We love piracy, say Indians. US, Russian citizens way ahead
PremiumMedia experts said digital penetration has made piracy harder to track and control especially when websites operate outside Indian jurisdiction
Indians ranked third in the world in accessing piracy websites in 2021, with 6.5 billion visits driven in part by lockdown-induced stay-at-home norms and the digital pivot.
The US is number one and Russia ranked second, according to a report by Akamai Technologies, a cybersecurity and cloud service company.
India was the top source of traffic for websites showing pirated films, and also ranked number one in music piracy. The figures may be an underestimation—media experts said digital penetration has made piracy harder to track and control, especially when websites operate outside Indian jurisdiction.
Platforms like WhatsApp and Telegram have made it easier to circulate films and songs, and websites often make minor changes in URLs to take different avatars when reported or blocked. However, unlike many other countries, there is no provision to claim damages for pirated content in India.
According to the report titled ‘Piracy in the Outfield,’ the global piracy demand reached 3.7 billion between January and September 2021. A majority of consumers (61.5%) are directly accessing pirated materials, while 28.6% of them are searching for them. The US and Russia are the top locations for piracy visits at 13.5 billion and 7.2 billion respectively. Top pirated films during the year include monster film Godzilla vs Kong, Zack Snyder’s Justice League and Marvel’s superhero film Black Widow, while the list of top pirated shows is led by the first seasons of Loki and Wanda Vision.
“Piracy in India has been a problem for decades, with movies, television and music being the top source of entertainment in the country. Illegal downloads of movies before they have theatrical release has been a common form of piracy. With the ongoing pandemic and radical shift to OTTs, piracy has only provided illicit and easy access to valuable content. Piracy is a growing problem, with an overall 16% increase from the previous nine-month period," Sidharth Pisharoti, regional vice-president, India and South Asia, Akamai Technologies said.
Digital pirates have profited from consumer demand to view content from home, along with rising Internet consumption and easy access at low costs, he added.
Piracy is more rampant in India than developed markets because of delayed release of premium content here, leading to consumers accessing them through unauthorised sources, said Tanu Banerjee, partner at legal firm Khaitan & Co.
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“Inability to afford the fees charged for access also pushes consumers in India to watch pirated content. Besides, generally there’s a lack of awareness among consumers regarding copyright," Banerjee said.
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