.

https://www.suffolk.police.uk/news/latest-news/01-07-2020/hollesley-arrest-over-suspected-illegal-streaming-operation

More success for AAPA members in the fight against piracy

Wed, 08 Jul 2020 11:55:37 GMT

July 8th 2020

AAPA members supported a search warrant, executed on 25TH June by Lancashire's Economic Crime Unit in Blackpool, supported by the Force Cyber Unit. A 28-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of Conspiracy to Defraud. Two cars were seized including a Range Rover Sport SVR V8 and an Audi A5 convertible. A large quantity of furniture / valuable / designer goods were seized. £100K was also seized from bank accounts. Along with £14,000 of Cryptocurrency. The operation disrupted some 32,500 pirate customers. – users of the service. The website as taken down and police enquiries continue.

https://www.lancashire.police.uk/news/2020/june/economic-crime-unit-seize-two-high-value-cars/

Advice on illegal streaming from Europol

Tue, 21 Apr 2020 18:04:54 GMT

21 April 2020

Europol have published advice on the risks and potential threats of using illegal streaming sites here:

https://www.europol.europa.eu/covid-19/covid-19-illegal-streaming

Europol awareness campaign

Thu, 26 Mar 2020 13:10:21 GMT

26th March 2020

ADMIN SUPPORT SOUGHT FOR AAPA

Tue, 11 Feb 2020 14:14:39 GMT

February 11th 2020

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA – www.aapa.eu ) is seeking administrative support (AS) for its Executive Vice-President and Co-Presidents, as required. The contract will be for 6 months initially and may be extended following a review of the Alliance’s organisation, strategy, objectives and resources. That review may also lead to further and different requirements.

The tasks to be performed include:

•

Co-ordination of events and meetings.
o AAPA meets 4 times a year with an average of 35-40 members attending. An

AAPA member generally hosts the meeting. The AS will be required to co- ordinate with the host, EVP and Co-Presidents to agree a meeting date, invite Members and maintain a list of participants, ensure the host’s meeting room has sufficient space and appropriate seating and technical facilities, liaise with the host on dinner venue and arrangements, answer any Members’ queries, work with the host to identify possible hotels (each member is responsible for booking their own hotel), ensuring any guest speaker has details of the venue, speaking time slot, etc. The AS will also be required to participate in the meetings, take minutes and produce the minutes promptly.

o AAPA operates a series of Working Groups (WGs) and the AS may be required to provide co-ordination support to the WG Co-ordinators.

Support AAPA involvement in sponsored conferences.
o Liaise with conference organisers to ensure AAPA is able to maximise the

benefits of its sponsorship:

▪ Ensuring appropriate speaking slot on agenda
▪ Ensuring appropriate logos, references, descriptions, etc, are included

in conference advertisements, materials, etc.
▪ Booth location, layout and signage
▪ Procurement of any merchandise and distribution of literature

o The AS will also liaise with Members, as required, to arrange for the delivery of any materials, equipment, etc.

Provide support to be agreed for any AAPA event, workshop or research study. Work with AAPA’s accountant to ensure timely payment of membership fees Maintain AAPA’s external mailing list

•

• • •

The AS
will be required to sign a confidentiality agreement and respect the sensitive matters discussed by AAPA. Expressions of interest should be sent to contact@aapa.eu by 25 February 2020 and should contain evidence of relevant experience and expected fee. Reasonable expenses will be paid at cost. AAPA will consider applications from companies with experience in managing trade associations and individuals. No agencies, thank you.

AAPA in 2019

Thu, 19 Dec 2019 09:26:12 GMT

19th December 2019

AAPA WELCOMES EUIPO STUDIES ON ILLEGAL STREAMING AND COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT

Wed, 27 Nov 2019 09:06:40 GMT

27 November 2019

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) today welcomed two publications from the EUIPO’s Observatory on IP Infringements. The study carried out by the University of Bournemouth (Illegal IPTV in the European Union) illustrates the complexities of illegal streaming business models and the technologies used and, for the first time, estimates the scale of use of piracy services and the associated revenue loss throughout the 28 EU Member States, both in aggregate and individually. The second study (Online Copyright Infringement in the EU) provides a descriptive analysis of trends in piracy and an econometric analysis of factors which influence differences in piracy levels between Member States.

Commenting on the studies Sheila Cassells, Executive Director of AAPA said that: “AAPA was pleased to provide a number of experts to support the Bournemouth University team with their work. These studies offer important insights into the sophisticated business and technological models operated by pirates and highlight the significant adverse impact on the audiovisual industry. Having quantitative estimates should help to persuade policymakers and enforcement agencies that piracy has to be taken seriously and appropriate legislative measures and resources must be devoted to fighting it. “

Ends

The studies are available at:

https://euipo.europa.eu/ohimportal/en/web/observatory/observatory-publications

For more information about AAPA’s work visit www.aapa.eu

AAPA contact:
Sheila Cassells:
+44 7500 243 136
Sheila.cassells@aapa.eu

Miranda Rock:
+44 7957 391 498
Rocket Launch for AAPA
Miranda@rocketlaunch.co.uk

Serbian police arrests Internet pirates

Fri, 22 Nov 2019 15:54:07 GMT

22nd November 2019

The Serbian police said on Friday that charges had been filed against two men for video piracy on two web sites which featured locally-produced movies and series.

The two men, aged 40 and 31 whose names were not released, were charged with copyright infringement for allowing access to movies and series on the web sites filmovi24h.com and serije.online and inflicting financial damages on the copyright holders.

The police seized computers and found evidence of payments received through banks and online.

The United Media company said in a press release that it welcomes the reaction by state bodies over Internet piracy and added that illegal streaming harms local production of movies and series.

The two web sites included United Media’s premium production series such as My Father’s Killers, Branded on Court and several others.

“At a moment when United Media is airing the Shadows Over the Balkans series (season 2) in binge option with all episodes available at once, the speedy and effective operation by state bodies against the pirates is exceptionally important in preventing serious damage to production,” the press release said.

United Media is using the latest detection methods to protect its content and is actively cooperation with the police in finding and processing the perpetrators of crimes like this, it said. N1 TV is part of United Media.

The original post can be found here

Tackling audio-visual piracy by improving the sharing of expertise with industry

Thu, 21 Nov 2019 21:13:30 GMT

21st November 2019

Eurojust, Europol and the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA), representing the industry of protected audiovisual content, have joined forces to improve the sharing of expertise to tackle audio-visual piracy via IPTV networks. More than 70 judicial and law enforcement authorities from EU Member States and representatives from the two EU agencies discussed, during a two-day seminar at Eurojust in The Hague, how to close the technical knowledge gap between national authorities and organised crime groups (OCGs).

The dedicated seminar focused on the information needed to identify, investigate and prosecute two forms of audiovisual piracy: card-sharing and illegal streaming. The main points of discussion were how to identify a pirate service, investigative tools and the challenges faced by the private sector in investigating piracy, as well as the scale and impact of audiovisual piracy and its links to organised crime. Further sessions included knowledge sharing on how to achieve successful prosecutions and how the judiciary could work with the private sector.

In September of this year, during a coordination centre at Eurojust , a large-scale piracy network, through which a criminal group had illegally sold pay television subscriptions to more than 800 000 customers, was brought down by the blocking of more than 200 computer servers.

Background

AAPA represents companies involved in the provision of protected audiovisual services, security technology for such services, and the manufacturing of products that facilitate the delivery of such services. AAPA’s mission is to enable the fight against piracy where this involves the development, promotion, distribution, application or use of technologies resulting in the unauthorised use of protected audiovisual content, by co-ordinating intelligence and action supported by effective legislation and its implementation. AAPA has a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Europol in which it commits to provide training. For more information about AAPA’s work, visit www.aapa.eu .

Eurojust co-ordinates action against massive pay TV fraud following action initiated by Sky Italia.

Wed, 18 Sep 2019 21:55:14 GMT

A multi-country action day coordinated by Eurojust in The Hague led to the dismantling of an international criminal network committing massive fraud with pay-TV, which shows organised crime expanding its illegal activities to large-scale violations of audiovisual copyright. The actions taken in this unique case in the European Union are the result of complex investigations conducted by prosecutors from Naples and Rome, with the support of judicial and police authorities from Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, France, and the Netherlands, as well as Eurojust. The damage caused by the criminal gang amounts to approximately €6.5 million, jeopardising the existence of many legal providers of pay-TV on the market. More than 200 servers were taken offline in Germany, France and the Netherlands, and over 150 P ayPal accounts of the criminals were blocked. Eurojust, the EU’s Judicial Cooperation Unit, set up its 100th coordination centre, since the first in 2011, to support on the spot the national authorities in swiftly disrupting the illicit activities. Today’s simultaneous operation led to the disruption of the signal for illegal pay-TV viewers in Europe, who benefitted from a subscription fee far below market value.

A press conference on the case was held at Eurojust today at 12:00. A link to the recording of the press conference is available here .

OUTCOME OF THE CROSS-BORDER INVESTIGATIONS

A complex and very technical investigation into the organised crime group (OCG) was conducted by the Public Prosecutor Office (PPO) of Naples, supported by the Nucleo Speciale Tutela Privacy e Frodi Tecnologiche della Guardia di Finanza di Roma .
Due to the transborder dimension of the criminal activities, a case was opened at Eurojust to advance the Italian investigation. A link was also discovered with another investigation conducted by the PPO of Rome, which was supported by the Polizia di Stato – Servizio Polizia Postale e delle Comunicazioni – Sezione Financial Cybercrime .
Eurojust ensured quick information exchange with the other Member States involved, as well as the proper and fast execution of judicial orders, including several European Investigation Orders and freezing orders. During the action day, evidence, including servers, digital equipment, payment instruments, record sheets and other infrastructure ( Load Balance ) were seized. A total number of 22 suspects of different nationalities were identified.

ACTIVITIES OF THE CRIMINAL NETWORK

In 2015, the OCG started illegally re-broadcasting and selling pay-per-view products and services, similar to the ones offered by Sky Italia , Mediaset Premium , Netflix , Dazon , and Infinity in various Member States and third countries. The well-skilled criminals used the most sophisticated and efficient software for the fraud. Several retransmission stations were set up with special servers to disable the encryption of the original programmes and generate the illegal IPTV signal in violation of intellectual property law. The gang members offered to a wide audience of unknowing clients actual pay-tv programmes, cinematographic works and on-demand content at a very low price. The illegally obtained assets were subsequently transferred to foreign bank accounts.

The members of the OCG are suspected of having committed large-scale fraud, cybercrime and money laundering.

Photos: © Polizia di Stato (IT)

NATIONAL AUTHORITIES

The following national authorities, among others, were involved in the investigations and the joint action day coordinated by EUROJUST:

Italy

PPO of Naples
PPO of Rome
State Police – Servizio Polizia Postale e delle Comunicazioni – Sezione Financial Cybercrime
Nucleo Speciale Tutela Privacy e Frodi Tecnologiche della Guardia di Finanza di Roma

Greece

Extradition and mutual legal assistance (MLA) Office of the Appeals PPO of Athens
MLA Office of the Court of First Instance of Athens
First Instance PPO of Athens
Court of First Instance of Thessaloniki
First Instance PPO of Thessaloniki
Hellenic Police – Cybercrime Division
Hellenic Police – Northern Greece Cybercrime Subdivision

Bulgaria

PPO of the Republic of Bulgaria
Ministry of Interior of the Republic of Bulgaria

France

Direction Régionale de la Police Judiciaire de Lille
Parquet du Tribunal de Grande Instance de Lille

Germany

General Prosecutor’s Office of Frankfurt am Main – Zentralstelle zur Bekämpfung der Internetkriminalität
PPO of Wuppertal
Hessian State Police

The Netherlands

International Cooperation Unit (IRC) of the PPO of The Hague and the National Police, The Hague

See original post from the Eurojust website here

PHOTOS FROM THE EUROPOL IP CRIME CONFERENCE 2019

Mon, 24 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

24 June 2019

Photos from the Europol Intellectual Property Crime Conference, Malaga 2019.

AAPA held an interactive workshop at the conference, Operation Belenus – How to tackle large scale, transnational illegal streaming networks. The workshop was chaired by Sheila Cassells of AAPA, who was joined by Marlene Alvarez Vicente and Alejandro Fernando Gonzalez from the Grupo de Antipirateria of the Policia Nacionale (Spain), and Mark Mulready and Kelly Pereira from AAPA member, Irdeto.

AAPA also announced the winner of the 2nd Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) award at the conference. The award is given to an individual or team from the public sector for a successful initiative to tackle audiovisual piracy. The winner was Chief Inspector Monica Dopico and the IP Crime Section of the Spanish National Police. The award recognised the success of the National Police in fighting audiovisual piracy as organised crime and the contribution made to raising awareness of the crime through participation in conferences and workshops.

AAPA also presented a special award to Chris van Steenkiste, Head of Europol IPC3, for his outstanding efforts in the fight against piracy.

Next stop, Rome 2020.

AAPA ANNOUNCES 2nd ANTI-PIRACY AWARD

Tue, 18 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Malaga 18 June 2019

The 2019 Europol Intellectual Property Crime conference in Malaga was the venue where the winner of the 2nd Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) award was announced. The award is given to an individual or team from the public sector for a successful initiative to tackle audiovisual piracy. The winner was Chief Inspector Monica Dopico and the IP Crime Section of the Spanish National Police. The award recognised the success of the National Police in fighting audiovisual piracy as organised crime and the contribution made to raising awareness of the crime through participation in conferences and workshops.

AAPA also presented a special award to Chris van Steenkiste, Head of Europol IPC3, for his outstanding efforts in the fight against piracy.

In announcing the awards Sheila Cassells, Executive Director of AAPA, said that "AAPA believes it is important to acknowledge the commitment on law enforcement agents and others in the public sector to fighting audiovisual piracy. This second award represents a clean sweep for the Spanish Police who also won last year and we hope this will encourage others to follow. Monica has brought an essential organised crime approach to piracy cases, which can often be seen as a lesser crime of copyright theft. Monica's willingness to spread the message about the need for and how to fight this crime through participation in external events has been invaluable".

Presenting the awards Phillip Davies, VP of AAPA and Director of Fraud and Anti-Piracy at Sky UK and Ireland, commented that "The commitment of Chris van Steenkiste to IP crime generally and audiovisual piracy in particular cannot be underestimated. Under his leadership Europol has an established team with the enthusiasm, skills and expertise to coordinate Member States' operations on piracy and we hope that will continue. AAPA enjoys a productive and collegiate relationship with Chris and we are ready to support Europol in any way possible".

About AAPA: AAPA ( www.aapa.eu ) represents companies involved in the provision of protected audiovisual services, rights holders, security technology for such services, and the manufacturing of products which facilitate the delivery of such services. AAPA's mission is to enable the fight against piracy where this involves the development, promotion, distribution, application or use of technologies resulting in the unauthorised use of protected audiovisual content, by co-ordinating intelligence and action supported by effective legislation and its implementation. For more information about AAPA's work visit www.aapa.eu

AAPA is a sponsor of the Europol IP Crime conference and is closely connected with Europol and the IPC3 team through a MOU, membership of the IPC3 Stakeholders Advisory Group and a number of operational cases involving audiovisual piracy. AAPA has also provided training to Europol officers and representatives from Member States.

The awards are the first to be given by AAPA. The award may be made to an individual or team working in law enforcement, including customs, market surveillance, the public prosecution service, international or national Government agencies or departments and regulatory bodies.

END OF BROADCAST FOR IPTV CRIMINAL NETWORK

Mon, 17 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

17 June 2019

Under the supervision of the Bulgarian Supreme Prosecutor’s Office of Cassation, police officers from the Bulgarian Cybercrime Department from the General Directorate Combating Organized Crime of the Ministry of Interior carried out a joint action against five cable operators in Bulgaria (in the cities of Burgas, Kardzhali, Blagoevgrad, Dupnitsa, Kyustendil, Gotse Delchev, Sandanski and Petrich). The operation was supported by Europol’s Intellectual Property Crime Coordinated Coalition – IPC3 and the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA).

The five cable operators were illegally intercepting and distributing more than 60 premium TV channels (both foreign and Bulgarian), without the consent of the rights–holders. The financial damage is estimated to be more than 10 million Bulgarian leva (approximately €5 million). More than 700 000 subscribers received the illegal broadcasted signal from the criminal network.

The entire illegal hardware infrastructure used for the criminal activity was seized during the house searches. The suspects had also been distributing TV channels worldwide through mobile applications whose servers were traced and seized.

Europol’s IPC3 supported the investigation on the ground by deploying an analyst and a specialist to Bulgaria equipped with a mobile office. Europol’s officers carried out real-time information exchange and cross-checks of the data gathered during the course of the action against Europol’s databases. IPC3 is hosted at Europol and funded by the European Union Intellectual Property Office ( EUIPO ).

The origional version of this story appears on the EUROPOL website here.

AAPA AT THE EUROPOL IP CRIME CONFERENCE 2019

Thu, 06 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

ADVICE FROM INTERPOL ON ILLEGAL STREAMING

Fri, 26 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT

26th April 2019

You see an offer: more than 6,500 channels sourced from most major pay TV operators in the world, plus a library of 2,000 movies for less than 100 dollars or euros per year - what's not to like? And the payment methods look legitimate too - it must be ok!

Pirate operator sites offer access to audiovisual content which has been stolen from a pay TV operator. This can be accessed via illicit devices or apps. Legal devices such as smart TVs and tablets may also carry illicit apps.

Buying your content from these sites deprives the creative industries, pay TV companies and tax authorities of revenues to which they are legitimately entitled. Their losses run into billions of euros.

No guarantee you'll get your money's worth

The advertised payment methods are often not what they seem, with your money being diverted to pirates' bank accounts using sophisticated money laundering techniques. Do you really want them to have your credit card details?

You could find that you suddenly stop receiving the service. Pay TV companies, rights holders and their technology providers devote substantial resources to disrupting pirate services. And anti-piracy associations work with payment providers to interrupt the flow of money to the pirates. When they shut down the pirate services, you have no movies or sport and no way of getting your money back.

Cyber-security risks

Research has shown that pirate sites may also contain malware that could infect your computer. Or your personal details may be hijacked and shared with other criminals, leading to fraud or personal identity theft - an expensive price to pay for your "bargain".

How to spot a pirate site

How do you identify a pirate service? Be wary of any site offering a huge number of global channels for a bargain price.

TV companies offer only their own packages in the territories for which they have rights. So go to the pay TV company's website and see what you can buy legitimately.

Check the prices as well - legitimate pay TV will usually be more expensive than a pirate service, but you receive a quality, reliable service with good customer service to support you if you have problems.

Links to other serious crimes

You may wonder, what's the harm in this? No one gets hurt. But the criminals behind these pirate sites can be part of organized crime groups who use the proceeds to fund serious crimes, and who engage in fraud and money laundering.

So by watching that cheap movie or bargain box set, you could be contributing to a range of crimes you could not imagine.

Help fight piracy by buying the legal option. Don't contribute to organized crime.

The original version of this article can be found ont the INTERPOL website here .

PRESS RELEASE: PREMIER LEAGUE AND IRDETO COLLABORATE ON LARGE-SCALE IPTV PIRACY RAIDS

Mon, 25 Mar 2019 00:00:00 GMT

25th March 2019

National Police in Spain, Denmark and UK team up with Europol resulting in five arrests and uncovering a complex, international illegal IPTV business

Press Release Issued by Irdeto on 22 March 2019

The Spanish National Police has publicly announced the success of the largest investigation to-date into a global illegal IPTV streaming business. In an operation led by the Spanish National Police in collaboration with police forces in the United Kingdom and Denmark, Europol, the Premier League and Irdeto, 14 locations were raided in Spain, Denmark and the United Kingdom. As a result of the raids, five people have been arrested for crimes of belonging to a criminal organisation, intellectual property theft, fraud and money laundering.

The investigation uncovered a complex international technological infrastructure underpinning the illegal IPTV business, which comprised of 11 server farms distributed all over the world, some of them with more than 44 servers. The action has resulted in the shutdown of an illegal IPTV streaming business which allowed access to more than 800 television channels to subscribers in more than 30 countries, for subscriptions starting at 40 Euros per month. The business was also found to have several associated profiles on social networks, promoting services to obtain more customers.

The investigation began in late 2015, initiated by the Premier League as part of a global effort to combat illegal online redistribution of its content. The focus was on a website based in Malaga, offering IPTV subscriptions with access to a multitude of international pay TV channels. It was subsequently revealed that the website was run by a specialized international criminal organisation with a presence in Spain, Denmark, United Kingdom, Latvia, the Netherlands and Cyprus.

Premier League Director of Legal Services, Kevin Plumb said: "The success of this investigation is a further example of the Premier League's hugely impactful global anti-piracy programme. We are achieving unprecedented success in the protection of our media rights, with ground-breaking Court orders blocking illegal streams and numerous actions against suppliers of illegal Premier League content resulting in significant prison sentences.

"The support of the authorities is crucial in our anti-piracy efforts and we are very grateful to all the agencies that played a pivotal role in this operation, particularly the Spanish National Police for leading this collaborative investigation. We will continue to invest in cutting-edge technology and work with law enforcement agencies and other stakeholders across the world to protect our rights."

The illegal operation was found to have changed multiple servers periodically and gradually, creating new web pages in an attempt to go undetected by law enforcement. The illicit business was also combined with companies created to conduct lawful activity related to the provision of telecommunications services, internet and hardware, to hide profits and avoid detection.

During its operation, the business is estimated to have made roughly eight million euros, with those arrested in Spain residing in luxury residences on the Malaga coast. As part of the operation, police seized 12 high-end vehicles, real estate and blocked bank accounts. Of the five people arrested, three were arrested in Spain, detained and sent to prison following appearances in court.

"The scale of this investigation is testament to the seriousness of piracy as a crime and the impact it can have on the industry," said Mark Mulready, Vice President - Cybersecurity Services, Irdeto. "We will continue to support our customers, partners and law enforcement agencies to identify large-scale cross-border pirate networks and help combat piracy, resulting in the shutdown of these illegal businesses and hopefully directing consumers to legitimate and safe content sources."

PRESS RELEASE: VODAFONEZIGGO, AAPA AND DUTCH POLICE COLLABORATE TO BRING CARD SHARING PIRATE TO JUSTICE

Mon, 11 Mar 2019 00:00:00 GMT

11th March 2019

The conviction is the latest in a series of positive results of collaborative investigations led by Dutch Police, VodafoneZiggo and members of AAPA.

The 29-year-old man from Oude Wetering in the Netherlands was convicted of criminal offences relating to card-sharing . The sentencing follows the conviction of a 40-year-old man in Groningen in July 2018, also on offences relating to card sharing and the illegal sharing of Ziggo services.

"Piracy is a crime which can impact the revenues of content owners and rights holders and have serious consequences for the industry. Premium content is in high demand across the globe and the AAPA will continue to work with leading operators like VodafoneZiggo to help protect their investments and bring to justice criminals who are intent on stealing and sharing this valuable content," said Mark Mulready, Vice President - Cybersecurity Services, Irdeto and Vice President, AAPA . "This conviction is a testament to the success of the collaboration between the industry and law enforcement groups and will hopefully help the pirates to rethink their disregard for the industry."

Card sharing piracy continues to pose a major threat to pay TV operators and broadcasters. This form of piracy occurs when a pirate steals and retransmits a regularly changing control word that is passed between a smart card and a set-top-box (STB), allowing subscribers to watch TV content they have not legitimately paid for.

AAPA in 2018

Mon, 31 Dec 2018 00:00:00 GMT

21st December 2018

NEWS: AAPA SUPPORTS WARSAW DECLARATION

Wed, 14 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

14th November 2018

International Content Protection Summit Warsaw 2018
18-19 October 2018
"The Warsaw Declaration"

Bearing in mind the current worldwide scale of intellectual property rights infringement on the Internet and its negative impact on creative sectors and the economies of many countries, there is a growing need to tighten effective international cooperation in combating online piracy, so that we can draw on the experience and best practices of organizations, government bodies and the private sector entities from various parts of the world.

The participants of the International Content Protection Summit Warsaw 2018, held by the Sygnał Association and supported by EUIPO, hereby acknowledge and understand the need for regular international involvement of major stakeholders. With this Summit they wish to initiate a process for ongoing global cooperation of anti-piracy organizations, based on exchange of experiences at the international level in order to develop and promote efficient methods of counteracting Internet piracy, including effective legal solutions, actions based on the 'follow the money' approach, and various educational initiatives, being some of the most effective means of tackling online piracy.

By adopting this course of action, the participants of the Summit hope to contribute to reinforcing the global anti-piracy coalition and increasing the awareness of the adverse effects and negative impact of piracy on the global economy among decision-makers, opinion leaders, media and society as well as to persuading them to commit to counteracting international theft of audio-visual content and protecting intellectual property rights.

***

The document does not impose any financial responsibilities on the signatories: it is solely a declaration of cooperation between stakeholders and entities concerned with the mission and objectives of this memorandum. The cooperation is of voluntary character and does not involve providing confidential information by signatories; it communicates readiness to intensify cooperation and to undertake joint actions.

"The Warsaw Declaration" is a general memorandum of cooperation in the future, accepted by the participants of the International Content Protection Summit held on 18th and 19th October 2018 in Warsaw. The meeting gathered more than 100 participants from organizations, institutions and companies from across the continent, in particular EU countries, who are involved in the protection of intellectual property and the fight against Internet piracy on a daily basis.

The group includes the representatives of broadcasters, content developers and distributors as well as the representatives of organizations and associations from individual non-European and European markets and public administration, Europol, law enforcement agencies, businesses and the media:

A+E Networks
Anti-Piracy Protection
Association "For Legal Content!"
Association of Commercial Television in Europe (ACT)
Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA)
BBC Studios
BREIN Foundation
CANAL + Group
NDS
Clear Sky Initiative
Cyfrowy Polsat
Discovery
Federation Against Copyright Theft (FACT)
Federazione per la Tutela dei Contenuti Audiovisivi e Multimediali (FAPAV) Group-IB
Guardia di Finanza
HBO Europe
International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI)
ITI Neovision
Kreatywna Polska
LaLiga
Motion Picture Association EMEA
NAGRA/Kudelski Group
NBCUniversal International
OSN
RettighedsAlliancen
Sky Deutschland
Sky Italia
Sygnał Association
TeRaPro
The Spanish National Police
TVN
United Media
Warner Bros. Entertainment

PRESS RELEASE: INTERNATIONAL CONTENT PROTECTION SUMMIT

Wed, 17 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

17th October 2018

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance is delighted to be participating in the International Content Protection Summit in Warsaw this week. AAPA will be joining a prestigious group of international experts coming together to share their knowledge and expertise in the global fight against online piracy.

The Summit has a packed two-day programme which will include presentations by AAPA representatives, Chris Le Maitre of Cisco, and Aditya Verma of OSN on day one. Day two of the Summit is a closed workshop where other AAPA members will participate in panel discussions and AAPA Executive Director Sheila Cassells will moderate a roundtable entitled Intermediaries: liability of hosting providers, domain name registrars, social media platforms.

Sheila Cassells said: “AAPA is pleased to represent its members and collaborate with other international organisations and agencies involved in content protection. We congratulate Sygnal and EUIPO for arranging this platform for debate.”

More details about the conference can be found here

PRESS RELEASE: SIX ARRESTED IN HIT AGAINST ILLEGAL TELEVISION STREAMING IN UK AND IRELAND

Wed, 12 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

12th September 2018

After a year-long complex investigation coordinated by Europol, authorities in Hampshire, south east England, Scotland and Ireland have arrested six, suspected of illicitly distributing premium TV channels by using Internet Protocol television (IPTV) technology.

Piracy is a criminal activity. Moreover, from a consumer perspective, not only is it illegal to subscribe to these services, but one in four who stream illegally through a box or stick are affected by viruses and malware. Illegally streaming copyrighted television brings a significant loss to legitimate businesses (broadcasters and right owners) and threatens the livelihoods of those working legitimately in the industry and the wider economy.

Police officers carried out house searches on 11 September at different locations in Ireland and the UK. A man and a woman from Bursledon were arrested by the Hampshire County Council's Trading Standards Service and Hampshire Constabulary. Four people were detained in Crumlin and Ashbourne (Ireland) and also several actions took place in Scotland. During the house searches, computer equipment and cash was seized and several bank accounts were frozen.

The arrests are the result of a complex investigation, involving a number of law enforcement agencies (Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation, Police Scotland, Trading Standards and UK IPO) and private sector partners, such as the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA), Federation Against Copyright Theft (FACT). This international investigation was coordinated from the beginning by Europol who supported with operational meetings, criminal analysis and the deployment of two experts to Dublin.

Sheila Cassells, Executive Director of AAPA and member of Europol's IPC3 Stakeholder Advisory Group, commented that: "This case demonstrates clearly why it is crucial for the private sector and law enforcement to work together on these complex cases. The AAPA members involved value greatly the commitment of law enforcement to fighting audiovisual piracy and the coordination role undertaken by Europol."

This press release was issued by Europol and the original can be seen here .

PRESS RELEASE: HIGH COURT AWARDS LEAGUE ORDER TO BLOCK ILLEGAL STREAMS

Mon, 23 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

23rd July 2018

Order will force UK's major ISPs to tackle servers hosting illegal streams of Premier League matches.

The Premier League has been granted a significant High Court Order that will enable it to disrupt and block illegal streams of its content across the whole of the next football season.

On 19 July 2018, Justice Arnold granted an Order that will require the UK’s major internet service providers (ISPs) – including Sky, BT, Virgin Media, TalkTalk, plusnet and EE – to block and disrupt servers that host illegal streams of the Premier League’s matches.

A similar Order was granted for the entirety of the 2017/18 season and was hugely successful, enabling the League to disrupt or block nearly 200,000 illegal streams of its content.

This new Order is enhanced and will allow us to block more servers in a more effective manner.

The League’s wider anti-piracy programme is one of the most comprehensive in the world and saw hugely successful results in 2017/18, including 450,000 illegal clips of Premier League content being removed from social and digital media outlets.

Targeted investigations into suppliers of illicit streaming devices (ISDs) have resulted in significant criminal convictions.

Only last week a Premier League and FACT investigation led to a supplier of ISDs and an illegal streaming service being jailed for five years.

"Last season the Premier League operated one of the biggest and most successful anti-piracy programmes in the world and this decision by the High Court is a significant factor in being able to continue that approach," Premier League Director of Legal Services, Kevin Plumb, said. "A similar Order granted last year was a game-changer for our work in this area, enabling us to block or disrupt nearly 200,000 illegal streams across the 2017/18 season.

"This makes the protection of our copyright hugely important to the future health of English football and beyond."

PRESS RELEASE: OPERATOR OF MAJOR ILLEGAL STREAMING SERVICE JAILED

Wed, 18 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

18th July 2018

Evolution Trading owner John Haggerty jailed for five years by Newcastle Crown Court for facilitating illegal access to Premier League football

The owner and operator of a major pirate streaming service, and mass supplier of illicit streaming devices that provided illegal access to Premier League football, has been jailed for five years and three months.

Mr John Haggerty, the owner of Evolution Trading, appeared in Newcastle Crown Court on Friday 13 July 2018 for sentencing after pleading guilty to conspiracy to defraud and dishonestly obtaining services for another, contrary to the Fraud Act.

His conviction further underlines the fact that supplying these devices and other pirate services is illegal. The case is also the first example of the Courts confirming what the UK Government has already made clear - that using the devices themselves is illegal, with the Judge expressly warning that Mr Haggerty put all his thousands of customers at risk of prosecution.

Evolution Trading, run by Mr Haggerty and his wife Mary Gilfillan who was also convicted of fraud offences in this case and given a two-year suspended sentence, sold more than 8,000 illegal devices that were loaded with add-ons to enable publicans and consumers to view illegal streams of Premier League football. Evolution also created and sold access to its own illegal streaming service - infusum.tv - to thousands of customers.

Between March 2013 and July 2015, the operators of Evolution generated more than £750,000 through their illegal activity.

The criminal activity carried out by Mr Haggerty went beyond selling access to illegal content: he had multiple passports in different names, set up an offshore ‘dummy company' in Nevis to hide the true purpose of his business and, in collusion with his wife Ms. Gilfillan, supplied the Immigration Service with false documents to sponsor an Egyptian national who maintained the illegal streaming service for the company.

During the investigation it transpired that Mr Haggerty previously spent time in prison in the US between 2009 to 2012 following a serious fraud conviction.

Premier League Director of Legal Services, Kevin Plumb, said: "This case demonstrates how seriously the Courts are dealing with criminals involved in the supply of illicit streaming devices and services that provide illegal access to Premier League football and other popular content.

"The fact that a major supplier was engaged in so much criminal behaviour - from using multiple passports in different names to lying to the Immigration Service - should be a warning to the authorities and consumers about the types of people involved in this activity. It also serves as a reminder to people that they take huge risks by handing over bank details and personal data to rogue operators like Evolution and infusum.tv.

"The Premier League is currently engaged in one of the biggest and most successful anti-piracy programmes in the World and its own investigations, along with those by Northumberland Trading Standards and FACT, have helped bring these criminals to justice.

"The ability that Premier League clubs have to develop and acquire talented players, to build and improve stadiums and to support communities and schools, is predicated on being able to market, sell and protect commercial rights. This makes the protection of our copyright hugely important to the future health of English football and beyond, something we are pleased the Courts continue to recognise with judgments like this one."

Kieron Sharp, CEO of FACT, said: "This sentencing is another step forward in the right direction to tackling the issue of illegal streaming.

"We will continue to work with The Premier League, Industry and Law Enforcement Agencies across the UK to clampdown on the sale of illicit streaming devices as they pose a real threat to the creative industries, the UK economy and the livelihoods of the 1.9 million people working behind the scenes of our favourite sport, TV and film.

"The public should be aware that selling devices or subscriptions that allow access to premium content you normally pay for is illegal.

"Similarly using one of these methods to stream premium TV, sports and films for which you should have an official subscription is also breaking the law."

PRESS RELEASE: CARD SHARING PIRATE CONVICTED IN GRONINGEN FOLLOWING COLLABORATION BETWEEN VODAFONEZIGGO, AAPA AND DUTCH POLICE

Tue, 17 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

17th July 2018

A card sharing piracy network has been shut down with the operator of the illegal network convicted and sentenced to 240 hours community service and a fine of over €45,000 at a court in Groningen yesterday, following a collaborative investigation led by Dutch Police, VodafoneZiggo and members of AAPA. The 40-year old man was convicted of criminal offences relating to card sharing, resulting from the illegal sharing of Ziggo services. An accomplice of the man was also convicted and sentenced to 100 hours of community service.

The sentencing follows raids carried out in March 2017, during which three active card sharing servers were found, as well as 20 ‘fully-loaded’ Dreamboxes which were being sold via online marketplaces. It was also uncovered during the raid that there were over 300 customers for these illegal services and devices.

“This conviction is a welcome result of the positive collaboration between law enforcement, leading operators like VodafoneZiggo and members of the AAPA to bring content pirates to justice,” said Mark Mulready, Vice President – Cybersecurity Services, Irdeto and Vice President, AAPA . “This is another step in demonstrating that piracy is a serious crime and will not be tolerated. We will continue to work with our members and partners around the globe to counter piracy in all its forms.”

Despite the growth of streaming piracy, card sharing piracy continues to pose a major threat to pay TV operators and broadcasters. This form of piracy occurs when a pirate steals and retransmits a regularly changing control word that is passed between a smart card and a set-top-box (STB), allowing subscribers to watch TV content they have not legitimately paid for.

NEWS: NORTH WALSHAM MAN JAILED FOR TV SET-TOP BOX FRAUD

Mon, 16 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

16th July 2018

A Norfolk, UK man has been jailed after selling thousands of TV set-top boxes to customers across the UK allowing them to illegally watch Sky.

Full story appears here in the Eastern Daily Press.

PRESS RELEASE: AAPA LAUNCHES ANTI-PIRACY AWARD

Mon, 18 Jun 2018 00:00:00 GMT

26th June 2018

At this year’s Europol Intellectual Property Crime conference, the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) announced the winner of it first award for a successful initiative to tackle audiovisual piracy. The winner was Grupo de Antipirateria of the Policia Nacionale (Spain), led by Inspector Marlene Álvarez Vicente. The award recognised the Grupo de Antipirateria’s successful operations in large scale illegal streaming cases, many of which affected AAPA members.

Two runner-up awards were made to the team led by Detective Superintendent George Kyne and including Detective Sergeant David Gilmore and Detective Garda Frank Lambe of the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation, Garda, Ireland and to Bogdan Ciinaru of Europol’s IPC3 unit respectively.

In announcing the awards Sheila Cassells, Executive Director of AAPA, said that “AAPA recognises the challenges – whether resources, priorities, available knowledge and expertise - faced by law enforcement agencies and others in tackling audiovisual piracy. AAPA members decided that it is important to recognise formally the work of some of those from the public sector who have overcome these challenges to help us fight this crime which has a substantial impact on the creative industries and other sectors. This recognition is all the more important when IP crime is no longer an EMPACT priority.”

Presenting the awards Mark Mulready, VP of AAPA and VP of Cybersecurity Services at Irdeto, commented that “The work done by our three award recipients in fighting audiovisual piracy is of enormous value to the industry. It sends a clear signal that piracy will not be tolerated and law enforcement has the resources, skills and expertise to investigate this crime and bring the perpetrators to justice. Irdeto has been working with Marlene and her team on cases such as Operation Casper and Y-Internet and I can testify personally to the commitment, dedication and skills demonstrated by her and the team. We hope that these awards will help encourage others to take up the fight against audiovisual piracy and we are ready to support those efforts."

PRESS RELEASE: AAPA HOSTS GLOBAL WORKSHOP ON ILLEGAL STREAMING

Fri, 04 May 2018 00:00:00 GMT

4th May 2018

Over 90 people representing law enforcement, rights owners, platform operators, media technology providers, broadcasters and other trade associations from Europe, the United States, the Far East, Middle East and Latin America participated in the second AAPA workshop on illegal streaming. The workshop allowed for an exchange of views about trends and developments in illegal streaming; the challenges faced by law enforcement; how to collaborate with intermediaries; and future challenges. Discussion also took place on the adequacy of existing laws. A key theme of the day was the importance of collaboration and co-operation in the fight against audiovisual piracy.

Mark Mulready, VP of AAPA and VP Cyber Security Services, Irdeto, said that: "Events such as this are vitally important to our common, shared fight against piracy. The sharing of knowledge and expertise and collaborative action within the private sector and between the public and private sector allows all concerned to leverage our resources to greater effect. This workshop provides the basis for strengthening and expanding the co-operative global efforts which exist already".

Sheila Cassells, Executive Director of AAPA, said that: "AAPA is pleased to host this workshop and encourage dialogue. The participation of law enforcement officers from INTERPOL, Europol, Spain, the U.K., the FBI, Hong Kong and Germany demonstrates also that law enforcement agencies consider IP crime to be a priority and highlights the global nature of piracy".

NEWS: MAJOR IPTV NETWORK SHUT DOWN IN POLAND

Thu, 18 Jan 2018 00:00:00 GMT

18th January 2018

Police officers in Lublin arrested three men (aged 30, 42 and 57 years old), who were charged with illegal distribution of pay TV. They were streaming over 160 TV channels through their website. The police estimate that their revenue could be close to 3.5 million PLN. The police seized 9 servers, 12 computers, set top boxes, tablets, phones and over 60 media storage devices (hard drives and USB sticks) and a range of documentation. The investigation is led by the District Prosecutor’s Office in Lublin.

Full story, in Polish, here

PRESS RELEASE: EUROPEAN POLICE AUTHORITIES, EUROPOL, AND AAPA SHUT DOWN ILLEGAL STREAMING NETWORK

Fri, 12 Jan 2018 00:00:00 GMT

12th January 2018

A crime group suspected of hosting a large-scale illegal IPTV streaming business has been shut down, following a collaborative investigation led by the Cypriot Police, with the support of the Cybercrime Division of the Greek police, the Dutch Fiscal Information and Investigation Service (FIOD), the Cybercrime unit of the Bulgarian police and Europol, as well as members of the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA). The network is accused of illicitly distributing Greek, Cypriot and foreign pay TV subscriber channels. These services were allegedly offered through retailers throughout Europe and sold as a monthly illegal subscription for as little as 20 Euros.

Following coordination of the investigations of the Greek and Cypriot police authorities, raids were conducted in Cyprus, Greece, and Bulgaria during which 17 house searches took place, four suspects were arrested and servers used to provide illegal access to the channels were shut down. The investigation also uncovered installed machine sites that work with the central server to relay subscriber channels. The raids involved cooperation with local police authorities and were supported by Europol and AAPA members Irdeto , the world leader in digital platform security, and Nova , a leading provider of home entertainment services in Greece, with Irdeto providing technical and forensic expertise. Europol supported the involved countries since the start of the investigations with criminal analysis and coordination. It also provided on-the-spot support during the raids with operational tools such as the Europol mobile office.

"These raids, conducted by local police authorities in collaboration with Europol and our members, show the importance that law enforcement is placing on the issue of IP infringement and represent another step forward in our mission to fight piracy," said Sheila Cassells, Executive Director, AAPA . "AAPA members like Irdeto and Nova are at the forefront of this fight against piracy and we will continue to take measures to support enforcement activities and push for effective and consistent legislation to aid this."

Streaming piracy is a growing problem affecting content owners, broadcasters and operators in Europe and across the world, and the enforcement activities conducted by organizations like Europol and the collaborative police organizations show the seriousness of this crime," added Mark Mulready, Vice President - Cybersecurity Services, Irdeto and Vice President, AAPA . "We are closely aligned with the mission of the AAPA and will continue to work closely with and support our customers, partners and law enforcement agencies to detect, analyze, investigate and counter all types of piracy."

ARTICLE: DUTCH CLAIM SUCCESS IN BATTLING PIRACY

Fri, 15 Dec 2017 00:00:00 GMT

15th November 2017

This article appeared on Broadband TV News and the original can be found here

In the past year and a half, around 80% of illegal operators have gone offline, according to Dutch operators association NL Connect.

Since the beginning of 2016, the legal Dutch television platform providers have been working closely together to detect and combat illegal TV offers more effectively. They are satisfied with the results achieved, but they see a shift from illegal activities to illegal IPTV streams and apps. However, the removal of apps with illegal TV offerings prove to be difficult.

The operators exchange public information about illegal suppliers, point out to them the illegal nature of their commercial practices and report it to the police.

"Since the start of our working group, a large decrease in the number of illegal suppliers has been achieved, partly as a result of our activities. That is to some satisfaction, but we remain vigilant. Illegal providers mislead consumers by giving them the impression that their offerings give access to legal content. Pirates have increasingly professional websites and marketing, which is misleading consumers more and more sophisticatedly. We continue to fight against that," said Mathieu Andriessen, director of NLConnect.

In May of this year, the European Court ruled that the sale of media players with pre-installed add-ons is no longer allowed. Many illegal suppliers have stopped following this ruling. There have also been raids at providers of control word sharing. Andriessen: "he remaining providers are now looking for new illegal roads, such as online IPTV streams and apps in the app stores and beyond. The pirates' field of activity is moving. However, it turns out to be difficult to have apps with illegal TV offerings removed from Google's Android app store, for example."

The legal offer of IPTV and other forms of digital television is well developed in the Neterlands. Legal providers invest in user-friendly platforms and offer access to a very wide range of general and premium TV channels, often including Video on Demand and easy viewing of missed broadcasts. They are also working on providing information about and finding the legal offer, such as via film. nl. The fight against illegal TV watching is a joint initiative of NLConnect (the association of telecom and cable companies with Delta, among others), an KPN, M7, VodafoneZiggo, and Fox Networks Group.

PRESS RELEASE: FERMETURE DU SITE ILLEGAL DE LIVE STREAMING « ARTV.WATCH »

Fri, 08 Dec 2017 00:00:00 GMT

8th December 2017

Le mercredi 06 décembre 2017, en coordination avec l'ALPA, la Direction Interrégionale de la Police Judiciaire de Bordeaux a procédé en Gironde à l'interpellation du créateur et administrateur du site de live streaming contrefaisant « artv.watch ».

Artv.watch était un site public offrant l'accès en direct à 176 chaînes télévisées françaises gratuites et payantes membres de l'ALPA : du Groupe Canal +, du Groupe M6, du groupe TF1, du groupe France Télévision, de Paramount, de Disney et de FOX. D'autres chaines thématiques et sportives étaient retransmises.

Créé en avril 2017, ce site proposait par ailleurs le téléchargement d'une application mobile permettant de consulter ces programmes sur mobile et tablette, pour un total de 800 000 utilisateurs recensés.

Selon les données Médiamétrie du mois de septembre 2017, le site « artv.watch » dont le trafic n'a cessé de croître depuis son ouverture était fréquenté chaque mois par 150 000 internautes français uniques.

Les bannières affichées sur les pages du site « artv.watch » ainsi que sur son application mobile, relevées par l'ALPA, indiquent sa monétisation estimée à environ 3 000 euros mensuels de revenus publicitaires.

Le site artv.watch a été fermé par son administrateur durant sa garde à vue tandis que l'application a été désactivée sur le « Play Store ».

Il encourt une peine de 3 ans de prison et 300 000 euros d'amende pour délit de contrefaçon par reproduction et représentation.

Cette affaire d'IPTV et Live Streaming, traitée par la Police en collaboration avec l'ALPA, constitue une première en France.

ARTICLE: DUTCH PAY-TV PROVIDERS CITE SUCCESS WITH ANTI-PIRACY EFFORTS

Wed, 15 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT

15th November 2017

This article appeared on telecompaper and the original can be found here

Efforts to stamp out pay-TV piracy are working, according to the Dutch industry group NLconnect. In the past year and a half, around 80 percent of illegal providers have been taken offline.

Since early 2016, the pay-TV providers have worked closely together to track illegal providers and take down their services. While the sale of prepackaged boxes and subscriptions is illegal, streaming of protected content has become a greater problem. The industry works with its suppliers to cut off any security vulnerabilities in systems but it's more difficult finding the actual culprits of illegal streams. The industry group said it's found more signs of organised crime, operating also at the international level.

NLconnect unites telecom and cable operators and includes KPN, M7, VodafoneZiggo and Fox Networks Group.

WHITE PAPER: IRDETO ON BLOCKCHAIN AND MEDIA PIRACY

Fri, 20 Oct 2017 00:00:00 GMT

20th October 2017

Irdeto White Paper on Blockchain and Media Piracy is available for download here.

PRESS RELEASE: OSN AND DUBAI CUSTOMS LAUNCH WORLD’S FIRST ANTI-PIRACY GAME

Fri, 20 Oct 2017 00:00:00 GMT

20th October 2017

The original version of this press release appears here

October 16, 2017

DUBAI: OSN, the home of entertainment for the Middle East, and Dubai Customs today launched the world's first Content Protection virtual reality (VR) game at KidZania® Dubai to boost awareness of the threats of content theft.

The 60 second game, called ‘Copycat Combat,' is a collaboration between OSN and Dubai Customs, who have a strong partnership in combating the import of illegal satellite and IPTV devices as well as championing intellectual property rights (IPR.)

Copycat Combat is aimed at children between the ages of 5 and 12 and will be available to play at mall stands and other public spaces across the region managed by OSN. The game will also be toured in UAE schools by Dubai Customs as part of its ongoing educational initiatives to raise awareness of the importance of protecting IPR.

In ‘matrix-style' world content thieves zap OSN's precious collection of movies, TV series, kids shows and sports events with powerful lazer rays. The game player must ‘shield' the collection with armoured gloves during an adrenaline-accelerating and pulsating assault that requires fast reflexes and accuracy.

Sophie Moloney, Chief Legal Officer, OSN, commented: "This is super exciting for us at OSN, to be first in the world to launch a content protection game that helps children to understand the massive threats that the entertainment industry faces from content theft. What's more, the game is a lot of fun and children can hopefully come away with the thought that content is really precious and worth protecting."

Ahmed Mahboob Musabih, Director of Dubai Customs, said: "This initiative uses virtual reality and is based on the latest advanced applications in the field. The result is Copycat Combat, which will not only raise awareness about the importance of Intellectual Property but will also help kids innovate. This initiative is one of many steps we have taken following the vision and directives of our wise leadership. We are happy to have partnered with OSN to come up with this innovative product."

Conservative estimates put the loss of revenue to the entertainment industries in the MENA as being between US$500m and US$1.2bn per year owing to content theft.

http://www.aapa.eu/assets/video/copyright-combat-press-con-highlight.mp4

PRESS RELEASE: ACCESS TO AUDIOVISUAL INTERNET PIRACY E-TRAINING MODULES EXTENDED

Fri, 20 Oct 2017 00:00:00 GMT

20th October 2017

NOW AVAILABLE IN ARABIC, FRENCH AND MANDARIN

Following the launch in March this year of the Spanish version of the audiovisual internet piracy e-training modules on the International IP Crime Investigators College (IIPCIC) platform the modules have now been made available in Arabic, French and Mandarin also. This brings the total number of language versions to five, including English.

The AAPA sponsored e-training modules on audiovisual internet piracy make training on identifying and investigation the two most prevalent forms of audiovisual piracy - card sharing and illegal streaming - available to law enforcement worldwide. Law enforcement officers from a wide range of countries have taken the courses.

Sheila Cassells, Executive Director of AAPA, said that: "The availability of the AAPA e-training modules in Arabic, French and Mandarin is intended to enhance the global fight against audiovisual piracy. These modules are available free of charge to law enforcement agents registered with IIPCIC. We will work with our global allies to encourage law enforcement to take these courses. The modules demonstrate also AAPA's commitment to training as a key element of effective enforcement and we will continue to support INTERPOL, Europol and the EUIPO in this area."

IIPCIC is a joint initiative of the Interpol Trafficking in Illicit Goods Program and Underwriters Labs (UL) and currently provides IP crime prevention training free of charge to over almost 13,000 law enforcement professionals from over 150 countries worldwide. The AAPA module supplements the core IIPCIC curriculum which includes training on Internet Piracy and Combating Online Criminals in the 21st Century and on the Economic Consequences of Online Crime.

ARTICLE: CALL TO SHUT DOWN SAUDI PIRATE SPORT CHANNEL 'bout Q'

Fri, 01 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

1st September 2017

This article appeared on Gulf Times and the original can be found here .

beIN Media Group, together with leading sporting organisations and broadcasters, have called for a pirate broadcaster operating as 'beout Q' to shut down its unauthorised platforms that are broadcasting beIN Sports' proprietary media content in Saudi Arabia.

The sports and entertainment network has joined forces with some of the world's biggest rights holders, including UEFA and LaLiga, as well as an anti-piracy body, the Audio visual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA), to call for 'beout Q' to cease all of its operations immediately.

beIN Media Group has notified the Saudi authorities of this unlawful use of its content and has requested that the Saudi government take immediate action to investigate and prevent the unauthorised use of beIN's media content by 'beout Q' or any other unauthorised channels in Saudi Arabia. beIN Media Group holds the exclusive rights to broadcast prestigious major leagues, tournaments and events in the Mena region, which is testament to the strength of its long-standing relationships with major rights holders, as well as the quality of its coverage.

Any attempt to broadcast beIN Sports' media content without permission is both unacceptable and unlawful in all jurisdictions. beIN Media Group's legal team is investigating the pirated IP TV broadcast of its channels and exploring all legal remedies available.

Commenting on this unlawful use of its proprietary media content, Yousef al-Obaidly, deputy chief executive officer at beIN Media Group, said: "The broadcast by ' beout Q' contravenes both Saudi and international law on intellectual property rights. We hope that the Saudi authorities will honour Saudi domestic laws, and Saudi Arabia's international legal obligations, including those under the TRIPS Agreement, to protect and enforce our intellectual property rights to the full extent. We are pursuing all available legal options to ensure our and our rights holders 'intellectual property rights are respected. We are committed to providing all of our customers with the highest quality access to the latest and greatest global sporting events."

Guy Laurent Epstein, marketing director of UEFA, said: "UEFA fully supports the beIN Media Group in taking action against illegal streaming in all relevant territories including Mena in order to stop piracy the infringement of UEFA s intellectual property."

Melcior Soler, director of audio visual of LaLiga added: "LaLiga actively works against piracy of LaLiga content worldwide and fully supports our right holders in fighting against illegal broadcast. We shall assist beIN Media Group, our exclusive right holder in the Mena territories, to avoid the unauthorised broadcast of LaLiga matches by 'beout Q'."

Sheila Cassells, executive director of AAPA said: "As a valued member of our alliance, we were shocked to hear from beIN about this illegitimate broadcast of the company's legal content in Saudi Arabia.

"We urge the authorities there to be strident and expeditious in upholding both international norms on intellectual property, and also Saudi Arabia's own law, which this directly contravenes. beIN Media Group is a trusted partner to dozens of sporting organisations around the world thanks to its long-standing relationships and the quality of its coverage."

PRESS RELEASE: FOXTEL WELCOMES CONVICTION AND SENTENCING OF SUBSCRIPTION TV PIRATE

Wed, 09 Aug 2017 00:00:00 GMT

9th August 2017

Foxtel has welcomed the sentencing of a Sydney man for his role in the selling of unauthorised access to Foxtel services.

Haidar Majid Salam Al Baghdadi, 33 years old, was convicted of criminal offences relating to charges of operating an illegal network that allowed more than 8000 people across Australia to access Foxtel subscription television broadcasts for free. A Sydney court has sentenced Al Baghdadi to serve an 18 month suspended jail term for carrying out the offenses.

The conviction and sentencing are the result of on-going joint antipiracy investigations involving the Australian Federal Police (AFP), Foxtel investigators, and Irdeto, the world leader in digital platform security. The three organisations uncovered an organised criminal network responsible for committing a wide-range of intellectual property theft of Foxtel services.

Foxtel's CEO, Peter Tonagh, said, "Foxtel welcomes today's court ruling and hopes it sends a strong signal that this type of activity is illegal. Foxtel takes intellectual property theft very seriously as it severely undermines the creative industry including every business and individual that works so hard to deliver us the movies, sport, drama and entertainment we love.

"Foxtel conducts ongoing investigations into the theft of Foxtel programming and we are proud to work so closely with the AFP and our partners at Irdeto to ensure the full force of the law is applied to protect our content.

"Rory O'Connor, Senior Vice President of Cybersecurity Services at Irdeto, said, "This conviction is another step forward in the global fight against online piracy. The seriousness of these crimes should not be underestimated and this result is further proof that piracy will not be tolerated. Partnerships like this play a crucial role in not only detecting these pirate networks, but ensuring that the perpetrators are brought to justice.

"Foxtel looks forward to continuing work with the rest of the Australian media industry to address the issue of piracy in Australia.

ENDS

About FoxtelFoxtel is one of Australia's most progressive and dynamic media companies, directly employing around 2,800 people and delivering a diverse subscription television service over cable, satellite and broadband distribution. Foxtel effortlessly connects Australians to all the stories they love by offering a better entertainment experience every day to more than 2.8 million subscribing homes through delivery of new and inspiring programming across all genres, the world's most popular channel brands, and investment in high quality local content. As constant champions of innovation we have brought customers the iQpersonal digital recorder; Australia's largest HD channel offering; the Foxtel App for tablets and mobile devices; internet TV service, Foxtel Now; and television, broadband and home phone bundles with Foxtel internet and voice services delivered over Australia's largest telecommunications network. Foxtel is owned by Telstra Corporation Limited ACN 051 775 556 (50%) and News Corporation (50%).
About IrdetoIrdeto. Building a Secure Future.TMIrdeto is the world leader in digital platform security, protecting platforms and applications for media & entertainment, automotive and IoT connected industries. Our solutions and services enable customers to protect their revenue, create new offerings and fight cybercrime. With nearly 50 years of expertise in security, Irdeto's software security technology and cyber services protect over 5 billion devices and applications for some of the world's best known brands. Our unique heritage as a subsidiary of multinational media group Naspers (JSE: NPN) means

PRESS RELEASE: CONTENT PIRATES SENTENCED

Wed, 05 Jul 2017 00:00:00 GMT

5th July 2017

Content Pirates Sentenced Following Collaboration Between Irdeto, MultiChoice Africa Limited and Egyptian Enforcement Authorities

Anti-piracy collaboration uncovers Egyptian cybercrime syndicate operating a control word sharing pirate network and selling pirate decoder boxes

AMSTERDAM – 5 July 2017 – Irdeto , the world leader in digital platform security, and MultiChoice Africa Limited (MAL), a provider of video entertainment services in Africa, today announced that three content pirates have been sentenced in Cairo, Egypt. The sentencing follows multiple piracy raids which uncovered a large cybercrime syndicate illegally offering premium content services. The three defendants were found guilty on all criminal charges and were each sentenced to a two-year jail term and a fine of 75,000 EGP ($4,100 USD).

The syndicate offered control word sharing equipment and illegal pirate subscriptions for sale, allowing 163,802 pirate viewers unauthorized access to content from a number of international broadcasters. The ruling follows extensive collaboration between Egyptian Cybercrime Police, MAL and Irdeto and marks the culmination of one of the largest investigations into an extensive control word sharing piracy network.

“Engaging in any form of piracy comes with consequences, and this ruling clearly indicates that piracy will not be tolerated,” said Frikkie Jonker, General Manager, Africa Piracy Department, MultiChoice Africa . “These convictions are critical to sending a message to the pirate community that piracy is a serious offense that damages the media and entertainment industry. Our collaboration with Irdeto and the unbelievable support of the Egyptian Enforcement Authorities, without whom this would not have been possible, demonstrates the importance of working together to combat the growing problem of piracy.”

The initial investigations into suspects began through a partnership between MAL and Irdeto , before a joint criminal investigation referral was made to the Egypt Ministry of Internal Affairs. Raids were conducted that uncovered several electronic components, servers, almost 40 smartcards from multiple conditional access providers, several pirate decoders, smartcard readers and other related equipment typically used within a pirate control word sharing operation. Cash of over $220,000 USD was also seized during the raids. Further investigation uncovered over 5,000 advertisements for pirate devices on Alibaba B2B platforms.

“These convictions are a testament to the seriousness of the piracy offense and the commitment of law enforcement worldwide to crack down on these cybercrime networks,” said Rory O’Connor, Vice President of Cybersecurity Services, Irdeto . “Our partnership with MultiChoice Africa epitomizes our commitment to content owners, rights holders and operators to combat smartcard sharing and other forms of piracy. We will continue to work closely with law enforcement around the globe to shut down criminal pirate networks and ensure that justice is served.”

###

About Irdeto

Irdeto is the world leader in digital platform security, protecting platforms and applications across multiple industries, such as media & entertainment, payments and automotive. Our solutions and services enable customers to protect their revenue, create new offerings and fight cybercrime. With nearly 50 years of expertise in security, Irdeto’s software security technology and cyber services protect over 5 billion devices and applications for some of the world’s best known brands. Our unique heritage as a subsidiary of multinational media group Naspers (JSE: NPN) means that we are a well-established and reliable partner to help build a more secure future. Please visit Irdeto at www.irdeto.com .

About MultiChoice Africa Limited

MultiChoice Africa Limited (“MultiChoice Africa”) is the leading video entertainment service provider in sub-Saharan Africa, having launched the first digital satellite service in the 1980s. MultiChoice Africa provides multi-channel, multi-platform digital video entertainment services containing channels from Africa, America, China, India, Asia and Europe. The company has over twenty years’ experience as a video entertainment provider in Africa, offering cutting-edge digital technology to provide premium video content for subscribers in 49 Sub-Saharan African countries and its adjacent Indian Ocean islands. MultiChoice Africa provides its digital satellite television service – DStv - to subscribers’ homes from two different satellites, namely: the Intelsat 20 (“IS 20”) Ku BAND and Eutelsat 36B (used to be called W7) Ku Band. For more about MultiChoice Africa, please visit www.dstv.com .

PRESS RELEASE: PREMIER LEAGUE AND IRDETO COLLABORATE WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES

Tue, 11 Apr 2017 00:00:00 GMT

11th April 2017

TO SHUT DOWN ONE OF THE LARGEST IPTV PIRACY BUSINESSES IN EUROPE

Spanish National Police, Europol, Eurojust and other authorities team up on global anti-piracy investigation leading to raid of 12 locations in Spain and Bulgaria

AMSTERDAM , 11 April 2017 – The Spanish National Police and Europol have publicly announced the successful raid of one of the largest European illegal IPTV streaming businesses. In a collaborative operation with Europol, Eurojust, Spanish specialized computer crimes prosecutors, Premier League and Irdeto , 12 locations were raided in Spain and Bulgaria. Dubbed “Operation Casper,” eight individuals were arrested for the illegal distribution of 1,000 pay TV channels across two Internet Service Providers (ISPs) through the use of IPTV technology. The servers used to provide illegal access to the channels were shut down and numerous documents incriminating the individuals under investigation were also confiscated. [ Click here to watch Police video of what was found at the scene ].

The investigation was initiated by the Premier League as part of a global effort to combat illegal online redistribution of its live broadcasts. Irdeto identified a Danish citizen residing in Spain who owned an ISP in Málaga used to illegally broadcast encrypted TV signals to thousands of consumers and businesses across Europe. It was discovered that this individual was the leader of a criminal organization that was able to provide a high-quality pirate service rivaling offerings from legal operators. Operation Casper also uncovered another illegal organization located in Silistra, Bulgaria that was operated by the same criminal network who had another internet provider in that location covering different European countries. Both of the ISPs identified were legally established, performing legal activities while also exploiting their capacities to provide illegal services.

“These actions are just one part of the largest anti-piracy campaign the Premier League has conducted to protect its copyright,” said Kevin Plumb, Director of Legal Services, Premier League. “The raids in Spain and Bulgaria by the Spanish Police and law enforcement agencies are a clear indication that IPTV piracy will not be tolerated. Our model, like other sports and creative industries, is predicated on the ability to market and sell rights and protect our intellectual property. It is because of this that clubs can invest in and develop talented players, build world class stadiums, and support young people in schools and communities across the country."

Engaged by the Premier League for piracy detection and investigative services, Irdeto’s team of experts worked closely with the Premier League, Spanish National Police and law enforcement agencies to gather information and evidence leading to the raid. This information resulted in the 12 simultaneous raids in Spain and Bulgaria, proving that both ISPs were illegally distributing pirated content. The disbanded criminal organization also controlled three other entities that provided the content to its customers.

“The efforts of the Spanish Police and law enforcement to dismantle pirate organizations like this is critical in the fight against IPTV piracy,” said Mark Mulready, Senior Director, Cyber Services & Investigations at Irdeto . “We continue to support our customers, partners and law enforcement agencies to identify large-scale cross-border pirate networks and help combat piracy. By detecting, analyzing, investigating and countering piracy, our collaborative efforts send a message to the pirate community that they will be found and brought to justice.”

ARTICLE: TWO SENTENCED IN MULTI-MILLION VIRGIN MEDIA FRAUD

Fri, 07 Apr 2017 00:00:00 GMT

7th April 2017

This article appeared on Broadband TV News and the original can be found here .

Two men who were part of a group convicted of conspiracy to defraud Virgin Media have been sentenced at Leicester Crown Court.

Manish Javahar, 35, of Harrison Road, Leicester pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to defraud Virgin Media and was sentenced to 21 months in prison and Bobby Bhairon, 39, Owenford Road, Coventry pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to defraud Virgin Media and was sentenced to 19 months in prison, suspended for two years.

The man behind the fraud, Mahesh Tailor, 51, of Hollies Way, Thurnby, Leicester, the owner of a printed circuit board manufacturer, imported thousands of set-top boxes from the Far East and sold them for up to £180 each. The boxes – effectively OTT devices – pulled in channels from overseas, bypassing the need for a subscription from the cable operator.

Customers reached him through internet forums and a dedicated website.

Last August, Tailor was sentenced to six years in prison and disqualified from being a company director for eight years.

Detective Constable Amrat Bhagwan investigated the case. He said: “This was a lengthy and complex investigation which saw officers being deployed at various locations across the country to take the network down and render the boxes useless.

“When we raided Tailor’s home, we found £250,000 in cash in various rooms. There were similar amounts held in his business bank accounts.

During the investigation Leicestershire Police recovered a container with 5,000 set-top boxes inside and it’s believed that Tailor had already sold multiple similar consignments.

PRESS RELEASE: AAPA ELECTS NEW VICE PRESIDENTS

Fri, 31 Mar 2017 00:00:00 GMT

31st March 2017

Phillip Davies, Head of Content Protection and Cybersecurity, Sky, and Mark Mulready, Senior Director Cybersecurity and Anti-Piracy, Irdeto, have been elected to the roles of Vice President of the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) from 1 April.

They succeed Michael Barley of Sky and Christine Maury-Panis from Viaccess-Orca who have held the positions since AAPA was established as the successor to AEPOC in December 2012.

Phillip Davies, who also chairs AAPA’s Intelligence and Enforcement Committee, said: “AAPA is now a strong alliance with Members working effectively together to fight the common threat of audiovisual piracy. However, the war against piracy is unrelenting. Much more needs to be done and I look forward to working with Mark and other AAPA members to drive AAPA forward. On behalf of all AAPA members, we would like to express our thanks to both Christine and Mike for their outstanding contributions leading AAPA over the last five very productive years. We are well positioned for the future.”

Commenting on his appointment Mark Mulready said “Collaboration is essential if we are to beat the pirates and I am pleased to take on this role together with Phill. AAPA provides a platform for knowledge and information sharing and operational co-operation between its Members and with external stakeholders such as EUROPOL, INTERPOL and the EUIPO, as well as other industry groups. We will build upon the achievements of AAPA and, with Members’ support, deliver AAPA’s many activities.”

PRESS RELEASE: AUDIOVISUAL INTERNET PIRACY E-TRAINING MODULES NOW AVAILABLE IN SPANISH ON INTERNATIONAL IP CRIME INVESTIGATORS COLLEGE ONLINE PLATFORM

Tue, 14 Mar 2017 00:00:00 GMT

14th March 2017

The launch of the AAPA sponsored e-training modules on audiovisual internet piracy in October 2015 made training on identifying and investigation the two most prevalent forms of audiovisual piracy – card sharing and illegal streaming – available to law enforcement worldwide. Law enforcement officers from a wide range of countries have taken the courses.

Since October 2015 the number of law enforcement officers registered to use the International IP Crime Investigators College (IIPCIC) training courses has risen from 9,000 to 12,500 and, confirming its commitment to support anti-piracy activity globally, AAPA has sponsored the translation of the modules into Spanish. These have been launched today. Consideration is being given to making the modules available in other languages also.

Sheila Cassells, Executive Director of AAPA, said that: “Making the training modules available in Spanish should extend the accessibility of the courses developed by AAPA members to more law enforcement officers and improve the prospects of successful law enforcement action throughout the world. The launch of the Spanish version of the modules today is one of a number of training activities which AAPA will be engaged in over the months ahead.”

The module is designed for enforcement officers and provides information needed to identify and investigate two forms on audiovisual piracy; card-sharing and illegal streaming. It comprises a description of the industry, the purpose and characteristics of content protection technologies, types of piracy and describes how to gather evidence, including live forensics, identify and seize illegal income and the importance of using experts in computer crime.

IIPCIC is a joint initiative of the Interpol Trafficking in Illicit Goods Program and Underwriters Labs (UL) and currently provides IP crime prevention training to over 12,500 law enforcement professionals from 156 countries worldwide. The AAPA module supplements the core IIPCIC curriculum which includes training on Internet Piracy and Combating Online Criminals in the 21st Century and on the Economic Consequences of Online Crime.

ENDS

AAPA represents companies involved in the provision of protected audiovisual services, security technology for such services, and the manufacturing of products which facilitate the delivery of such services. AAPA’s mission is to enable the fight against piracy where this involves the development, promotion, distribution, application or use of technologies resulting in the unauthorised use of protected audiovisual content, by co-ordinating intelligence and action supported by effective legislation and its implementation.

AAPA has participated in two OHIM-Europol-Eurojust know-how sessions which bring together over 100 participants from law enforcement, including police, prosecutors and customs agents, as well as the private sector. The first session was on IP crime in sports and the second on the Internet as a facilitator of piracy. Last year AAPA also provided training at Europol.

PRESS RELEASE: SPANISH NATIONAL POLICE, PREMIER LEAGUE AND IRDETO JOIN FORCES...

Wed, 15 Feb 2017 00:00:00 GMT

15th February 2017

TO SHUT DOWN ISP RUNNING PIRATE IPTV SUBSCRIPTION BUSINESS

Global anti-piracy investigation leads Police to raid a local ISP in Malaga offering unauthorized Premier League matches and 100+ international pay TV channels

AMSTERDAM , 09 February 2017 - The Spanish National Police announced today that they have successfully raided a store in a Calahonda shopping center in Málaga, Spain owned by an Internet Service Provider (ISP) suspected of hosting a large-scale illegal IPTV streaming business, thanks to a collaborative effort with Premier League and Irdeto. Investigations revealed that the ISP in question, known as "Y Internet," was being run by two U.K. citizens and providing unauthorized online subscription services featuring more than 100 international pay TV channels, including Premier League matches. At the time of the raid, five of the company's 10 employees were present, including the system administrator who was in was in charge of the operation of the servers used to provide illegal access to the channels, an IT technician in charge of preparing the illicit devices and three sales managers. [Click here to watch Police video of what was found at the scene].

Y-Internet sold illegal IPTV service packages with annual contracts to the large foreign population in the Malaga region, including hotels, pubs, neighborhoods and individuals. This included reception devices that were adapted to receive decrypted pay TV signals without authorization. An Irdeto investigator told the Police that he went to the store in the shopping center where the employees showed him the device and services available. The representative supplied as evidence the reception device and a premium subscription purchased for 450€ from the store.

The investigation was initiated by the Premier League as part of a global crack down on illegal online redistribution of its live broadcasts. Engaged by the Premier League for piracy detection and investigative services, Irdeto's team of experts worked closely with the Spanish National Police to gather information and evidence leading to the raid.

Premier League Director of Legal Services, Kevin Plumb, said: "The raids conducted by the Spanish authorities, supported in this case by Irdeto's expertise, are a positive example of law enforcement taking seriously piracy and IP infringement. This approach is essential for organisations like the Premier League - and other creative industries - as our model is predicated on the ability to market and sell rights and protect intellectual property. It is because of this that clubs can invest in star players and managers, and world class stadiums - the very things fans enjoy about our competition."

"These raids follow a recent case we brought in the U.K that saw a supplier of IPTV devices which enable mass piracy of Premier League football sent to prison for four years. It was the first case of its type and the fact police, both in the UK and in Spain, are now targeting and arresting others selling similar devices is further evidence for consumers that they are illegal."

Once sufficient evidence of illicit activity was found, the store in Malaga was raided by the Police. While entering the premises, the agents were confronted with strong security measures inside including a surveillance system that allowed the owners to supervise the employees from the UK, where they are currently living. The raid alerted the owners who tried to remotely delete and destroy files, payment transactions and clients' records. However, the quick and effective actions of the Police prevented this from happening.

"We are grateful to the Spanish Police for their support and decisive action against IPTV piracy," said Mark Mulready, Senior Director, Cyber Services & Investigations at Irdeto. "We will continue to work closely with our customers, partners and law enforcement agencies to detect, analyze, investigate and counter all types of piracy affecting on-demand and live real-time content. This is a growing problem affecting content owners, broadcasters and operators across the world. Efforts like this are more critical than ever and set an example that piracy will not be tolerated."

###

About Irdeto
Irdeto is the world leader digital platform security, protecting platforms and applications across multiple industries, such as media & entertainment, payments and automotive. Our solutions and services enable customers to protect their revenue, create new offerings and fight cybercrime. With nearly 50 years of expertise in security, Irdeto's software security technology and cyber services protect over 5 billion devices and applications for some of the world's best known brands. Our unique heritage as a subsidiary of multinational media group Naspers (JSE: NPN) means that we are a well-established and reliable partner to help build a more secure future. Please visit Irdeto at www.irdeto.com .

For further information, please contact:

Katie Walsh
Director, Corporate Communications, Irdeto

PRESS RELEASE: SUPPLIER OF ILLEGAL IPTV & ANDROID-TYPE BOXES JAILED

Fri, 09 Dec 2016 00:00:00 GMT

9th December 2016

Issued by the Premier League - Friday 9 December 2016

Supplier of illegal IPTV and android-type boxes jailed for four years following Premier League prosecution

First case of its type sees suppliers convicted in Nottingham Crown Court  IPTV devices included apps and other add-ons which scanned the internet searching for illegal streams
Following the first legal case involving a supplier of IPTV and android-type systems which enable viewers to watch unauthorised content, an individual has been jailed.

Mr Terry O’Reilly was today sentenced to four years in prison. A second supplier who worked with O’Reilly, Mr Will O’Leary, pleaded guilty and received a two-year suspended prison sentence.

The Premier League brought a prosecution against O’Reilly and O’Leary because they both sold devices to pubs and consumers which facilitated mass piracy, including the broadcasting of Premier League football on unauthorised foreign channels.

The case was heard at Nottingham Crown Court where O’Leary and O’Reilly were both convicted for Conspiracy to Defraud. In bringing the prosecution the Premier League was supported by FACT (Federation Against Copyright Theft) following a significant investigation by the City of London Police.

The Premier League was represented by David Groome and Ari Alabhai of QEB Hollis Whitman.

Premier League Director of Legal Services, Kevin Plumb, said:

“Like other creative industries the Premier League’s model is predicated on the ability to market and sell rights and protect its intellectual property. It is because of this that clubs can invest in star players and managers, and world class stadiums – the very things fans enjoy about our competition.

This case is particularly important as it is the first involving sellers of so-called IPTV devices which enable people to watch illegal content. The Courts have provided a clear message: this is against the law and selling systems which allow people to watch unauthorised Premier League broadcasts is a form of mass piracy and is sufficiently serious to warrant a custodial sentence.

There can now be no doubt for consumers that these systems are illegal.”

FACT Director General, Kieron Sharp said:

“As the first sentencing of IPTV boxes in England, today’s result should send a hard- hitting message to anyone involved in selling illegally modified set-top boxes.

The sale and distribution of these boxes, which are loaded with infringing apps and add-ons allowing access to copyrighted content, is a criminal offence and the repercussions could result in years behind bars.

We would like to thank the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) for their early support in the investigation and we will continue to work with the Premier League and our other members to ensure sports broadcasts are fully protected.”

Detective Chief Inspector Pete Ratcliffe of the City of London Police’s Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit said:

“This conviction shows how important working with industry and other bodies is to modern day policing.

Protecting our creative industries is vital to the UK economy and the millions of jobs that work within them and this case sends a clear message that this is crime that will be investigated and brought before the courts.”

ARTICLE: DUTCH CONTENT PIRATES SENTENCED

Sun, 27 Nov 2016 00:00:00 GMT

27th November 2016

The following article, written by Colin Mann appears in Advanced Television to read the full story click here

Following the 2013 raid of five homes in the Netherlands cities of Apeldoorn, Enschede, Vlagtwedde and the Hague which resulted in the 2015 convictions of two pirates, a further three pirates arrested during these raids have been sentenced at the Zutphen courthouse.

Two defendants received 200 hours of community service and three months of conditional sentencing. The third defendant received 240 hours of community service and four months of conditional sentencing. The three defendants also forfeited amounts of €52,245, €53,245 and €110,406.85 respectively.

The sentence comes after an extensive collaboration between The Dutch Police, The Public Prosecution Service, Dutch TV providers and digital platform security specialist Irdeto, to see the arrest of seven suspects for Card Sharing. The suspects offered control word sharing equipment and illegal pirate subscriptions for sale and following further investigation, it was revealed that the control word sharing networks were also providing unauthorised pirated access to international pay TV channels.

PRESS RELEASE: ILLEGAL STREAMING IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Wed, 21 Sep 2016 00:00:00 GMT

21st September 2016

AAPA sponsors IIPCIC conference; hosts global workshop on illegal streaming London, 21 September 2016

Celebrating its 10th anniversary the International Intellectual Property Crime Investigators College (IIPCIC) conference brought together over 500 delegates from around the world to discuss past successes and future threats in the fight against intellectual property crime. Sponsoring the conference AAPA built upon past collaboration with INTERPOL to hold a panel discussion on the threats to content protection from new technologies, with a focus on illegal streaming.

Michael Barley, Joint Vice-President of AAPA and Director of Group Security at Sky, commented that: "Being involved in the IIPCIC conference and this panel provides an ideal opportunity to put illegal streaming in the spotlight. In order to tackle this growing form of piracy we need law enforcement agents to understand the scale and complexity of the problem. Illegal streaming does not respect national boundaries and can emanate from virtually any country in the world. Being able to discuss this issue with a global audience from law enforcement at the IIPCIC conference can help us to fight illegal streaming more effectively."

In a separate initiative AAPA hosted a workshop on illegal streaming and illegal streaming devices. Attended by rights owners, platform operators, media technology providers, broadcasters and other trade associations from Europe, the Far East, Middle East and Latin America the workshop provided a forum for participants to exchange information on trends; sources of illegal streaming devices; and enforcement actions taken. Discussion also took place on the adequacy of existing laws. The objective of the workshop was to identify how the participants could collaborate to enhance the success of enforcement action.

Sheila Cassells, Executive Director of AAPA, said that: "Many stakeholders are engaged in the fight against illegal streaming and the sale of illegal streaming devices. This workshop allows private sector organisations to share knowledge and intelligence and to create a framework for future collaboration where we can leverage on each other's activities. AAPA is committed to working with private and public sector partners to stem illegal streaming. We will build upon the IIPCIC conference panel and this workshop to host a similar focussed event on illegal streaming for law enforcement, governments, etc., early next year."

PRESS RELEASE: AAPA SIGNS MOU WITH EUROPOL

Tue, 12 Jul 2016 00:00:00 GMT

12 July 2016

AAPA JOINS EUROPOL INTELLECTUAL PROPRTY CRIME CO-ORDINATION CENTRE ADVISORY BOARD

The Hague, 12 July 2016

AAPA and Europol have today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) which paves the way for providing further support to Europol as it enhances its capabilities to address audiovisual piracy. The MOU creates a framework for sharing intelligence, data, knowledge and expertise on online audiovisual piracy and to co-ordinate activities, where possible.

The signing of the MOU took place at the launch of Europol’s IP Crime Co- ordination Centre (IPC3) in The Hague on 12 July 2016. The IPC3 is part of Europol’s Operations Department The objectives of the IPC3 are to leverage and co-ordinate public and private sector capabilities to fight intellectual property crime.

Sheila Cassells, Executive Director of AAPA, said: “AAPA believes strongly that the public and private sectors must work together to combat audiovisual piracy and we are delighted to join the Advisory Board of the new IP Crime Co- ordination Centre to offer strategic guidance on the many challenges faced in fighting online audiovisual piracy. Recent actions by Europol in Spain highlight the seriousness of this crime and the complexities which arise from its cross- border nature. The MOU with Europol will allow AAPA to support Europol’s work in co-ordinating enforcement action. AAPA is committed to ensuring that Europol is well equipped to carry out its crucial role and, to this end, we will also shortly be providing training to its officers.”

ITALIAN BLITZ AGAINST PIRACY

Mon, 06 Jun 2016 00:00:00 GMT

6th June 2016

TRANSLATED FROM THE ORIGINAL ITALIAN

Italian Guardia di Finanzia Blitz against TV piracy: 5 people arrested, 50 pirate sites and 44 servers seized

The Special Operation Unit of the Guardia di Finanzia has dealt a severe blow to pirates, arresting 5 suspects, obscuring 41 servers located in 3 continents, and seizing 3 servers in Italy and 50 illegal sites.

The officers of the Special Unit Technology Fraud performed numerous searches in various Italian regions as part of an investigation coordinated by prosecutors in Rome. The action was aimed at fighting the growing phenomenon of illegal streaming, including the web broadcasting of sports events, movies, TV shows and concerts, without owning the rights.

The pirates offered illegal content in both "live streaming" mode and "on demand".

All sites, which were located on servers in Italy and abroad, offered schedules which were organised to facilitate the choice of the user's favourite programme. A monthly subscription of 10 Euros was charged, compared with legal commercial offer of around 100 Euros.

Five people promoted a vast network of customers throughout Italy. They have been charged under the art.171-ter violation of Law 633/41 which provides for imprisonment up to 4 years and a fine of € 15,000.

The violation of copyright damages the market for companies that abide by the rules and undermines investment, development and growth. To understand the scale it is sufficient to consider that, with today's operation, the presence of more than 340,000 members of an internet community related to television piracy was detected. Assuming that everyone has signed an illegal "subscription", you can, with a simple calculation, estimating that the turnover is nearly € 3,500,000 monthly, or more than € 40,000,000 per year.

AAPA Welcomes UK IPO’s Collaboration In The Fight Against Illegal Streaming & Illicit Devices

Fri, 13 May 2016 00:00:00 GMT

13th May 2016

Marking the launch of the United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office's IP Enforcement Strategy, AAPA and the IPO organised jointly a seminar on illegal streaming and the sale of illicit devices and to explore possible solutions. With a focus on the supply chain the scale, scope and impact of this growing form of audiovisual piracy were discussed by participants from government, law enforcement and the industry.

The seminar represented a further stage in a co-operative effort between AAPA and the IPO to stem the demand for, and flow of, devices (mainly manufactured in China), which facilitate unauthorised access to audiovisual content. Discussion focussed on how to make enforcement action more effective and efficient through the co-ordination and collection of evidence, collaboration and working across borders. The shared goal is to demonstrate to countries which are the source of this form of piracy that illegal streaming and the sale of illicit devices will not be tolerated.

Sheila Cassells, Executive Director, of AAPA, said:
"Illegal streaming is emerging as the main threat to the audiovisual industry. This harms not only the creative industries but also deprives governments of tax revenues and generates substantial revenues for organised criminals. Illegal streaming is a global problem, which requires a global response and AAPA works with INTERPOL and Europol on this issue. However, the activities of those agencies require the close involvement of a Member State and we value the IPO's commitment to demonstrate leadership in tackling this problem. The seminar represents a further step in our collaboration with the IPO and we will be working with them to develop solutions and to encourage other Member States to adopt this approach."

Ros Lynch, Copyright and IP Enforcement Director at the UK IPO, said:
"The creative industries are a major UK asset and the IPO is committed to ensuring their hard work is protected. While increasing digitisation brings about many benefits to the UK economy, it also provides opportunities for infringers. Disrupting the manufacture and distribution of set-top boxes designed to stream illegal content is a major priority. Working together with consumers, right holders and our partners in law enforcement we will continue to disrupt and track down IP crime wherever it takes place."

Portuguese Judicial Police completes investigation into cardsharing

Fri, 08 Apr 2016 00:00:00 GMT

8th April 2016

Unlawful distribution of cable and satellite television signal

The Judicial Police, through the Department of Criminal Investigation of Setubal, completed an investigation of a transnational character on suspicion of the criminal practice of computer fraud. The investigation started in 2012.

During the investigation, which was aimed at dismantling a cable or satellite TV signal receiver scheme and the subsequent illegitimate availability of the same for Internet channels, three arrests were made. Police conducted several searches and seized all the computer equipment which served as a basis for the criminal activity, as well as documentation of their use for this illegal purpose.

The scheme operated, at least since 2009, and allowed access at lower prices to television services that are provided by the operators for a monthly subscription.

The main suspect also operated servers abroad to provide television services to other countries, where they were distributed by economic counterparts. The criminal activity resulted in a monthly income of 5,000 euros, to the detriment of service operators, two national and one Spanish, the rights holders of television content, consumers / customers and also undermined the law.

Original text

Detention for computer fraud in Portugal - cardsharing

Fri, 08 Apr 2016 00:00:00 GMT

8th April 2016

The Judicial Police, through the Department of Criminal Investigation of Aveiro, identified and arrested in the course of undertaking the illegal activity a 47 years old man for the alleged practice of computer fraud crimes, aggravated unlawful and detention access and sale of illicit equipment for the purposes of cardsharing.

The arrested man maintained his own unlawful structure which offered the availability of protected TV services, acquiring customers, and particularly installing tampered equipment for the reception of the encoded signal, providing access to the services and receiving the agreed payments.

This structure comprised servers installed in the country and abroad, in France, Germany and USA.

More than two hundred customers accessed illegally the TV signal without the legitimate operators receive proper payment, to their detriment and to the detriment of Public Finance which did not receive the corresponding tax revenue.

In the course of searches made in the Anadia municipality, relevant evidence was seized. Notably this included the installed rack of equipment dedicated to the practice of cardsharing, the reception system for the protected signal, decoding and of their unlawful sharing, compound several boxes of receiving the satellite signal, router internet access, server, network switch, wi-fi and UPS, as well as several set-top-box which had been tampered with.

The arrested man will be present at the Judicial Authorities in the District of Aveiro for the first judicial examination and implementation of the appropriate enforcement measure.

Original text

Italian Guardia di Finanza investigation uncovers sophisticated fraud of Sky Italia & Mediaset

Tue, 15 Mar 2016 00:00:00 GMT

15th March 2016

PRESS RELEASE La Spezia, March 11, 2015

OPERATION "FIRST RUN" (the meaning was “first movie release in cinemas” – Prima visione)

TAX and FINANCE POLICE UNIT OF LA SPEZIA, COORDINATED BY DR. LUCA MONTEVERDE, PROSECUTOR AT THE LOCAL ATTORNEY, LEADING TO WIDE INVESTIGATION UNMASKING A SOPHISTICATED MECHANISM OF FRAUD AGAINST "SKY" and "Mediaset"companies.

Starting from information acquired in the course of the economic control of the territory, the Italian Tax Police Unit launched a specific investigation, coordinated by the Public Prosecutor, which identified a subject in the city La Spezia in possession of a sophisticated software system and hardware devices capable of receiving unlawfully encrypted signals emitted by "SKY" and "Mediaset" to provide it directly to the home of his "customers".

All devices were seized during the house search.

In exchange for a monthly fee of 20 Euro, the "customers" could benefit from the use of subscriptions "full" on both television platforms, either by the mechanism called "CARD-SHARING" or means of receiving "IP-TV" signal.

The investigations, also performed with the aid of computer consultants of the companies, Mediaset and Sky, as well as exposing the fraudulent conduct of that person, has identified a large network of clients managed by the same person, as the "owner" and "reseller", branched throughout the national territory.

The evidence gathered allowed the Guardia di Finanza to ascertain that the subject had been carrying out the illegal activity for at least eight months. During the period he accumulated estimated profits for about 50,000 Euros and caused economic harm to Sky and Mediaset of nearly half a million euros in loss of revenues.

The Guardia di Finanzia identified 240 users of the service, also reported to the Judicial Authority of the additional 23 prosecutors competent for the place of the offence, located in 12 regions of the national territory, in breach of Article. 171-g L. 633/41, for the protection of copyright.

If found guilty the suspects face up to three years in prison and a 25,000 euros fine.

The violation of copyright damages the market in which opportunities and work of companies that abide by the rules, the respect of which, even in the economic field, is a fundamental condition for attracting investment and boosting development and growth.

Against the owner of the network has also challenged the art.171-ter L. 633/41, violation that provides, if convicted, imprisonment up to four years and more than 15,000 euros in fines.

The investigations have revealed that the source of the encrypted signals were located in some servers located in France. In this regard, investigations are continuing in order to coordinate information-investigation outside the Italian borders.

PRESS RELEASE: Landmark investigation by Bundeskriminalamt in Germany

Wed, 02 Mar 2016 00:00:00 GMT

2nd March 2016

Unterföhring, 1 March 2016 – In the scope of a cross-European raid against operators of so-called “underground economy forums”, the Central Office for Combating Cybercrime (ZIK) of the Attorney General in Frankfurt/Main has issued an arrest warrant against an alleged administrator of illegal streaming platform “istreams.to” at the request of the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA). The website enabled its users to illegally access to Sky’s sports- and fiction programming against a fixed monthly fee. The platform is no longer available; its operator is being held in custody.

The investigation of the Federal Criminal Police Office against the streaming platform was preceded by a criminal charge issued by Sky Deutschland in 2012 and a continuous preservation and presentation of evidence by Sky. The investigators stroke on 23 and 24 February this year and arrested a 22-year old German from the Münsterland region in Northwest Germany.

The arrest is already the second significant success against the illegal utilization of Sky content within one month. On 10 February, the district court in Verden sentenced a 53-year old card-sharing operator to a suspended 12 months prison sentence. The verdict of the district court is the first judicial sentence of a higher instance in Germany regarding this type of information- and communication crime (“cybercrime”) and can therefore be regarded as a landmark decision for similar cases in future proceedings. The verdict is still subject to appeal.

Dr. Holger Enßlin, Chief Officer Legal, Regulatory, & Distribution at Sky Deutschland: “After the groundbreaking verdict of the district court in Verden, the impressive success of this operation shows that illegal streaming has no future in Germany. Sky has the most valuable programming portfolio in the fields of live sports, films and TV series in Germany and Austria. We will protect our content by any means necessary and work closely with the responsible authorities to ensure that operators of illegal platforms will be treated with the full force of the law. In addition, users of such offerings should realize by now at the latest that with their payments, they are supporting large-scale criminal activities. “

According to the BKA, “The concentrated investigations both domestically and abroad constitute a major breakthrough in the fight against the German underground economy scene and is another proof that the internet does not provide full anonymity – not even the Darknet. Furthermore, they underline the significance of international cooperation in the fight against cybercrime.”

ARTICLE: Dutch pay-TV providers start anti-piracy campaign

Tue, 23 Feb 2016 00:00:00 GMT

23rd February 2016

Dutch pay-TV providers and industry group NLkabel announced plans for joint action to fight illegal viewing. The operators Caiway, Delta , M7 (CanalDigitaal and Online.nl) and Ziggo are participating in the campaign. They will target sellers of illegal platforms that bypass standard encryption systems to access pay-TV services, working together on tracking the fraudulent services, sharing information and coordinating with police and prosecutors.

A number of illegal providers caught in December 2013 are now facing prosecution, with court rulings expected in the spring. The operators said these cases provide a good basis for starting their new approach. They will focus on fighting control word sharing, where the keys to smart cards for accessing encrypted digital TV services are sold illegally, as well as illegal streaming of decrypted content online. NLkabel said both forms cause damage to the sector, including copyright holders, producers, broadcasters and operators.

PRESS RELEASE: German District Court confirms card-sharing is computer fraud and issues suspended prison sentence.

Fri, 12 Feb 2016 00:00:00 GMT

12 February 2016

The district court in Verden has convicted a 53- year old man from Leese in Lower Saxony, resulting in a suspended prison sentence of one year. With this, the court basically confirms the first instance decision of the local court in Stolzenau from 2013. The verdict of the district court in Verden is the first sentence of a higher instance in Germany so far regarding this type of IT and communication crime (‘cybercrime’) and can thus be regarded as a landmark for similar cases in future.

To read the full press release please click here .

PRESS RELEASE: Dutch Content Pirates Sentenced

Tue, 22 Dec 2015 00:00:00 GMT

22nd December 2015

Dutch Content Pirates Sentenced To Community Service, Conditional Imprisonment And Probation

Irdeto and Dutch Police collaboration results in the successful conviction of two control word sharing pirates

Following the successful 2013 raid of five homes in Apeldoorn, Enschede, Vlagtwedde and the Hague, it was announced today that the pirates arrested during these raids have been sentenced at the Zutphen courthouse, The Netherlands. Two defendants received 100 hours of community service, two months of conditional imprisonment and two years' probation. This followed an extensive collaborative effort between The Dutch Police, The Public Prosecution Service, Dutch TV providers and Irdeto to track, investigate and raid a group of individuals offering pirate TV card-sharing subscriptions on auction websites in the Netherlands.

"Pay TV piracy will not be tolerated in The Netherlands, and it is our intent to ensure that these sentences dissuade others from illegal content distribution," said Ger Laning of the Dutch Police . "Piracy poses a severe threat to pay media businesses. By working with technology and anti-piracy experts like Irdeto, we are able to disrupt pirate activity and bring criminals to justice. The Dutch Police will continue to protect the revenues of Dutch pay TV operators by combating this type of cybercrime."

The case began in 2011 when Irdeto and local Dutch TV providers began investigations into several suspects offering control word sharing equipment and illegal pirate subscriptions for sale. Following this initial investigation, Irdeto and the local TV providers jointly referred several cases to the Dutch Police with supporting evidence in 2012. Ongoing investigations revealed that the control word sharing networks in question were also providing unauthorized pirated access to international pay TV channels. Following the successful raids, the evidence was analyzed by The Public Prosecution Service and the defendants were brought to trial.

"Piracy has a negative impact on the pay TV industry, and AAPA members such as Irdeto provide an important service in tracking and investigating those involved in this illegal activity," said Sheila Cassells, Executive Director of the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) . "Results such as this show those involved in the theft of content that it will be taken seriously by the authorities. AAPA continues to work hard to address the problems posed by piracy and mitigate the effect that the issue has on the industry."

Control word sharing piracy is one of many major threats posed to pay TV operators and broadcasters, which has dramatically increased with growing broadband penetration. Control word sharing occurs when a pirate steals and retransmits a regularly changing control word that is passed between a smart card and a set-top-box (STB), allowing subscribers to watch TV content they have not legitimately paid for. In this case, Irdeto was able to prepare detailed evidence regarding the control word sharing networks in question.

"While this only represents the beginning of much larger cases, Irdeto welcomes this latest successful prosecution and will continue working against the criminal operations that target our customers' valuable content," said Mark Mulready, Senior Director, Cyber Services & Investigations, Irdeto. "To reduce revenue loss, businesses must understand the threat that they are facing and rigorously counteract pirate activity. Irdeto, as a trusted security partner and subject matter expert, will continue to work closely with pay TV operators to gather information on criminal activity and also with law enforcement - such as the Dutch Police - to secure convictions."

ARTICLE: Sky Italia card sharing network raided by Tax Police

Fri, 27 Nov 2015 00:00:00 GMT

27th November 2015

The following is translated from a news report which appeared in Libero, 22 November, 2015

On Thursday, November 19 the Italian Tax Police performed a raid in different Italian cities to fight a card sharing network offering Sky Italia and Mediaset Premium packages. SKY Italia provided technical support.

The card sharing network operators offered service packages and television broadcasts for less than 80% of the legitimate offer price. The network also offered customer support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week; on-line, by telephone and at home. The damage to the market has been estimated at around a million Euros. Nine people associated with the criminal activity have been accused and 83 customers identified(28 residents in Trentino, 50 in Rome, 2 in L' Aquila, 1 in Rieti, 1 and 1 in Verona in Cosenza). The large police search also led to the seizure of several decoders and computer equipment and dozens of hard drives, which are used both by the members of the criminal newtrok and customers.

The investigation, which lasted about a year, resulted from monitoring activities conducted by the web search information unit of the Provincial Command of Trento. Avezzano (AQ), the Financial Police Trentine, identified and seized computer terminals connected to the network which was the base of the operations from where they decoded protected audiovisual signals and transmitted in real time via the web to customers. Several servers, all located outside Italy were used to "support" high quailty of the distributed signals.

PRESS RELEASE: AAPA Extends Its Collaborative Approach: Joins Europol Platform Of Experts

Mon, 16 Nov 2015 00:00:00 GMT

16th November 2015

To further extend access to AAPA members’ expertise in investigating, and taking enforcement action against, audiovisual piracy the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) has joined the Europol Platform of Experts (EPE). Joining the EPE will also facilitate information sharing and collaboration with other private and public sector stakeholders.

The EPE is a secure web platform, which enables the sharing of best practices, documentation, innovation, knowledge and non-personal data on crime . Users can interact and collaborate with each other in virtual communities. Each community comes with a set of tools for content management (blogs, forum, etc.) and communication (private messaging, instant messaging , etc.).

AAPA joins more than 30 online communities on the EPE with a wide range of expertise in areas covering Intellectual Property Crime, Digital Forensics & Investigations, EU Cybercrime Task Force, EEGITC (European Expert Group on IT Crime – INTERPOL), Advisory Group on Internet Security, and Strategic Analysis. The EPE has more than 6,000 registered users from more than 70 countries .

Sheila Cassells, Executive Director of AAPA, said that: “The EPE is a valuable tool which will help AAPA and its members to share their knowledge and expertise in fighting audiovisual piracy and will allow other stakeholders to benefit from that. Importantly the EPE provides a framework in which synergies can be found with other affected sectors. It is quite likely that apparently different industries are targeted by similar pirate communities.”

Chris Vansteenkiste, Cluster Manager Counterfeiting, Europol, added: “We are pleased to have AAPA join the EPE online community. Audiovisual piracy is a complex international crime which occurs in the online world. Successful enforcement requires collaboration amongst private and public stakeholders through mechanisms such as the EPE.”

PESS RELEASE: Audiovisual internet piracy training module launches

Thu, 29 Oct 2015 00:00:00 GMT

29th October 2015

Audiovisual internet piracy training module launches on international IP crime investigators college

Building on previous training initiatives the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) announced today the launch of an audiovisual internet piracy training module on the International Intellectual Property Crime Investigators College (IIPCIC) online platform.

The module is designed for enforcement officers and provides information needed to identify and investigate two forms on audiovisual piracy; card-sharing and illegal streaming. It comprises a description of the industry, the purpose and characteristics of content protection technologies, types of piracy and describes how to gather evidence, including live forensics, identify and seize illegal income, as well as the importance of using experts in computer crime.

IIPCIC is a joint initiative of INTERPOL’s Trafficking in Illicit Goods Program and Underwriters Labs (UL) and currently provides IP crime prevention training to over 9000 law enforcement professionals from 156 countries worldwide. The AAPA module supplements the core IIPCIC curriculum which includes training on Internet Piracy and Combating Online Criminals in the 21st Century and on the Economic Consequences of Online Crime.

Commenting on the training module Sheila Cassells, Executive Director of AAPA said: “Audiovisual piracy is a global issue and we see this training module as an important step in improving the prospect of successful enforcement action worldwide. It is essential that organisations such as AAPA make available members’ expertise to help enforcement officers fight this economically damaging activity. We are committed to supporting training in Europe and beyond.”

Michael Ellis, head of INTERPOL’s Trafficking in Illicit Goods Program, said: “INTERPOL welcomes the AAPA module which not only provides detailed training on how to investigate audiovisual internet piracy, but will also be valuable in other areas such as the fight against the online sale of counterfeited products.”

ANNOUNCEMENT: 42 month sentence for defrauding Sky

Mon, 24 Aug 2015 00:00:00 GMT

24th August 2015

Fraudsters who illegally sold on access to Premier League football coverage have been jailed following a joint investigation by Surrey Police and the Federation Against Copyright Theft (FACT) with assistance from Sky UK.

The Duo ran a company (Digicams) in Bagshot, Surrey, obtaining hundreds of domestic-use-only Sky cards, using fraudulent names and addresses in an attempt to hide their real identities. The cards were then sold on to commercial premises, including pubs, betting shops and yachts. Although the commercial premises paid a large one-off premium for the cards, they made huge savings on their monthly fees in the long run. They were also under strict instructions not to contact Sky directly or they would face having their subscription cancelled.

After a carefully planned and executed investigation the defendant's homes were searched in September 2012 where payslips and paperwork relating to the fraud were found.

On Wednesday 19th August 2015, Simon Hopkins and Leon Passlow pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit fraud between January 2008 and September 2012. They were sentenced to a three and a half year custodial sentence with an asset confiscation hearing scheduled for February 2016.

This judgement serves as a reminder to the pub industry, and other businesses which show live football, that Sky Sports and BT Sport are the only authorised broadcasters of live Premier League football in the UK.

ANNOUNCEMENT: Pub landlord jailed for selling illegal Sky

Mon, 17 Aug 2015 00:00:00 GMT

17th August 2015

Nigel Earnshaw, 49, was jailed for 16 months for illegally selling Sky TV subscriptions.

A complaint was first received by police in 2011 about the website “SAVINGS2U.WEBS.COM” which was selling counterfeit goods alongside reduced rate Sky TV subscriptions.

In December 2012 Earnshaw’s house was raided and along with counterfeit football paraphernalia three decoder boxes, 5,500 discs, hard drives, memory sticks and USB drives all used in the illegal streaming of Sky TV content were found.

Earnshaw was using eBay to pay for access to a stolen satellite signal and selling on the codes, cards and boxes tuned into the frequency to get the stolen signal via the internet.

Although Earnshaw had not made much from his scam, Judge Philip Richards, sitting at Mold Crown Court, handed down a 16 month sentence, stating that “this sentence was required to discourage people from such illegitimate means of making a living”.

Links to press articles:

www.dailypost.co.uk

www.walesonline.co.uk

ANNOUNCEMENT: Pirate TV supplier sentenced to 24 months imprisonment suspended for 24 months

Thu, 11 Jun 2015 00:00:00 GMT

11th June 2015

Alexander Woodmass, the supplier of a card sharing network appeared at Durham Crown Court on Friday 5th June 2015 where he was sentenced to 24 months imprisonment suspended for 24 months following an investigation by Sky UK investigators.

Woodmass was fraudulently selling his customers access to Sky’s premium Pay TV content.

He admitted six counts of fraud between the periods of April 2011 and December 2013. Three charges related to the possession of articles for use in fraud; a micro-server and pc tower both containing card-sharing software, and card-sharing data, two counts relate to supplying articles for use in fraud; satellite receiving boxes and card-sharing data capable of receipt of Sky TV without subscription payment. The sixth charge was one of obtaining services by deception, namely subscription owner TV broadcast content when no payment was made, gaining access via a card-sharing server.

Shaun Dryden prosecuting summed up the case as a man who was "buying digital boxes from China, capable of receiving Sky, and fraudulently supplying pubs and clubs in the area….the value placed in the lost subscriptions would amount to £112,000”.

Details of the full sentence handed down were as follows

· 24 months Imprisonment suspended for 24 months on Suspended Sentence.

· To Pay a Victim Surcharge of £100.00 payable at rate to be set by magistrates court.

· Order under s. 143 Powers of Criminal Courts (Sentencing) Act 2000 for forfeiture of all items seized by the Police and destruction of these items.

· Suspended Sentence - Must carry out unpaid work for 250 hours before 04-Jun-2016 Probation officer will supervise this work.

A Proceeds of crime timetable was set and a hearing is scheduled for 7th December 2015.

ANNOUNCEMENT: City of London Police arrest as part of Card Sharing investigation

Thu, 11 Jun 2015 00:00:00 GMT

1th June 2015

Detectives from the City of London Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) yesterday (2 June) arrested a man on suspicion of selling illegal card sharing satellite receivers that provide viewers access to premium pay channels without a subscription.

The 26 year old man was arrested by detectives from the City of London Police unit in Southall, London at his workplace where it is believed he was selling the devices.

Head of PIPCU, Detective Chief Inspector Danny Medlycott said, “Our specialist team is the only police unit in the world dedicated to combatting intellectual property crime. Working closely with our partners and other law enforcement agencies, we are committed to tackling criminals who exploit other’s intellectual property for their own greed and financial gain.”

ANNOUNCEMENT: Sky UK secure another conviction

Wed, 20 May 2015 00:00:00 GMT

20th May 2015

Operator sentenced for illegal card-sharing which gave access to premium Pay TV content

Sky UK have secured yet another conviction against an operator of an illegal card-sharing operation being run by an individual based in Kent. Following initial information received from Sky Deutschland an investigation commenced and established that the individual had been operating between October 2011 and August 2013. The suspect had purchased the boxes and then configured them to connect to his illegal card-sharing server. He had set up his own website diacomm.net and charged around 100 customers £135 for six months’ subscription to the services.

A referral was presented to Kent Police who executed a warrant at the home address of the main suspect in Ashford, Kent.

The defendant appeared at Canterbury Crown Court and pled guilty. He was sentenced to 26 weeks imprisonment suspended for 2 years and put on a four month electronic curfew after running a business selling set-top TV boxes that enabled viewers to dodge Sky payments.

The Court ordered he pay £1,000 in costs and a financial claim to determine the loss to Sky is now underway.

ANNOUNCEMENT: Further successful conviction for card-sharing secured by Sky UK

Tue, 28 Apr 2015 00:00:00 GMT

28th April 2015

The defendant in a card sharing case conducted by Sky UK investigators, which involved a business premise providing card sharing services and the supply of pre-configured card sharing decoders enabling access to Sky Premium Pay TV channels pled guilty to fraud offences at Sheffield Crown Court. He received 20 months imprisonment suspended for 24 months plus 150 hours community work and £7,500 Proceeds Of Crime Act (POCA) order.

ANNOUNCEMENT: Seller of card-sharing decoders sentenced by Manchester Crown Court

Fri, 24 Apr 2015 00:00:00 GMT

24th April 2015

In Manchester Crown Court this week the defendant in a card sharing investigation pleaded guilty to fraud offences at the very last minute.

The case involved the sale of pre-configured card sharing decoders from a retail shop in Manchester. The decoders provided access to Sky UK premium content without authorisation. Access to Sky Italia content across the same network was also provided.

The defendant was sentenced to 120 hours community service and received a fine of £1500.

ANNOUNCEMENT: Operator of illegal streaming website in Italy sentenced to jail and fined

Mon, 16 Mar 2015 00:00:00 GMT

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A claim filed with the Italian Tax Police by Sky Italia’s Legal Department in 2012, against the owner and maintainer of an illegal streaming website called xl-it.org has resulted in the successful prosecution and conviction of the operator of the website.

The site was streaming continuously a selection of Sky Italia’s sport channels, and was operating from the Italian city of Aosta, via a streaming server based on OVH machines The operator was also using an in-house card sharing facility to fund his activities and to extract the Sky feed needed for the streaming operation.

The person in question was also able to build a squad of accomplices that helped him in some of the tasks needed to optimise Adsense revenues for his site, one of the leading sites for illegal streaming in Italy for more than the last 18 months.

On 26th February the Tribunal of Aosta sentenced Mr. Fabio Avondoglio, responsible of the conduct mentioned above , to 8 months of imprisonment and about €10K of fines and restorations fees in favour of the claimant. All the computers used for the illegal streaming will be deleted or seized.

ANNOUNCEMENT: Sky UK secures another successful conviction for card-sharing

Mon, 16 Mar 2015 00:00:00 GMT

16th March 2015

An operator of a card-sharing network has been found guilty in Harrow Crown Court of three charges relating to card sharing. Although the defendant tried for a third time to change his plea to “not guilty”, the judge ruled that the guilty plea should stand and found the defendant guilty of distributing devices which prejudiced BSkyB’s (now Sky UK) business. He was also convicted of being in possession of criminal property and being in possession of fraudulent decoders. For these latter two charges the defendant was sentenced to 6 months and 3 months imprisonment respectively, suspended for 12 months, with both sentences running concurrently. Counsel and Police also agreed that the seized assets valued at £37,290 should be forfeited.

ANNOUNCEMENT: AAPA welcomes another successful conviction

Fri, 06 Mar 2015 00:00:00 GMT

6th March 2015

AAPA welcomes successful conviction for card sharing operator in United Kingdom.

In a recent case involving AAPA member, Sky UK, Aron Lees, the operator of a pirate card sharing network was sentenced to a 12 months prison sentence suspended for 18 months and 100 hours of community service. Lees' brother was convicted of laundering the proceeds from this operation, and was sentenced to 120 hours of community service.

The card sharing operation involved the sale on eBay of configured set top boxes where access to Sky content was provided without payment to Sky. Over 12 months Lee sold over 300 boxes netting him over £30,000 (€41,000).

Sheila Cassells, Executive Director of AAPA, commented: “This is the fifth case involving card-sharing in recent weeks where the efforts of an AAPA member to fight piracy and secure convictions have led to a successful outcome. Those involved in card-sharing and other pirate activities should recognise that what they are doing is illegal and no effort will be spared in bringing them to justice.”

PRESS RELEASE: Belgian appeal court confirms conviction of illegal card-sharing operator

Fri, 27 Feb 2015 00:00:00 GMT

27th February 2015

The operator of the card sharing network hosted approximately 400 users and advertised his card sharing services through eBay in conjunction with the sale of specifically adapted decoders. An accomplice also sold subscriptions to the operator’s network in exchange for a percentage of the subscription fee. The Court of Appeal analysed in detail the card sharing system and declared the system to be illegal and contrary to EU law and its national implementing measures.

At first instance, the card sharing network operator had been sentenced to 150 hours of community service (or a 6 months jail sentence) by the criminal court of Dinant. The card sharing network operator appealed this decision and the Court of Appeal of Liège has now confirmed the infringement and increased the penalty to 250 hours of community service (or an 18 months jail sentence) and a fine of EUR 1,800 (or an additional 3 months of imprisonment).

The accomplice was convicted by default to a sentence of 5 months imprisonment, and a fine of EUR 550.

In addition, the Court of Appeal declared the income generated by the illegal practices forfeited (the amount was capped by the court) and awarded damages to the AAPA members that had brought the claim.

During police investigations it was established that since the start of the network in 2007, the operator had earned over EUR 100,000 from the illegal activities. The investigative judge found links between card sharing networks in Belgium, France and Russia. The investigation also showed that the card sharing operator had filed false declarations of theft with pay-TV providers after the cards used for the card sharing network had been seized by the Belgian police.

Commenting on this sentence, Christine Maury Panis, Vice-President of AAPA and Executive Vice-President and General Counsel of Viaccess-Orca , said that: “This case was a first, involving a joint action by most of the major pay TV operators and conditional access providers in Europe. Although the legal process has been at times slow, the result is positive. The decision provides an unambiguous and strong signal to courts, prosecutors and pirates that card sharing is clearly illegal and subject to severe and significant sentences. AAPA will continue to facilitate collaboration amongst its members in the fight against piracy, whether for card sharing cases or for streaming or for new areas such as cloud piracy. It will also continue to work with enforcement agencies, EU institutions and others to ensure that there is greater awareness of audiovisual piracy.”

PRESS RELEASE: AAPA welcomes 3 successful convictions in Germany

Fri, 20 Feb 2015 00:00:00 GMT

20th February 2015

AAPA welcomes 3 successful convictions for operating card sharing servers in Germany

In three separate criminal cases involving AAPA member, Sky Deutschland, local courts in Germany have issued fines and suspended prison sentences to operators of different card sharing servers in Recklinghausen, Munich and Pforzheim .

The case in the local court of Bochum resulted in a suspended prison sentence of 1 year and 6 months plus a fine of €2000 being imposed on the principal offender of a card sharing operation in Recklinghausen. The Bochum court stated in its decision that the card sharing operation, which had 423 users caused damage of €430,000, creating an income of €143,000 for the card sharing server operator and a loss to the fiscal authority of €34,000.

The court of Munich convicted a local card sharing server operator and issued a suspended prison sentence of 1 year and 10 months and a fine of €1700. The Munich court decreed that the card sharing activity was computer fraud on a commercial scale; the fraud being committed jointly with the users. The court cases against the users are being handled locally at the place of residence of the users: the first ones have already been concluded with the users being convicted.

The case in the local court of Pforzheim resulted in a penalty order with a suspended prison sentence of 1 year.

Andreas Rudloff, VP Platform Services and Security, Sky Deutschland, said that: "These decisions demonstrate that offering illegal access to pay TV content as well as the use of illegal content is drawing increasing attention from law enforcement. Investigations by specially trained investigation teams in combination with experienced and specialised prosecutors enable courts to decide on such criminal cases by weighing up the underlying criminal intent and allow them to apply appropriate criminal legislation".

n welcoming these German court cases Sheila Cassells, Executive Director of AAPA, commented that: "AAPA has identified a need to increase the knowledge and expertise of law enforcement officers, including prosecutors, in this increasingly complex criminal area. These decisions support the strategy of AAPA and its members to support training of law enforcement agents on a national and international level. We will continue to develop and implement training on audiovisual internet piracy."

ARTICLE: Brazil football event – streaming reality

Wed, 07 Jan 2015 00:00:00 GMT

7th January 2015

The following article appeard in EU Observatory News. You can download the full newsletter here

Many football fans and commentators alike have described this year’s World Cup as one of the most exciting tournaments in the history of the competition. That is a view which is certainly supported by the record numbers of television viewers who followed the action and by the illegal streaming. Let’s examine some figures here... though fully audited figures have to be released, the findings of anti-streaming campaigns already revealed that over the course of the tournament, 20 million fans watched games on illegal websites. Other data collected from the campaigns show that 60 % of viewers unlawfully streamed at least one match on line during the event and the Final was seen by nearly 600 000 illegal viewers. All in all, intelligent security tools deployed during the World Cup revealed that the scale of piracy was such that between 100 000 and 500 000 people tuned in to each game illegally!

Social media networks also played a critical role during the football competition both in positive and negative manner. According to Twitter, there were 618,725 tweets per minute at the end of the final match, which is a social media record. However, security solutions could identify that several of these networks were used by specific piracy groups and links. There is no more need at this stage to demonstrate that piracy IS a reality. The figures show operators and right owners that it is possible to track and fight back via intelligent tools sending take down notices to sites featuring unauthorized content. These solutions will continue to improve over time. In parallel, the fight should also be led by all actors. Not only by the security solution providers, but also by right owners and operators who could for instance make available legal streaming services in order to maximize viewing possibilities for subscribers.

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) con- tinues its mission in that respect, gathering from its members all data, raising awareness, closely working with enforcement bodies, with EU representatives and OHIM.

PRESS RELEASE: AAPA speaks at OHIM-Europol-Eurojust conference

Thu, 06 Nov 2014 00:00:00 GMT

6th November 2014

The latest in a series of conferences organised by the EU Observatory on IP Infringements (managed by OHIM) and Europol, and involving Eurojust for the first time, brought together over 100 delegates from law enforcement agencies, including the police, prosecutors and customs bodies, as well as private sector stakeholders to discuss the challenges created by the increasing use of the internet for counterfeiting and piracy. The objective of this conference was to increase the awareness and understanding of public sector enforcement agents of internet piracy and to equip them with the knowledge and skills required to take effective enforcement action.

Addressing delegates AAPA members Mark Mulready from Irdeto and Andreas Rudloff from Sky Deutschland illustrated the additional threats posed by more ubiquitous access to higher broadband speeds throughout the world and the growing problem of illegal streaming of pay audiovisual media content which damages rights holders and pay TV companies. Mark Mulready explained to delegates that illegal streaming has overtaken card-sharing as the most prevalent form of audiovisual piracy. This is being driven not only by improved global broadband penetration and speeds, but also improvements in streaming technologies and the production of low cost OTT STBs, notably in China. Extensive research shows that over 90% of illicit STBs are manufactured in Shenzhen, China, but efforts to engage the Chinese authorities in enforcement action are hindered by apparent deficiencies in Chinese law. In many cases the boxes are pre-loaded with the software necessary to gain unauthorised access to pay audiovisual content, including hundreds of live sport, movie and thematic channels, and the content may be bundled with the purchase of the STB. The boxes are used to build further illegal streaming infrastructures throughout the world, including in Europe, where Irdeto’s investigations have shown that Spain is now an important hub for the sale and distribution of pirate OTT streaming content and services.

Noting that there are intrinsic similarities in card-sharing and illegal streaming – both being based on the use of the internet for criminal purposes and generally involving multiple geographical territories - Andreas Rudloff described why swift action is required in any investigation and enforcement activity. He highlighted a crucial element in any investigation as obtaining live forensic evidence and the steps needed to obtain this. “Follow the data” is an essential parallel activity to the “Follow the money” approach in a cybercrime world and specialised skills deployed in tackling cybercrime are required. Recognising that various elements of card-sharing or streaming infrastructure can be located in different jurisdictions harmonised implementation of laws and especially swift co-operation between enforcement agencies, and with the private sector, are essential to underpin the necessary cross-border enforcement action.

Sheila Cassells said that: “Training enforcement agents how to tackle internet piracy is an essential ingredient in improving the success rate of enforcement action. This is the second know-session organised by OHIM and its partners in which AAPA has taken part and we welcome the opportunity to share our members’ extensive knowledge and expertise with the public sector and other private sector stakeholders. AAPA will continue to develop its support for training through these and other initiatives. Responding to the problems posed by the supply of illicit STBs made in China we are engaged in a series of activities aimed at enforcement action and amending the law in China.”

ARTICLE: Developing training for tackling audiovisual internet piracy

Wed, 15 Oct 2014 00:00:00 GMT

15th October 2014

The following article appeard in EU Observatory News. You can download the full newsletter here .

AAPA: Developing training for tackling audiovisual internet piracy

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA - www.aapa.eu ) reinforced its commitment to enhancing the capability of public sector enforcement agencies to take effective action against audiovisual internet piracy during a two day workshop at Interpol in Lyon.

The workshop is the start of a process whose end result will be in an online training module being hosted on the International Intellectual Property Crime Investigators College (IIPCIC) website ( www.iipcic.org) . The IIPIC is an initiative led by Interpol, delivered by the Trafficking in Illicit Goods and Counterfeiting Programme, in conjunction with Underwriters Laboratories (UL) University. The IIPCIC online training facility aims to equip IP investigators with the skills that are necessary to combat transnational organised IP crime effectively.

The AAPA module builds upon presentations given at the OHIM-Europol knowhow session on IP Crime in Sport and covers both card-sharing and illegal streaming. It will offer a detailed explanation of the dos and don'ts of investigating internet piracy: for example, what evidence to gather to support raids and prosecution, how to do so and how to preserve evidence; how to trace the money flows and the payment methods used; how to identify and collaborate with third parties who can support an investigation and action - including where cross-border enforcement is required; and how to determine the offences that are taking place, e.g. fraud; computer misuse; copyright theft; misuse of trademarks and corporate secrets; money laundering.

VIDEO: BBC North West reports Manchester police uncovering illegal streaming set-up

Fri, 10 Oct 2014 00:00:00 GMT

10th October 2014

Watch the video here http://www.aapa.eu/assets/video/news_item/bbc_news.m4v

PRESENTATION: Advertising And the Piracy Eco System

Tue, 30 Sep 2014 00:00:00 GMT

30th September 2014

Please click here to download a presentation from Interpol on advertising and the piracy eco system

This was a presentation given by Len Hynds, CSO, Modern Times Group to the International Law Enforcement IP Crime conference, Hanoi, September 2014.

PRESS RELEASE: AAPA Speaks at OHIM-Europol Know-How Conference on IP Crime in Sports

Fri, 04 Apr 2014 00:00:00 GMT

4th April 2014

At a conference organised by the EU Observatory on IP Infringements (managed by OHIM) and Europol AAPA members, Christine Maury-Panis from Viaccess-Orca and Andreas Rudloff from Sky Deutschland, presented the challenges of card sharing and illegal streaming to over 90 delegates from law enforcement agencies, including the police, prosecutors and customs bodies, as well as private sector stakeholders. It was made clear that the broadcast and online distribution of sports content forms a significant part of the sports and pay TV businesses. Consequently online piracy, whether in the form of card sharing or streaming, is a serious crime, damaging both sports rights holders and pay TV operators. Case studies were discussed during a workshop co-chaired by Sheila Cassells, Executive Director of AAPA, and Marios Aristidou from the IP Crime Unit of the Cyprus Police.

Addressing delegates from Brazil, the United States, Ukraine and EU Member States AAPA stressed the need for swift and effective cross-border enforcement action, including access to essential information. Current legal processes are considered to be cumbersome and too slow. Moreover, differences in the implementation of laws in EU Member States mean that cross-border action can be difficult. Equipping law enforcement agencies with knowledge and expertise about card sharing and illegal streaming, both infringements committed via the internet, helps to make anti-piracy activity more effective. Such expertise will also facilitate enforcement against IPR infringements of physical goods where there is growing use of the internet for distribution and illegal sales.

Sheila Cassells said that: “AAPA welcomes the opportunity to participate in the OHIM-Europol know-how conferences. These are valuable sessions which bring together private and public stakeholders facing the same problem. This allows us to share our members’ extensive knowledge and experience with the enforcement agencies, which are the essential element in successful anti-piracy activity. AAPA is also pleased to be able to exchange information about internet- based piracy with stakeholders who are now seeing a growing trend in internet distribution and sales of counterfeited goods.”

OHIM:
The Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (OHIM) manages the EU Observatory of IP Infringements and it the EU’s principal agency on IP matters. The Observatory is a network of experts and specialist stakeholders. Its objectives are to provide evidence-based contributions and data to enable EU policymakers to shape effective IP enforcement policies and to support innovation and creativity; provide data, tools and databases to support the fight against IP infringement; provide knowledge and learning programmes for IP and enforcement authorities as well as for businesses and IP practitioners; evelop initiatives to help innovators, creators and businesses (especially SMEs) protect their IP rights; and design campaigns to raise awareness of the value of IP and the negative consequences of IP infringement.

PRESS RELEASE: German court sentences card sharing operator to 18 months in prison for computer fraud

Tue, 07 Jan 2014 00:00:00 GMT

7th January 2014

The district court in Stolzenau (Lower Saxony, Germany) has pronounced a clear verdict in a criminal case against a 51-year-old man who was charging third parties to provide them with pay-TV programming illegally obtained from the pay TV company, Sky Deutschland. Services were provided to the third parties through card sharing. The defendant was sentenced to eighteen months' imprisonment without parole for commercial computer fraud carried out in partnership with others. The ruling has been appealed.

Following Sky and NAGRA's consistent measures to combat information and communication technology crime, the companies' expert tracked this case for a few years. It was suspected that the same offender had sold such illegal offers via the internet on several occasions. Sky and NAGRA, the manufacturer of one of the content protection systems used by Sky, worked closely together on intensive intelligence-gathering. On the basis of their findings, the Central Office for Combating Information and Communication Technology Crime of the Verden public prosecutor's office commenced proceedings that led to the identification and successful prosecution of the perpetrator.

Dr. Andreas Rudloff, Vice President Platform Services & Security at Sky said that "The verdict is a further decisive step in the fight against information and communication technology crimes, also known as cybercrime. Once again, a clear sign has been given that the perpetrators of these illegal activities will be brought to justice. Close cooperation between the companies affected – Sky Deutschland and NAGRA in this case - during the preliminary investigations in the black market and the persistent investigative work by the law enforcement authorities have shown that decisive, focussed action leads to success."

Pascal Métral, Vice-President Legal Affairs at NAGRA and Kudelski Security said that: “This sentence sends a strong signal to pirates and cyber criminals, whereby pay-tv piracy and cybercrime is considered as severe offences and punished as such. This decision is the result of efficient cooperation between Sky Deutschland and NAGRA andthorough investigation by the cybercrime unit of the Verden public prosecutor's office. NAGRA is continuing the battle against piracy and cybercrime to support its customers in Germany and elsewhere around the globe.”

Sheila Cassells, Executive Director of AAPA, commented that: “This case shows that persistence and tenacity pay off and demonstrates also the benefits of collaboration amongst AAPA members. Very importantly, the case has confirmed that card sharing is a computer fraud and associated investigation techniques should be applied.”

PRESS RELEASE: Irdeto Helps Dutch Police Combat Growing TV Piracy in the Netherlands

Wed, 04 Dec 2013 00:00:00 GMT

4th December 2013

With intelligence, monitoring and technology support from Irdeto, Dutch Police raid five homes suspected of illegal card sharing piracy

Through a collaborative effort between The Dutch Police, The Public Prosecution Service, Dutch TV providers and Irdeto, it was announced today that Police raided five homes in Apeldoorn, Enschede, Vlagtwedde and the Hague arresting several people suspected of operating illegal card sharing piracy networks. Last year, the Dutch Police received several tips from the largest television operators in the Netherlands and Irdeto, a media protection, revenue assurance and anti-piracy partner to the pay media industry. Extensive investigations were conducted, which culminated in the raids. The raids are part of a larger effort by all parties to take a leadership role in fighting TV piracy in the country.

“It is our intent for these raids to send a strong message that this type of TV piracy is illegal and will not be tolerated in The Netherlands,” said Ger Laning of the Dutch Police . “Piracy is a serious threat to pay media companies worldwide and to our local Dutch TV providers. We saw a unique opportunity to work with technology and anti-piracy experts like Irdeto to disrupt pirate activity. In the future, the Dutch Police will explore further actions against this form of cybercrime, which results in a revenue loss for Dutch pay TV operators.”

In 2011, after an increasing number of advertisements for pirate TV card-sharing subscriptions appeared on auction websites in the Netherlands, Irdeto and local Dutch TV providers commenced investigations into several suspects offering card sharing equipment and illegal pirate subscriptions for sale. While broadcasters and pay media operators are the most visible victims of piracy, consumers are mostly unaware that profits made from piracy can often be linked to organized crimes such as drug trafficking, money laundering and tax evasion.

In 2012, Irdeto and the local TV providers jointly referred several cases to the Dutch Police with supporting evidence. Ongoing investigations revealed that card sharing networks in question were also providing unauthorized pirated access to international pay TV channels provided by operators like M7 Group, who then joined as complainants to the Dutch Police. With the raids now executed, all the evidence from the raids will be analyzed and The Public Prosecution Service will make a determination regarding any further criminal charges which may be filed in the coming months.

“The impact of piracy can be reduced, and Irdeto and its partners have taken the important first steps in a campaign to combat this illegal activity,” said Sheila Cassells, Executive Director of the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) . “Many individuals feel that all content should be free, and may not fully understand how piracy affects a business. That’s why AAPA and its members are working hard to address the theft of TV services. Actions such as these send a clear message to consumers that piracy is wrong and there are better, more compelling alternatives.”

Card sharing piracy poses a major threat to pay TV operators and broadcasters and occurs when a pirate steals and retransmits a regularly changing control word that is passed between a smart card and a set-top-box (STB), allowing subscribers to watch TV content they have not legitimately paid for.

The comprehensive evidence packages regarding these illegal card sharing networks were largely prepared by Irdeto, a technology and subject matter expert in anti-piracy with a string of successful investigations and prosecutions with operators such as MultiChoice Africa, UPC DTH, M7 Group and FOXTEL.

“Irdeto remains dedicated to identifying and countering organized criminal enterprises who wish to circumvent our customers’ security measures and financially profit from pirated content,” said Rob Van Nunen, Senior Security Director for Irdeto. “Understanding where piracy is occurring – and actively taking measures to stop it – is pivotal to successfully growing revenues and protecting the pay TV business model. We do this by working closely with local law enforcement like the Dutch Police and through our advanced, sophisticated network of technical and anti-piracy experts. It’s a discover, disrupt and discredit approach that we’ve seen growing success with over the past several years.”

PRESS RELEASE: AAPA joint action sees convictions

Mon, 25 Nov 2013 00:00:00 GMT

25th November 2013

On 14 November 2013, the criminal court of Dinant sentenced the network operator to 150 hours of community service (or a 6 months jail sentence) and ordered the forfeiture of his assets used for the infringement as well as the confiscation of EUR 111,139.25.

The accomplice was convicted by default to a deferred sentence of 4 months imprisonment, confiscation of assets used and an amount equivalent to EUR 2,135.

Commenting on the judgment Christine Maury-Panis, VP of AAPA and EVP and General Counsel of Viaccess-Orca said that “this conviction not only shows once more that the Belgian courts will impose criminal sanctions on those involved in audiovisual piracy it also demonstrates the benefits of AAPA members combining their expertise, resources and commitment to pursues effective enforcement action against pirates. The fact that the networks used were established not only in the EU but in Russia also re-affirms our commitment to work with our international partners to fight piracy on a global basis. Extending collaboration beyond AAPA members could also help to speed up the judicial process.”

In 2009, a number of members of the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (then AEPOC), including platform operators, content providers and conditional access technology companies, combined to file a complaint with the criminal court of Dinant claiming damages from the persons responsible.

Early in 2010, the judicial police of Dinant raided the private house of the card sharing operator and seized the computers, cards, hard disks and a mobile phone used for the card sharing practices. It was established that since the start of the network in 2007, the operator had earned over EUR 100,000 from the illegal activities.

The investigative judge found links between card sharing networks in Belgium, France and Russia. The investigation also showed that the card sharing operator had filed false declarations of theft with pay-TV providers after the cards used for the card sharing network had been seized by the Belgian police.

The judgment is still subject to appeal.

Note to editors:

The case was filed in 2009 by members of AAPA’s predecessor association, AEPOC. The members involved are BSkyB, Irdeto, Liberty Global, NAGRA, NDS, Sky Deutschland, and Viaccess-Orca.

ARTICLE: Card Sharing Prosecution In Belgium

Tue, 22 Oct 2013 00:00:00 GMT

22nd October 2013

Article form La Nouvelle Gazette in Belgium regarding the recent prosecution in Dinant of a man for card sharing of CanalSat services via the internet.

http://www.lanouvellegazette.be/836987/article/actualite/l-info-en-continu/2013-10-17/tc-dinant-dix-huit-mois-avec-sursis-requis-pour-avoir-sous-loue-un-bouquet

ARTICLE: Euromedia Content Security Edition Features AAPA IBC Event

Mon, 21 Oct 2013 00:00:00 GMT

21st October 2013

Advanced Television has published a Content Security Special edition of Euromedia, which is now also available as an e-reader here:

http://www.joomag.com/en/magInfo/0032291001381901150

PRESS RELEASE: Anti-piracy associations declare commitment to global co-operation

Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:00:00 GMT

20th September 2013

At an event sponsored by the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA), John Medeiros representing CASBAA, Pascal Metral for the Alianza contra la Pireteria de Television Paga, David Wuergler from STOP - Nordic Content Protection, Scott Butler for the Arabian Anti-Piracy Alliance and Christine Maury-Panis of AAPA committed to work together to strengthen the fight against audiovisual piracy.

Recognising that piracy is a shared problem and that many techniques and perpetrators are active across regions the associations agreed to create an informal network which will allow information about instances of piracy, new sources of piracy, new trends in piracy, etc., to be shared quickly and securely.

Sharing information and intelligence will also enable the associations and their members’ security specialists to collaborate on cross-border enforcement activities and cases.

Commenting on the event Sheila Cassells, Executive Director of AAPA, said that

“This is a first, important step in our collective commitment to fight audiovisual piracy. Each association has valuable intelligence which can be utilised to support all our members in their efforts to bring pirates to court and stamp out activities which damage businesses and consumers alike. We want to build upon this network and invite other associations with the same goal to join us.”

John Medeiros, Chief Policy Officer, CASBAA said: “International pirate syndicates operate with impunity across national lines, using the internet to drive the world to the lowest common denominator of IP protection. In this situation, the legitimate industries badly need to connect and share.”

Pascal Métral, VP of Legal Affairs, NAGRA and co-executive Director for the Alianza, said: “Putting in place a collaboration model – even informal – between regional anti-piracy organisations is key to successfully addressing the current pay-TV piracy threats which more and more have Internet-related and trans-border aspects”.

David Würgler, CEO, " It is a pleasure to see that it is possible for the TV business worldwide to unite and face the problems with piracy together. I am sure that there are a lot of experiences and know how that can be exchanged to the benefit of all."

Christine Maury-Panis, EVP General Counsel, Viaccess-Orca and VP, AAPA said: "I am proud that AAPA originated this initiative and am pleased that Nordic Content Protection - STOP, CASBAA, the Arabian Anti-Piracy Alliance and Alianza have made it a reality. This will greatly enhance our efficiency in the fight against piracy. I hope that other associations will join us on this is a major step forward. “

During the event the group identified other areas – such as the need to better educate legislators and enforcement agencies about audiovisual piracy both to support enforcement action and to promote a more harmonised legal regime – where the associations will work together also. To this end, AAPA will be hosting a workshop at the Interpol International Law Enforcement IP crime conference in Dublin next month where they will share the learnings from that with the other associations.

PRESS RELEASE: INSIDE Secure & ADB partner to secure premium content mobile apps

Thu, 12 Sep 2013 00:00:00 GMT

12th Septemer 2013

Aix-en-Provence, France, September 12, 2013 - Continuing to gain momentum as a leader in premium content security, INSIDE Secure (NYSE Euronext: INSD) today announces it is working with Advanced Digital Broadcast (SIX: ADBN), a leading provider of advanced solutions for the connected home, to create secure, premium content iOS and Android(TM) mobile apps for operators. The first deployment emanating from the partnership is for nc+, the leading pay-TV platform in Poland.

ADB is using INSIDE's downloadable DRM Fusion(TM) Agent client software to secure nc+'s new GO apps for smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices and to enable secure over-the-top (OTT) delivery of premium content to new and current subscribers.

"As Poland's leading premium direct-to-home (DTH) operator, nc+ prides itself on offering the most technologically advanced services," said Jan Frelek, new business development director at nc+. "Now, through our partnership with ADB and with downloadable DRM Fusion Agent software embedded in the nc+GO mobile apps, we are able to deliver premium content to our customers' mobile devices, such as Android and iOS phones and tablets."

Over-the-top (OTT) content delivery is revolutionizing the way video, television and other services are delivered to consumers. It utilizes the internet as the conduit rather than a service provider's own dedicated, managed IPTV network. It also offers pay-TV providers a way to retain existing subscribers by extending their service to mobile devices and to attract new subscribers who are interested in watching premium content on mobile devices.

"We needed a downloadable DRM solution for our premium content mobile apps that just worked and did not compromise the content owner or our operator customers in any way," said Krzysztof Bilinski, general manager and broadcast division head at ADB. "INSIDE Secure's downloadable DRM Fusion Agent fits the bill perfectly because it is a proven technology that is trusted by the major premium content owners. It also enables customers, such as nc+, to offer secure OTT-based services to existing and prospective subscribers wanting to watch premium content on mobile devices."

INSIDE's downloadable DRM Fusion Agent client software offers developers the critical Microsoft PlayReady, Windows Media DRM, OMA DRM 2.X and/or UltraViolet security they need to embed in their mobile apps. A single API provides easy access to all the supported DRM technologies, which can be chosen at compile time to save on costs. An additional Java API is provided for the Android platform for Java application integration. DRM Fusion Agent is pre-integrated with the iOS native media player and can be provided pre-integrated with third party media players if additional media codecs and formats are required.

"ADB is one of the world's leading providers of pay-TV solutions and we are pleased to have them join the growing list of system integrators, broadcasters, content providers, cable operators and other customers that have chosen our downloadable DRM Fusion Agent to provide premium content security for their mobile apps," said Dr. Simon Blake-Wilson, executive vice president of the ESS business line at INSIDE Secure. "Consumers worldwide are already using mobile apps with DRM Fusion Agent embedded in them and we look forward to working with ADB as they expand the deployment of their mobile apps with additional customers around the globe."

About Advanced Digital Broadcast
ADB ( http://www.adbglobal.com) improves the experience and service that pay-TV and broadband operators bring to subscribers through personalized TV, advanced voice and data. We are focused on evolving the connected home into a connected life that increases subscriber satisfaction and operator revenues in a sustainable and easily managed way. Our integrated hardware and software solutions blend broadcast and broadband to connect subscribers with content and services by creating a personal and unified experience across all devices. We partner with our customers to provide complete solutions including software, consumer premises devices, consulting and engineering services and support. Our customers are some of the world's leading cable, satellite, IPTV and broadband operators including Canal Digital, nc+, Swisscom, Telefonica, Telekom Austria and Telenet.

ADB is a member of ADB Group. ADB Group http://www.adbholdings.com is publicly listed on the Swiss Stock Exchange (SIX: ADBN).

About nc+ platform
nc+ is an advanced digital platform with the richest offer, established by the merger of the two market leaders CYFRA+ and n. It has nearly 130 selected channels of the highest quality, including 50 in HD. nc+ offers the most prestigious sporting events and the latest film premieres straight from cinemas, available on six CANAL+ Premium channels. nc+ also stands for the latest user-friendly technologies, including: PVR, MULTIROOM, i.e. TV even in six rooms at the same time; VOD+ and netVOD - programs and films on demand, available after connecting the set-top box to the Internet; nc+GO mobile app that enables watching TV on a tablet or smartphone. By combining the broadest offer of selected content and the latest technology, nc+ redefines the concept of modern entertainment.

About INSIDE Secure
INSIDE Secure (NYSE Euronext Paris FR0010291245 - INSD.PA) is a leading designer, developer and supplier of semiconductors, embedded software and platforms for secure transactions and digital security. INSIDE mobile NFC, secure payment and digital security products provide security for a wide range of information processing, storage and transmission applications. The company's customers are found in a wide range of markets, including mobile payment, identification documents, access control, transit, electronic device manufacturing, pay television and mobile service operators. For more information, visit http://www.insidesecure.com.

ARTICLE: Fight Against Audiovisual Piracy Goes Global

Wed, 04 Sep 2013 00:00:00 GMT

4th September 2013

Broadband TV News previews AAPA's 'unique' event at IBC next week.

Click on the link to read the full article: http://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2013/09/02/fight-against-audiovisual-piracy-goes-global/

EVENT: Fighting Audiovisual Piracy On A Global Basis

Mon, 08 Jul 2013 00:00:00 GMT

8th July 2013

An AAPA sponsored event at IBC

Saturday 14 September 2013 at 1700 to 1930

Holland Restaurant, RAI, Amsterdam

Piracy does not recognise national or regional boundaries: it is a global phenomenon requiring international action to tackle piracy effectively. Already the internet is used to facilitate and exploit piracy mechanisms, such as card sharing. Piracy moves swiftly across borders, requiring cross-border, multi-jurisdictional anti-piracy enforcement in response. As more and more content is made available online the need for globally co-ordinated anti-piracy action becomes greater.

Laws and enforcement agency resources have tended to reflect national and regional boundaries. Audiovisual anti-piracy associations have followed the same geographic pattern.

Please join us for this AAPA sponsored event chaired by Sian Jones. We will bring together regionally-based associations such as CASBAA, AAA, STOPNordic and Alianza Contra la Piratería de Televisión Paga and international enforcement agencies such as Europol to introduce a globally co-ordinated approach to fight audiovisual piracy. It will discuss how international laws and agreements can be enhanced; how international enforcement agencies can be supported by the associations and their members; and how the associations themselves can work together to address the growing global challenges.

The event will be followed by a reception, offering networking opportunities with representatives of pay TV companies, content security vendors, and enforcement bodies.

If you would like to attend this event please contact miranda@aapa.eu

If you have not already registered for IBC you can do so here: https://ibc.itnint.com/IBC13/RegOnline/RegLogin.aspx

I Look forward to welcoming you.

Sheila Cassells, Executive Director, AAPA

PRESS RELEASE - New arrests and sentences for piracy of pay TV signal in Greece and Cyprus

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 00:00:00 GMT

17th June 2013

Continued efforts by the police electronic crime prosecution departments in Greece and Cyprus have resulted in twelve more cases involving piracy of pay TV satellite services. These were heard before the Public Prosecutor and criminal prosecutions have been initiated against the defendants.

Since 2010, when the first judgments were pronounced for the piracy of pay TV signal in Greece, there have been 17 sentences in total. Sentences range from imprisonment of 6 months to 9 years and with corresponding monetary penalties of up to €32,000.

The more recent sentence on 7 June this year constitutes a significant case, involving one of the largest criminal networks in Greece and with much heavier penalties being imposed. The defendant, who was distributing keys to decode pay TV services, was sentenced to 6 years’ imprisonment, a fine of €20,000, deprivation of civil rights for 3 years, confiscation and destruction of the seized material and forfeiture of a guarantee of €5,000. The court also judged that the lodge of an appeal will not be permitted in this case.

The ever growing number of arrests by the police electronic crime prosecution departments of Greece and Cyprus for technical piracy and illegal trading of the pay TV signals demonstrates the seriousness with which the authorities now deal with the problem of the piracy of pay TV signal. It signifies also important developments in the legislative approach. Specifically, piracy of the pay TV signal now constitutes a felonious act, resulting in criminal prosecutions.

Consumers who purchase pay TV from suppliers who have obtained the pay TV signal illegally risk losing significant sums of money, either because the pirates may be detected and criminally prosecuted, resulting in the interruption of their illegitimate service, or because, as in many cases, their “suppliers” may just disappear. There is no guarantee or security that those who chose to obtain pay TV services in this way.

The Executive Director of AAPA, Sheila Cassells, stated: “AAPA, congratulates the police electronic crime prosecution authorities in Greece and Cyprus for their continued successes with regard to the fight against piracy. The Greek courts are sending a very clear signal that piracy will not be tolerated, and, importantly, is a criminal offence likely to incur serious penalties. Consumers who resort to illegal sources for pay TV services should also understand the implications. AAPA and its members will continue to support the police authorities in their efforts to fight piracy.”

ARTICLE: Control word sharing demands a new approach to content security

Tue, 04 Jun 2013 00:00:00 GMT

4th June 2013

Click on the link below understand Viaccess’ approach to control word sharing in an article written by John Moulding which appears on Videonet.

http://www.v-net.tv/control-word-sharing-demands-a-new-approach-to-content-security/

PRESS RELEASE: Piracy cases in Czech Republic and Slovakia yield results

Mon, 11 Feb 2013 00:00:00 GMT

11th February 2013

Demonstrate effectiveness of collaboration and police support

Two new cases of the piracy practice known as card sharing have been brought to resolution in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The cases involved the theft of services from UPC DTH S.à r.l. (operating the brand freeSAT in these markets) enabling the illegal reception of services and depriving UPC of payment.

Following criminal complaints filed by UPC DTH S.à r.l., whose parent company Liberty Global is a member of AAPA (Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance), the matter was addressed in co-operation with Irdeto (conditional access system provider to freeSAT service) and local police authorities in Czech Republic and Slovakia.

Two full investigations were conducted with partner to UPC DTH S.à r.l., and member of AAPA. Both Irdeto and the local police provided high levels of cooperation and skill, leading to the successful prosecutions.

The defendants in both cases pleaded guilty and have accepted the settlements requiring them to pay UPC DTH several thousand Euros compensation.

In the Czech Republic case, the court conditionally closed the criminal proceedings as the defendant pleaded guilty, settled to cover the claimed damage and had no previous criminal history. The court also set up a probationary period of two years.

In the Slovak case, the police successfully closed the investigation and the state attorney closed the case due to the fact that defendant pleaded guilty, settled to cover the claimed damage and had no previous criminal history.

In welcoming the decision the AAPA's Executive Director, Sheila Cassells, said that "these are cases which show that this and that local officials fully support the need to maintain the legitimate protection of the services our members provide to paying customers in these countries. AAPA will continue to support its members in taking necessary action."

Magnus Ternsjö, MD of UPC DTH S.à r.l added, "we have made many technological improvements to limit the ability of thieves to steal our services but we cannot be fully successful without the support of local law enforcement to apprehend and prosecute those who try to circumvent our security to illegally provide services to others. We have further pending cases and count on additional success in gaining significant restitution and sentencing that includes putting people behind bars. We are and will always go after people we can prove are involved with illegal activities and violate our terms and conditions. These activities not only include "card sharing" piracy, but also frauds committed by individuals and groups which harm UPC DTH and our paying customers. We appreciate very much the support of the law enforcement officials in the countries, Irdeto, as well as AAPA and praise them for helping us to successfully convict people who have been involved with piracy and other related criminal activities."

Rory O'Connor, VP of Services at Irdeto, commented, "The collaboration between S.à r.l., AAPA , the Irdeto Anti-Piracy and Forensics Unit and local authorities sends a strong message to criminals that media piracy will not go unpunished. The verdicts of these cases will act as a strong deterrent to others who undertake in such illegal activity and is an extremely pleasing outcome that follows recent successful prosecutions in Greece, Belgium and Netherlands. Irdeto will continue to work closely with our customers and local authorities to understand where piracy is occurring - and actively taking measures to counter and stop it."

Note to editors

1. The defendants were distributing to third parties the decoding keys of pay TV programmes from freeSAT via the internet. Users were then able to view programmes without subscription, using the illegitimately adapted set top boxes or private boxes suitable for piracy activities.

2. In the Czech Republic the matter was handled by Police Presidium of Czech Republic (Policejní prezídium ČR), the Department of economic crime and police in the city of Kromeriz (Oddělení hospodářské kriminality PČR Kroměříz). In Slovakia the case was handled by Police Presidium of Slovakia (Policejní prezídium SR) and the County department of police in Prievidza (Obvodné oddelenie PZ Prievidza).

AAPA contact:
Sheila Cassells:
+44 7500 243 136

Sheila.cassells@aapa.eu

Miranda Rock

+44 7957 391 498

Rocket Launch for AAPA

Miranda@rocketlaunch.co.uk

.........

UPC DTH S.à r.l contact:
Jim Helfgott

+352 26 84 70 21

press@upcdth.lu

Irdeto contact:

Laura Strong

Ruder Finn for Irdeto

Office: +44 (0)20 7438 3070

lstrong@ruderfinn.co.uk

Katie Judd

Senior Manager, Public Relations, Irdeto

Office: 415-967-7148

Mobile: 603-738-9599

Katie.Judd@irdeto.com

About AAPA

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) represents companies involved in the provision of protected audiovisual services, security technology for such services, and the manufacturing of products, which facilitate the delivery of such services. AAPA's mission is to enable the fight against piracy which involves the development, promotion, distribution, application or use of technologies resulting in the unauthorised use of protected audiovisual content, by co-ordinating intelligence and action supported by effective legislation and its implementation.

Supplementing companies own activities, AAPA brings it members together to share information about piracy activities and to co-ordinate their actions, where appropriate. Effective action requires appropriate and effective legislation, implemented consistently across the EU in the first instance, supported by global co-ordination. Through the activities of its members and the work of the Intelligence Committee AAPA is able to identify where legislation can be improved. AAPA maintains a dialogue with the EU institutions to promote effective legislation.

AAPA members are committed to investing in, developing, implementing and maintaining robust protection systems to support existing and new means of distributing protected audiovisual content. AAPA works to inform stakeholders about the importance of effective content protection in the context of technological developments, such as hybrid TV and the cloud.

Current AAPA members:
BSkyB, Conax, Eutelsat, INSIDE Secure, Irdeto, Liberty Global, Melita, Nagra, NDS, Nova, Open Tech, Pace, Sky Deutschland, Sky Italia, Verimatrix, Viaccess, Ziggo, Zon

About UPC DTH S.à r.l.

UPC DTH S.à r.l. is a high quality provider of satellite television services based in Luxembourg, the European capital of satellite services. It provides services to Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and manages the satellite television services of the provider in Romania. Its Direct-To-Home (DTH) service, known as UPC Direct in the Hungarian market, freeSAT in the Czech and Slovak markets and Focus Sat in Romania has more than 675,000 customers (as per 30 September 2012). UPC DTH S.à r.l. offers its customers more channels, better content, award winning customer service and superior signal quality, including crystal-clear high-definition programming. UPC DTH S.à r.l. is part of Liberty Global, Inc.

About Liberty Global

Liberty Global is the leading international cable company, with operations in 13 countries. We connect people to the digital world and enable them to discover and experience its endless possibilities. Our market-leading television, broadband internet, and telephony services are provided through next-generation networks and innovative technology platforms that connect 20 million customers who subscribe to 34 million services as of September 30, 2012.

Liberty Global's consumer brands include UPC, Unitymedia, Kabel BW, Telenet and VTR. Our operations also include Chellomedia, our content division, UPC Business, a commercial services division and Liberty Global Ventures, our investment fund. For more information, please visit www.lgi.com .

About Irdeto

Irdeto is a world leader in media protection, multi-screen and revenue assurance solutions for pay media companies. Through its innovative conditional access, dynamic monetization content security and anti-piracy technologies, the company allows new forms of distribution for broadcast, broadband and mobile entertainment. Regionally headquartered in Amsterdam, Beijing, and San Francisco, the company employs approximately 1,000 people in 24 locations around the world. Irdeto is a subsidiary of multinational media group Naspers (JSE: NPN). Please visit Irdeto at www.irdeto.com

PRESS RELEASE: MultiChoice Africa and Irdeto Join Forces to Fight Pay TV Broadcast Piracy

Fri, 25 Jan 2013 00:00:00 GMT

25 January 2013

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PRESS RELEASE - New sentences in Greece for pay TV piracy

Wed, 09 Jan 2013 00:00:00 GMT

6th January 2013

In two new judgments the Three-member Felonies Appellate Court of Athens has found two defendants guilty of piracy offences, involving card sharing, and issued a sentence of 9 years imprisonment to one of the accused.

The defendants were distributing to third party customers via the internet the decoding keys of pay TV programmes from NOVA. Users were then able to view programmes without subscription using illegitimately adapted set top boxes.

Following complaints filed by AAPA (Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance) member, Multichoice Hellas S.A., the Three-member Felonies Appellate Court of Athens, declared the defendants guilty of repeated violation, for their own gain, of laws regarding the protection of intellectual property, and the legal protection of the pay TV services.

The Court, in one case, declared the defendant guilty on all three grounds, imposing a penalty of a 9year prison sentence and a fine of €32,000.

In the second case, the Court found the defendant guilty of violating the legal protection of intellectual property, imposing a 3 year prison sentence and €8,000 fine. The defendant's sentence was suspended in recognition of previous good conduct.

In welcoming the decision of the Greek court AAPA's Executive Director, Sheila Cassells, said that "these are very significant judgments which demonstrate that audiovisual piracy will be treated as a serious felony, resulting in possible imprisonment, and substantial fines, in Greece. Those involved in piracy in Greece and other countries should take note of the seriousness with which courts deal with piracy."

AAPA represents companies involved in the provision of protected audiovisual services, security technology for such services, and the manufacturing of products, which facilitate the delivery of such services. AAPA's mission is to enable the fight against piracy where this involves the development, promotion, distribution, application or use of technologies resulting in the unauthorised use of protected audiovisual content, by co-ordinating intelligence and action supported by effective legislation and its implementation.

For more information about AAPA's work visit www.aapa.eu

AAPA contact:
Sheila Cassells:
+44 7500 243 136

Media enquiries:
Miranda Rock:
+44 7957 391 498

Notes to editors:
The laws involved are: Law 2121/1993 regarding the protection of intellectual property, 386A on fraud through a computer and PD 343/2002 on the legal protection of pay TV services.

PRESS RELEASE - AAPA launches in Paris at the HbbTV Symposium

Mon, 17 Dec 2012 00:00:00 GMT

17th December 2012

The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA – www.aapa.eu ) was launched in Paris today, 17 December 2012. AAPA represents the major players in the pay TV industry, including the largest technology security vendors. The Alliance’s mission is to support the fight against piracy where this involves the development, promotion, distribution, application or use of technologies resulting in the unauthorised use of protected audiovisual content.

Building upon the work of its predecessor AEPOC, AAPA’s role is to facilitate the co-ordination of intelligence and anti-piracy activities amongst its members and to interact with EU institutions to ensure that there is effective legislation to achieve successful enforcement action.

Commenting on the launch of AAPA, Vice-President Christine Maury-Panis, General Counsel at Viaccess, said that:

“ Piracy never goes away. As new technologies emerge and new ways of distributing audiovisual content become more popular, it is crucial that we have all the possible tools to work with collaboratively against the persistent threat of piracy, which causes enormous damage to jobs in the creative and other sectors. AAPA provides an efficient industry alliance which is able to support the fight against piracy of paid content delivered via the set top box, mobile phone, tablet, etc.”

Launching AAPA at the HbbTV Symposium in Paris, Sheila Cassells, AAPA Executive Director, commented that:

“At IBC two years ago we started a discussion about the security issues surrounding connected TV. Since then AAPA members have been active in developing security for smart TVs, etc and making OTT content available. We need to ensure that all stakeholders recognise the importance of implementing and maintaining content security robustly and this Symposium provides an opportunity to continue to reinforce this message.”

AAPA invited to be private sector representative of the EU Observatory on IP Infringements

Mon, 12 Nov 2012 00:00:00 GMT

12th November 2012

The President of the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (OHIM), which manages the EU Observatory, has invited AAPA to join the group of private sector representatives participating in the Observatory to ensure appropriate balance, transparency and coverage of sectors most affected by IP infringements.

Sheila Cassells, Executive Director, welcoming AAPA’s appointment, said that the Observatory plays a key role on bringing together the private and public sector to support the continual fight against IP infringements. AAPA looks forward to contributing to the Observatory’s work and playing and active role in its work programme.

Euromedia Opinion Article by AAPA Executive Director

Sun, 11 Nov 2012 00:00:00 GMT

11th November 2012

Sheila Cassells, Executive Director of AAPA, has provided an opinion piece for the October 2012 issue of EUROMEDIA.

Click here to download a copy of the article.

Industry debate promoted by AEPOC

Fri, 16 Sep 2011 00:00:00 GMT

16th September 2011

An IBC discussion organised by AEPOC and Intellect , and hosted by Eutelsat, explored the challenges around content protection in the connected TV and hybrid worlds.

Moderated by Julian Clover from Broadband TV News, Christine Maury-Panis, Executive Vice President and General Counsel, Viaccess-France Telecom and Vice President of AEPOC, highlighted the security challenges of the connected TV space.

In Viaccess' view security requires that there is interoperability between several technologies, including third party DRMs, and the devising of a customised solution which avoids a "one hack fits all" threat. This customised eco-system works in parallel with an 360 degree security service, involving monitoring, surveying, maintenance and providing legal back-up. Security is more than choosing a technology - it involves taking overall responsibility for its operation and renewal.

This standpoint was reflected in the comments by Sylvain Audigier, Director of Department of Innovation, New Technologies and Networks at TF1, who revealed the broadcaster's decision to select two DRM systems. For deployment of TF1 services on connected TVs the HbbTV standard provides many advantages such as one single workflow for all devices.

Brian Lenz, Director of Product Design and Development at BSkyB, said that Sky Go had launched only on the closed iOS Apple system. He confirmed that it is more difficult to distribute the service via devices using Android.

Metin Salt, Vice President of Engineering at CE-manufacturer Vestel, acknowledged the security challenges and pointed to the impact of the connected phenomenon, which transforms Vestel to a service company, establishing consumer relationships. Vestel is now making direct deals with content owners.

Some 35 participants from Europe, the US and Latin-America attended.

Content Protection: connected TV’s big challenge

Mon, 12 Sep 2011 00:00:00 GMT

12th September 2011

Manufacturers will probably have meet the cost of software updates for connected TVs, according Metin Salt, VP of engineering at Vestel.

However, they will also see this an opportunity to establish a relationship with, and thereby provide a better service to, the consumer.

Speaking in a discussion on connected TV and content protection organised by AEPOC and Intellect, hosted by Eutelsat, he added that Vestel is now making deals with content owners, “which is a new world for us.”

What is more, Vestel is also being transformed from a hardware into a software company. Sylvain Audigier, broadcasting, innovation and new technology director at TF1, meanwhile revealed that the broadcaster has opted for not one but two DRMs and aims to have them embedded by the spring of next year.

He also spoke about the many advantages of HbbTV for TF1, which include one workflow for all devices; not having to sign a contract with each manufacturer; and taking control of the consumer when they press the Red Button.

Brain Lenz, director of product development at BSkyB, said that while the Sky Go service launched on the iPad and iPhone, using NDS DRM, in the knowledge that Apple is a closed system, it will be more difficult to do so on Android as “there is no reliable secure content distribution that has been solidified.”

He added that Sky currently regards tablets and consoles as “more of a target” than connected TVs, which only have the Sky News app.

Christine Maury-Panis, executive VP and general counsel, Viaccess, meanwhile said that the company plans to leverage over 20 years experience in the pay-TV sector to become the provider of end-to-end security in the new connected TV space.

http://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2011/09/12/content-protection-connected-tv%E2%80%99s-big-challenge/

Successful anti-piracy activity in Portugal

Sun, 11 Sep 2011 00:00:00 GMT

11th September 2011

Portuguese Police stop card sharing ring
Belgium appellate court confirms decision of Court of Tongeren

AEPOC, Europe's audiovisual anti-piracy association, brings more news about the constant fight against piracy. In Portugal AEPOC member ZON assisted in bringing successful action against activities designed to defraud rightsholders in June. In Belgium a major anti-piracy ruling was recently confirmed by the appellate court.

Portugal: Police dismantle card sharing ring
Following several investigations in the areas of Lisbon, Guarda and the north of the country Portuguese police dismantled a card sharing network which provided unauthorised access to TV content. According to information released by the police the network was operated by two individuals and had over 650 customers. Profits of about €5,000 per month were being earned. More than 10 card sharing servers where seized together with some 100 pirate decoders.

Belgium: Appellate Court confirms sentence
The appellate court of Antwerp confirmed the decision of the Court of Tongeren to impose €1,850,000 in damages and an 18 months' prison sentence on an individual found guilty of selling unauthorised viewing cards. From 2006 to 2008 cards giving illegal access to Sky Deutschland in Germany and Austria were sold. The second instance court has now confirmed the compensation payment and the 18 months prison sentence - with eight months as suspended sentence. The accused is meanwhile appealing again. Several other accused involved in this case had accepted the 2010 judgement, including one pirate sentenced to €180,000 payment in damages and eight months in prison. This took the total sum of damages payable to Sky to the record sum of more than €2 million in combination with severe prison sentences.

Police arrest another six suspects to stop illegal distribution of Pay-TV content

Thu, 07 Jul 2011 00:00:00 GMT

7th July 2011

Six more servers seized distributing illegally BFBS, BSkyB and Nova from Cyprus - total of 11 servers dismantled in past 3 weeks
German court interrogates 70 witnesses to prove commercial character of pirate activity during 2-year trial
UK court sends card sharer to prison

AEPOC, the European Association for the Protection of Encrypted Works and Services, confirms another police investigation in Cyprus seizing six more card sharing servers and stopping six new suspects offering illegal subscriptions for BFBS, BSkyB and Nova. Earlier in June a first police operation, supported and initiated by AEPOC members including Irdeto, saw a Cypriot man arrested for providing illicit Pay-TV subscriptions to some 1.400 clients in Europe. The police believe the six new suspects are connected to the first case. In both incidents card sharing networks distributed codes to illegally access Pay-TV content.

Close collaboration of AEPOC members with the Cypriot police continues to be successful - and action has been swift. The intense, but comparatively short, operation took six months, including preparation and undercover investigation. In the past three weeks a total of 11 card sharing servers have been dismantled in Cyprus. The accused in the first case has already admitted the charges.

A recent court case in Germany required more time and resilience. After a two year trial a man was sentenced to two years imprisonment for having offered illicit pirate software to access Pay-TV services, including those of Premiere, the predecessor company of Sky Deutschland. The operator had filed the initial complaint for this criminal law case and also served as an expert witness during the court hearing. With the accused denying the charges until the very end, the court of Bautzen conducted 16 hearings over the past two years and interrogated some 70 witnesses to prove the commercial character of the pirate activity. According to German law on "computer fraud" it is necessary to demonstrate the objective of commercial gain or to prove a criminal act to impose a severe punishment. Initially some 972 individual incidents of piracy were brought to court, which the prosecutors reduced to 100 to limit the scope of the already long-haul trial. The final judgjudg ment was based on 42 incidents of computer fraud committed by the man.

A smaller card sharing incident in the UK was successfully stopped, following evidence passed to the West Yorkshire Police by BSkyB and FACT . On May 31 2011, the owner of a satellite supplies shop in Leeds was sentenced to 14 days imprisonment and a fine of £2,000 by the Leeds Crown Court for having offered illicit services to some 36 clients to access several broadcast channels. While the network was of smaller dimension the judgment, rightly, underlines the criminal nature of Pay-TV piracy.

Sheila Cassells, AEPOC's Executive Director, commented: "AEPOC is pleased to see such swift action by the Cypriot police to stop these large scale card sharing network. This is only the beginning, with AEPOC members currently preparing several more investigations. AEPOC and its members are determined to do all that is required to reduce piracy."

Joint police and industry action brings down card sharing pirate

Tue, 21 Jun 2011 00:00:00 GMT

21st June 2011

Police raid in Cyprus stops largest case of commercial card sharing
BFBS and AEPOC members BSkyB, Nova and Irdeto initiated undercover investigation
Pirate provider admits charges – nearly 1,400 illegal viewers fear consequences

AEPOC, the European Association for the Protection of Encrypted Works and Services, welcomes the successful police operation against a large scale pay-TV pirate in Cyprus. The investigation was initiated by AEPOC members and its partners – BFBS, BSkyB, Nova and Irdeto supported the undercover action during past months and assisted the police in a raid with a team of specialists: On June 14th a 49-year-old Cypriot man was arrested for illegally providing subscriptions to the pay-TV offerings of BFBS, BSkyB and Nova. The accused has already admitted the charges. The police are still seeking a second suspect. Servers, computers and associated equipment have been seized to undergo a forensic examination.

The pirate is accused of having provided illegal pay-TV subscriptions to nearly 1,400 clients in Cyprus and across Europe – at least within the timeframe October 2010 to May 2011 earning a minimum of some €100,000 according to first findings. For giving illicit access to the pay-TV channels the man and the second suspect established a network of five servers which distributed the required access codes from single, legitimate but abused smart cards to the clients’ equipment. This case represents one of the largest incidents of commercial pay-TV piracy based on “card sharing”, given the harmful potential of five robust servers – and is the biggest case for Cyprus. The man is said to have sold illegal three, six and 12-months subscriptions for €55, €89 and €155, respectively.

The police focus their investigation on the accused in view of commercial piracy but did not rule out that also the individual clients who purchased the illicit subscriptions could have to fear consequences: EU legislation such as the Conditional Access Directive and other protection such as copyright laws forbid the use of pirate equipment to access audiovisual services such as pay-TV. The action was initiated by AEPOC members and their partners towards the end of 2010, followed by a carefully prepared undercover operation during four months. Close collaboration of the industry to support the Cypriot enforcement authorities proved very successful to bring down this pirate activity in a record time.

Michael Barley, AEPOC’s Vice President, said: “Every pirate activity leaves a trace, be it IP-addresses, websites to sell illegal offerings or even payment receipts issued to clients of an illicit card sharing network as in the Cypriot case. AEPOC and its members are committed to follow each incident and bring down pirates. Trustful collaboration with the police helps to achieve anti-piracy results in an increasingly short timeframe. Nevertheless, the EU legislative framework needs to evolve further to build an even bigger deterrent to prevent audiovisual piracy in the first place.”

AEPOC says TV manufacturers need to secure content

Wed, 20 Apr 2011 00:00:00 GMT

20th April 2011

Television manufacturers that are beginning to take a direct role in the delivery of content need to ensure they are adequately dealing with security issues.

In her first media interview since becoming the executive director of the European Association for the Protection of Encrypted Works and Services (AEPOC), Sheila Cassells told Broadband TV News it was paramount that content was provided securely.

“I know from the discussions that are going on that this is an area that everybody has seized on. The question will be whether the manufacturers that have argued for single solutions in the past, propose that in some markets again. Having a single DRM solution is not necessarily the safest way to do business.” Cassells said there were already talks in progress between broadcasters and manufacturers and platform operators about how to secure the content, alongside rules for overlays and metadata. “The pay-TV model based on conditional access has been successful in securing content. What we need to do is ensure that connected TV manufacturers also have security at the heart of their product and service design and deployments.”

Cassells said that work was also being done within the European High Definition Forum, which had progressed onto issues including 3D and connected TV, now that HD deployments were well underway.

Insiders say that Cassells and the team of Chairman Philippe-Olivier Rousseau and VPs Christine Maury-Panis (Viaccess) and Michael Barley (BSkyB) have brought a new energy to AEPOC, using standing committees to ensure progress on issues.

There remains a series of ongoing issues, such as the recent opinion from the Advocate General of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) that broadcasters cannot stop people from buying cheaper foreign satellite packages. The case was sparked by the Portsmouth landlady that has been using a subscription to the Greek Nova platform rather than pay Sky’s retail charges.

Cassells said the opinion appears to suggest that if Member States had national laws preventing the sale of cards where addresses had been falsely given then the current arrangements would prevail. A final ruling – which may not necessarily follow the Advocate General’s opinion – may still be several months away.

“If the opinion was endorsed by the Court this could mean that the current arrangements for licensing rights, including conditional access licensing, would change dramatically,” said Cassells. “The question then becomes how do you license rights, what are the terms of CA agreements, and on the face of it you wouldn’t be able to do that on a territorial basis.”

There is also the European Commission’s consultation on the enforcement directive that centres on intellectual property rights (IPR). AEPOC wants to stress the importance of harmonisation and effective implementation across the EU.

“The Commission recognises that digital distribution is a fast moving area and that they need to try and make sure the legislation can keep pace. They also recognise that they are not doing that,” she says. “We need to ensure also that the Commission rigorously assesses the implications for piracy of any new legislation and policy initiatives. Educating and informing the Member States, including their customs authorities, becomes hugely important. What we’re talking about here is a global issue and we would encourage the Commission to look for other instruments to help them tackle the issue”.

AEPOC is planning to intensify work with other groups such as CASBAA (Cable And Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia), particularly on areas like card sharing and working with local enforcement agencies.

http://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2011/04/20/exclusive-aepoc-says-tv-manufacturers-need-to-secure-content/

AEPOC Announces Association's New Executive Director

Tue, 25 Jan 2011 00:00:00 GMT

25th January 2011

AEPOC, the European Association for the Protection of Encrypted Works and Services, announces the appointment of Sheila Cassells to the position of AEPOC Executive Director. Sheila Cassells will assume the duties of the Executive Director as of February 1st, 2011; her designation was confirmed unanimously within an AEPOC extraordinary Board of Directors meeting on January 21st. In her new role Sheila Cassells will implement and develop the Association's anti-piracy action programmes and execute the day-to-day management of AEPOC. She will report to the Board of Directors, chaired by Philippe-Olivier Rousseau.

Sheila Cassells brings to AEPOC a host of experience in the TV industry as a public policy professional. She has served in several senior management positions in both the regulatory and regulated sides of the media and communications sectors for over 20 years, including the role of Head of Economic Policy at BSkyB and as Director of Economic Regulation at the Independent Television Commission in the UK. Sheila Cassells also established and is Executive Director of the Digital Interoperability Forum (DIF) - a pan-European informal trade association for the paid-for content distribution chain addressing technology policy issues. Sheila Cassells will continue also in her role as Executive Director of DIF.

Philippe-Olivier Rousseau, AEPOC President and Chairman of the Board, said: "I am extremely pleased to welcome Sheila Cassells as new Executive Director of AEPOC. Sheila Cassells has an outstanding track record in public policy activities within the European media and telecommunication sectors; we believe she will make a very powerful contribution to our management team to support the fight against Pay-TV piracy. Sheila will also efficiently contribute to strengthen the links between AEPOC and the other trade associations fighting against piracy."

Sheila Cassells commented on her new appointment: "I am delighted to have been selected to become the new AEPOC Executive Director. I look forward to developing AEPOC's operations and the opportunity to achieve new goals in the EU and international regulatory field and drive forward industry cooperation of the AEPOC members and their partners to combat audiovisual piracy in Europe - and beyond."

Biography Sheila Cassells

AEPOC endorses Digital TV Summit 2010

Tue, 30 Nov 2010 00:00:00 GMT

30th November 2010

Digital TV Summit, organised by Informa Telecoms & Media, returns to London on the 30th November - 1st December.

Digital TV Summit is the event to exclusively bring together the global business leaders across cable, satellite, IPTV, DTT, mobile and online sectors.

Now in its sixth year, Informa Telecoms & Media is still extremely passionate about this fast-moving sector. This year is more relevant than ever, as the business is at its most competitive and as economies crawl out of recession. Digital TV Summit will once again deliver high-quality speakers, topical debate and unrivalled networking opportunities. As with previous years, the Digital TV Summit brings together the global leaders and innovators in this fast growth sector to discuss the main opportunities – both geographic and by technology.

For more information please visit www.digitaltvsummit.com .

AEPOC would like to invite members to attend the Digital TV Summit with a 15% discount. As an AEPOC member you may contact a.gerber@susbauer.de to obtain your VIP Code.

AEPOC informs about breakthrough court ruling against Pay-TV piracy

Mon, 25 Oct 2010 00:00:00 GMT

25th October 2010

Belgium prosecutors and AEPOC member Sky Deutschland win court case against pirates in first instance with appeal pending
Belgium court sends pirates to jail for up to 18 months
Sky Deutschland to receive more than 2 million Euros in damages
Belgium anti-piracy laws prove effectiveness – need for better implementation of the Conditional Access Directive in many other EU countries remains

The European Association for the Protection of Encrypted Works and Services, informs about a breakthrough judgement against Pay-TV piracy. Belgium prosecutors, joined by AEPOC member Sky Deutschland , have won a law suit against pirates, who sold illegal viewing cards to Germany and Austria during the years 2006 to 2008. The First Instance Court of Tongeren, Belgium ruled that two accused will be sent to prison for 18 and 8 months respectively. Two more individuals received suspended sentences while one person was found not guilty. In parallel Sky Deutschland is to receive a groundbreaking sum of more than 2 million Euros in damages, plus interest and other compensation payments. 1,850,000 Euros is to be paid by the central pirate in this case, who received the 18 months prison sentence, and by a legal entity. A further 180,000 Euros are to be paid by the pirate sentenced to 8 months in prison. The judgement is appealable.

It is the first ruling of this dimension, punishing Pay-TV pirates to a severe prison sentence as well as a strong payment for damages that have realistically occurred.

The Belgium court found the convicts guilty of having dealt with so-called “blank cards” during the years 2006 to 2008, that had the sole purpose to provide illegitimate viewing access to the Pay-TV offering of Sky Deutschland, operating under the Premiere brand at the time. The case dealt with more than 5,700 cards that were sold at a unit price of 75 Euros. In combination with a software available on the internet and consecutive updates the cards gave illegitimate access to Premiere, possibly during several years. The court rejected the strategy of the pirates and their lawyers claiming their blank cards were not a pirate device as such and therefore no violation of law. However, the public prosecutor proved the pirating purpose by providing various direct and circumstantial evidence.

AEPOC President Philippe-Olivier Rousseau commented: “It becomes crystal clear how detrimental piracy is to the Pay-TV industry looking at the sheer sum of damages to be paid within this single case alone – demonstrating the very criminal nature of Pay-TV piracy.”

In particular the pirates violated the Flemish Decree on Radio and Television Broadcasting. This national law has integrated the provisions of the EU Conditional Access Directive to transpose it into national law. The CA-Directive is the cornerstone EU legislation for conditional access protected services such as Pay-TV. Also Copyright laws and provisions of the Belgium Criminal Code served as legal basis in this case which involved huge money laundering operations conducted by the pirates between Belgium and the city of Aachen in Germany.

President Rousseau continued: “Belgium law and enforcement prove effective for such complex law suits of cross-border Pay-TV piracy and industry crimes. In many other EU countries though we do not see such a satisfying functioning of the Conditional Access Directive and its implementation into national law. Accordingly, AEPOC works inside the European Union for the harmonisation of laws and the introduction of minimum thresholds for sanctions to underline that Pay-TV piracy is a severe crime.”

MIPCOM 2010

Mon, 04 Oct 2010 00:00:00 GMT

4th October 2010

MIPCOM is generally considered an excellent indicator of the vitality, ingenuity and creativity of the content industry. And now more than ever, because of the fantastic evolutions of technology and the development of numerous means to distribute movies and television programmes it is clear what is at stake: the entire ecosystem of the audiovisual sector can only prosper as long as intellectual property is guaranteed. This can only happen through a joint effort between the various private stakeholders and the Government Authorities - who can provide consistent protection by legislators and law enforcement bodies. Without such protection, the roots of creation in the motion picture and television sectors will be threatened. In addition, business opportunities will vanish since investors will quickly withdraw when the fundamentals are threatened. We have seen during the credit crunch the consequences that can result from a loss in confidence. The threat posed by piracy is not something happening in "Virtual Reality". It is a very real problem in the Real World. Piracy destroys trust in the ecosystem - and without trust financiers pull back. As a result, the devastating effect of piracy is not a gradual process or a secondary phenomenon, but more like an avalanche, potentially sweeping over the whole industry and in the first rank programme creation. AEPOC's conviction is: Piracy needs to be fought by all means at all times - with the clear aim of eradicating it. This is why everyone belonging to the content industry is invited to support AEPOC in achieving our goals.

AEPOC is Europe's Anti-Piracy Association for the Protection of Encrypted Works and Services. Our members belong to the elite of European and international media and telecommunications companies, making of AEPOC one of the world's leading trade association fighting piracy. Our mission is to assess and effectively coordinate initiatives to address audio-visual piracy as it affects Pay-TV operators, hardware and software providers. During 2010 the AEPOC Board of Directors helped me in developing a new AEPOC action plan to build the ground for a broader anti-piracy stance for the Association. Part of this initiative are standing committees with emphasis on extending AEPOC's intelligence capacities and efforts in view of the European regulatory environment. With AEPOC's Board recently confirmed in office until 2013 we look forward to tackling the manifold issues of piracy, supported by the trust and strength of our members. AEPOC initiated actions of unprecedented industry cooperation among our members, who are in some cases severe competitors, are already off to a successful start. With an enhanced organisational structure with more dedicated resources, our initiative shall be instrumental in unlocking the potential inherent in AEPOC to take the Association to the next level in the fight against audio-visual piracy in Europe - and beyond. We would be pleased to win more supporters to safeguard the vitality of the content ecosystem and help build a fertile and secure environment for growth.

To all visitors to MIPCOM 2010 AEPOC wishes an excellent Festival.

Philippe-Olivier Rousseau

Chairman of the Board
AEPOC

European Anti-Piracy Association to unveil new action plan

Wed, 29 Sep 2010 00:00:00 GMT

29th September 2010

New Board - President Rousseau, Vice Presidents and Board of Directors confirmed in office until 2013
New Action - Dedicated Committees to build ground for broader anti-piracy activity
New Management - AEPOC to select new Secretary General

AEPOC, the European Association for the Protection of Encrypted Works and Services, today announced first details of a new action plan to build the ground for a broader anti-piracy stance for the Association. Part of this initiative are standing committees to specifically help AEPOC members in the fight against audio-visual piracy with emphasis on extending AEPOC's intelligence capacities and efforts in view of the European regulatory environment.

The development of the new action plan was spearheaded by AEPOC President Philippe-Olivier Rousseau and the Vice Presidents Christine Maury-Panis (Viaccess) and Michael Barley (BSkyB) during 2010 - and formerly adopted at the Ordinary General Assembly and Board of Directors meetings held on September 14 in Amsterdam. During the meetings, kindly hosted by AEPOC member Irdeto, the President, the Vice Presidents as well as the Board of Directors were confirmed in office until 2013 by the vote of the Association.

Framework of the new action plan are four work groups established as standing committees for the areas of 'Intelligence', 'Regulatory & Lobbying', 'Membership, Marketing & PR' and 'Finance', all reporting to the Board of Directors.

Commenting on this extension of the mission and scope of the Association President Rousseau said: "AEPOC's new action plan builds the ground to more actively assess and effectively coordinate initiatives to address audio-visual piracy and foster the way for increased industry cooperation among the members, which are leaders in their respective markets. With an enhanced organisational structure and more work resources clearly attributed, this initiative shall be instrumental in unlocking the potential inherent in AEPOC to take the Association to the next level in the fight against audio-visual piracy in Europe - and beyond."

First actions as a case of unprecedented industry cooperation achieved by AEPOC members to fight the phenomenon of Card Sharing are already off to a successful start and will be revealed as soon as appropriate.

Selection of new Secretary General has started - AEPOC announces departure of Davide Rossi

During the Amsterdam meetings AEPOC also formally accepted Davide Rossi’s decision to step down from his position as Secretary General in order to focus on his manifold duties and activities as lawyer. In parallel AEPOC has started the process to select a new Secretary General and will be advertising the post to have access to the best talents.

Davide Rossi has been Secretary General of AEPOC for more than ten years. In that time he was instrumental in developing the Association from a new venture to a renown and respected European industry body. AEPOC has accepted Mr. Rossi's resignation with great regret, and unanimously appreciated and valued Mr. Rossi's achievements.

During the interim period until a new Secretary General has been nominated the Association's team of Philippe-Olivier Rousseau, Christine Maury-Panis and Michael Barley are executing the day-to-day management of the Association.

The next AEPOC Ordinary General Assembly and Board of Directors meetings have been scheduled to take place at the beginning of December 2010.

Philippe-Olivier Rousseau elected as new AEPOC President

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 00:00:00 GMT

17th February 2010

Jean Grenier retires from presidency after 13 years of successful anti-piracy leadership
Philippe-Olivier Rousseau with proven track record in the field of media and telecoms

Philippe-Olivier Rousseau (53), Managing Director and Senior Banker at BNP Paribas has been elected as new president of the European Anti-Piracy Association, AEPOC. Mr. Rousseau is the successor to Jean Grenier (75), the former General Director of Eutelsat, who retires after pioneering and developing the first pan-European industry initiative against audio-visual piracy during 13 years. The AEPOC General Assembly appointed Philippe-Olivier Rousseau relying on his neutrality and long-standing, proven track record in the media and telecommunications sectors within manifold assignments and directorships over the past 30 years. Among many other commitments the telecommunications engineer and musician Rousseau held positions at the Conseil supérieur de l’audiovisuel (CSA), Eutelsat, Intelsat and Music Choice Europe.

Mr. Rousseau is now to head the association’s future development: The co-ordination of effective political and legal industry initiatives against piracy, the exchange of technical information, expertise and best practice as well as tightening AEPOC’s relationships with EU policy associations and global anti-piracy partners will be – among many other tasks – on the agenda of the new president.

Philippe-Olivier Rousseau: “AEPOC unites some of the industry’s finest firms and renown experts in the name of a healthy, secure and striving European media and telecommunications market. Safeguarding innovation and growth has to be one of the key issues of European industry policies. Following the ground-breaking work of Jean Grenier and the association’s members I am extremely honoured to represent and develop AEPOC’s achievements, since piracy is becoming an increasingly aggressive global phenomenon.”

The election of Philippe-Olivier Rousseau marked the association’s board of directors meeting and general assembly, recently held in Brussels. The members expressed their respect and gratitude to Jean Grenier. Under Jean Grenier’s presidency AEPOC started its first activities in 1995 and was officially founded in 1997 by six members. With Jean Grenier heading AEPOC the association achieved significant growth in membership and spearheaded major political and industry achievements such as the proliferation of the EU’s cornerstone anti-piracy legislation, the Conditional Access Directive 98/84/EC, as well as the Bratislava Charter, the AEPOC Code of Ethics and Good Practice. The association was able to benefit largely from Mr. Greniers long-standing expertise and global network as former General Director of Eutelsat, pioneer and doyen of the European media and telecoms industry.

Jean Grenier: “It was a great honour for me to support AEPOC from its first steps as President – and representative of member company Eutelsat. Looking ahead, as the world becomes increasingly dependent on reliable and secure access to media, the economic and political threat of piracy is more menacing than ever. AEPOC will have to use all the energy and determination of its new president, the vice presidents and all of its members to continue the fight against piracy and bring down any of the emerging threats.”

Mr. Grenier continued: “Thanks to Mr. Rousseau’s ultra-panoramic experience in the media and telecommunication sectors, reaching from finance over to operations and politics, I am fully convinced that a President, who is not representing an AEPOC member company, will be in an excellent position to lead the association – in close partnership with the support of the Vice Presidential team of Mrs. Christine Maury-Panis (Viaccess) and Mr. Michael Barley (BSkyB).”

The next AEPOC meeting is planned for March 2010

Uneven level of law enforcement activity in the EU creates safe harbours for pirates

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMT

16th November 2009

Effectiveness of law enforcement against audiovisual crimes at different levels across the EU
19 of 27 EU member states working within High Level Expert Group to improve effectiveness of the Conditional Access Directive (CAD)
Rob van Nunen elected on AEPOC Board of Directors

AEPOC calls on eight EU member states to join the High Level Expert group to improve the effectiveness of the European Directive against audio-visual piracy: During the recent board meeting of AEPOC, the European Association for the Protection of Encrypted Works and Services, members discussed the EU's progress to strengthen the central legislation against audio-visual crimes such as pay-TV piracy: Initiated by the European Commission, an expert group currently analyses and suggests amendments to the existing Directive to better protect conditional access services. The next group meeting is expected for December 3 and will bring together many suggestions from the 19 countries having joined this expert team.

AEPOC members are also in contact with several national delegates of this expert group to provide insight into today's limitations of the legislation. However, the association points out that eight EU member states have not yet nominated a country representative for the High Level Expert Group.

While AEPOC is pleased to see increasing effectiveness in law enforcement activities in many EU countries to counteract audio-visual piracy, several EU states show little involvement. Overall attention of law enforcement bodies improved, especially in France, the UK and Italy. The Portuguese institutions also act vigilantly in their battle against pay-TV piracy - and also more recently Sweden shows good progress following the internationally acclaimed judgement to close down the internet file sharing platform "Pirate Bay".

Eight EU countries have still not yet named a delegate for the EU's High Level Expert group. AEPOC calls on Austria, Belgium, Estonia, Hungary, Lithuania, Malta, the Netherlands and Slovenia to join the group to help facilitate a better implementation of the Directive.

AEPOC President Jean Grenier said: "We are pleased to see an ever increasing level of law enforcement activities in many EU countries, acting concisely, quickly and in a sustainable way against audio-visual crimes. Especially France, Italy, Portugal and the United Kingdom must be seen as role models - for other EU countries that still do not consider audio-visual piracy to be a very relevant issue on their national agenda. We suggest to the eight countries not yet part of the Commission's expert group to take over their responsibility now - and not run the risk of neglecting the detrimental effects of piracy for their countries' and the EU's economies. Varying law enforcement activity across the EU will otherwise produce safe harbours for pirates directly within the EU."

At the AEPOC meeting in Geneva, kindly hosted by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), the new representative for member company Irdeto, Mr Rob van Nunen, was elected on the Board of Directors of the Association. The final 2009 AEPOC Board of Directors and General Assembly meeting is planned for December 21 in Brussels.

AEPOC increasingly alarmed about understanding of piracy in the EU

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 00:00:00 GMT

20th July 2009

Jean Grenier: "Piracy is not a sport, it remains a theft. The election of the Pirate Party shows there is confusion among voters on this matter."
Time has come for the EU to deliver stronger protection for audio-visual content
Operators of card sharing servers arrested in Greece and Cyprus
AEPOC welcomes Pay-TV and broadband operator Multichoice Hellas as new Member

Brussels – July 20, 2009 – The entry of the "Pirate Party" in the European Parliament forces national governments and the EU to take up a stance over their position towards audio-visual piracy: During the recent board meeting of AEPOC, Europe's flagship Anti-piracy association for the protection of encrypted works and services, AEPOC discussed the "Pirate Bay" sentence in Sweden and the election of the "Pirate Party" into the European Parliament. AEPOC views the "success" of the Pirate Party, which questions the concept of intellectual property and copyright, and calls for the general removal of patent protections, as a strong alarm signal. "This should act as a wake-up call for national governments and the European Commission to take a clear position on piracy matters", said AEPOC's President Jean Grenier.

The vote for the Pirate Party follows the closure of "The Pirate Bay" filesharing website by a Swedish court in April this year - an outcome that upset users and resulted in their sympathetic votes being cast on this single issue in the European elections.

During AEPOC's Brussels meeting Pay-TV and broadband operator Multichoice Hellas was admitted to AEPOC membership. Multichoice Hellas offers Pay-TV services under the Nova brand both in Greece and Cyprus and is part of the Forthnet Group, the leading alternative telecom operator in Greece. The representatives of Multichoice Hellas reported a number of successful blows against piracy in the countries, namely in the area of newer forms of piracy such as the illegal distribution of content via card-sharing servers. As an EU member, Greece implemented the European CA-Directive against audio-visual piracy in 2003, prosecuting offenders with imprisonment of up to 12 years maximum. AEPOC and Multichoice Hellas advocate the adoption of this law also in Cyprus - and elsewhere in the EU where the Directive has not yet been transposed into national law. In this regard AEPOC cultivates the dialogue with national governments and members of the European Parliament, as well as different EU working groups in Brussels to provide business, technical and legal insight into cyber crime issues, especially in the Pay-TV sector.

AEPOC President Jean Grenier summarized the association's position: "Piracy is not a sport, it remains a theft. The election of the Pirate Party shows there is confusion among voters on this matter. The creative industry and political decision makers should draw a very clear line against cyber crime, as our society and economy relies increasingly on internet-based or other digital services. The internet must not be a lawless territory that excuses or condones crime, be it theft, counterfeiting or child abuse." Grenier continued: "This is particularly relevant with regard to the younger members of our society who are susceptible to the message of the Pirate Party, a message which appears romantic, yet is criminal at its core."

The next AEPOC meeting is planned for October 2009.

AEPOC Extends Anti-Piracy Focus to Eastern Europe

Tue, 21 Apr 2009 00:00:00 GMT

21st April 2009

AEPOC convention in Prague looks at audio-visual Piracy in Eastern Europe
Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic highlights Piracy
Wholesaler of piracy equipment sentenced to jail for the first time in Germany
Improvement of CA-Directive set in motion

AEPOC, the European Association for the Protection of Encrypted Works and Services, supports the Eastern European countries to repel audio-visual piracy: AEPOC's commitment based on the "Budapest Agenda" was underlined in Prague on March 19 with the Association holding its recent Board of Directors meeting in the Czech Republic.

During the meeting an insight into the situation of audio-visual piracy in the country was given. The transition from analogue to digital has helped significantly to lower piracy, however, the issue continues to be a serious problem. The AEPOC meeting in Prague coincided with The Czech Ministry of Culture's 'Media Literary Conference' where the issue of Piracy was high on the agenda. Similar to AEPOC's viewpoint representatives from different organisations such as The Czech Anti-Piracy Union and the Ministry of Culture from Lithuania see a high level of cooperation of all stakeholders essential to help overcome piracy. Building increased awareness among the public is key to underline why piracy is so harmful as it puts cultural diversity, artistic creation and also social employment at stake, besides the risk for consumers to expose themselves to litigation when making use of illegal offerings.
AEPOC and its members companies, active in all European countries as well as in Russia, Turkey, Ukraine, North Africa and the Arab World, continue building strong relationships with EU bodies, national legislative and law enforcement units as well as partner anti-piracy associations to support this cooperative fight against audio-visual piracy.

Wholesaler of piracy equipment sentenced to jail for the first time in Germany

At the end of last year for the first time ever in Germany a dealer selling Pay-TV cards for pirate viewing was given a suspended prison sentence. The ruling resulted from a criminal complaint made by AEPOC member Premiere. In 2005, the dealer had traded over 1,400 pirated cards which, in combination with a certain pirate software programme available online, could be used to receive Premiere illegally at the time. The lower-court judgment delivered by the Court of Hamburg-Barmbek was limited to a fine, but the state prosecutor appealed that ruling. The Pay-TV pirate was subsequently given a suspended sentence to eight months in prison. In addition, the defendant was ordered to pay for all the legal costs incurred as result of the proceedings, which spanned more than three years in total. The Regional Court of Hamburg found the dealer guilty of selling around 600 of those illegal cards for more than EUR 33,000; 800 more cards were confiscated in a police raid in late 2005. The conviction was based on the Act for the Protection of Conditional Access Services [Gesetz über den Schutz von zugangskontrollierten Diensten (ZKDSG)], which is the national application of the EU Directive to protect CA services. In the field of Pay-TV piracy, this is the first time a defendant was sentenced to prison by a German court for such an offence. Even though the sentence was suspended, this case clearly underscores that the authorities and judiciary are becoming increasingly strict towards audiovisual piracy. Particularly in cases in which the card alone is insufficient for illegal decryption, it is very important for the state prosecutor to supply evidence of illegal use. In the case in question, the state prosecutor succeeded in doing so, since the sole purpose of the cards was to enable the use of the separate internet software in order to constitute a "means of circumvention" in the legal sense of ZKDSG. German courts had already prohibited the sale of so-called "blank cards", which were mainly intended to enable illegal viewing of Pay-TV when programmed to do so.

Improved enforcement of CA-Directive set in motion

The process to improve the enforcement of the Conditional Access Directive was set in further motion with the first meeting of the "High Level Expert Group", including representatives of all 27 Member States as well as stakeholders such as AEPOC member companies. The meeting took place on January 16, 2009 and continues to fulfil the considerable work programme set by the European Commission for the benefit of the Internal market for Conditional Access Services. AEPOC is in direct dialogue with the Commission and Member Commissioner Charlie McCreevy to identify further opportunities for cooperation to support this process.

Jean Grenier, President of AEPOC, said: "AEPOC is pleased to be able to offer support to individual countries in their fight against audio-visual piracy based on AEPOC's Budapest Agenda. We shall continue the dialogue with Eastern European countries, their national regulatory bodies and stakeholders to strive for a solid implementation of the Conditional Access Directive."

The next AEPOC meeting is planned for June 2009.