When Piracy Is A Competitor: ABI Research Analyzes Key Privacy Prevention Practices to Combat Content Theft and Consumer Fraud

As pirated content becomes increasingly difficult to distinguish from its original sources, it is essential for businesses to utilize piracy prevention technologies. In its latest market study, ABI Research, a leader in technology market intelligence, uncovers the extent of the direct impact that piracy has on content owners and analyzes privacy prevention technologies and practices to help combat content theft and consumer fraud.

Read ABI Research’s Pay TV and OTT Piracy Prevention Services report.

The report focuses on analyzing piracy impact on video content, specifically within two high-stakes sectors: live sports and television series and films. Specifically, the report finds that sports content is currently, and will continue to be, the greatest focus in privacy prevention due to the inherently high value of sports licensing rights and the time-sensitive nature of the content. The allocation of sports revenue currently accounts for approximately 67% of the privacy prevention market, with ABI Research anticipating its share to rise to 84% by 2020.

“Due to the rise in accessibility of ultra HD and 4K, pirated content is generally of higher quality than years prior,” says Shelli Bernard, Research Analyst at ABI Research. “Because consumers may no longer be able to readily differentiate the legality of their downloaded content, content owners need to remain on guard, relying on piracy prevention technologies to continuously monitor for, and gather evidence of, uploaded pirated content.”

ABI Research analyzes a number of key piracy prevention services, including Civolution, Friend MTS, Irdeto, Kudelski Security and Viaccess-Orca. As many companies are aware that terminating piracy all together will be a difficult feat, the report points to three key practices that businesses and content owners should look to adopt into their current workflows:

• Make Content Accessible: Research the content’s targeted audiences and their geographic locations. Ensure that content is available for streaming or download in all applicable regions to make content most accessible to those who care.
• Monitor, Monitor, Monitor: Rely on a piracy prevention service to continuously monitor known piracy sites and gather evidence of pirated content. It is important to catch the pirated content as quickly as possible, as the Internet is a haven for pirates looking to quickly circulate illegal content through an array of online channels.
• Take Legal Action: Many developed countries are enforcing appropriate legislation to fight piracy, as they recognize how deep and substantial a problem this is becoming. As such, it is imperative for content owners to take immediate legal action in the event of piracy.

“A lot of companies are viewing piracy as a competitor,” concludes Bernard. “Not only are these companies competing against legitimate streaming services, such as Amazon Prime and Netflix, but now also against illegal sites that attempt to generate an abundance of pirated content. The more prevention practices that companies put into place to hinder piracy, the better.”

These findings are part of ABI Research’s Multiscreen Video Middleware and DRM Service, which includes research reports, market data, insights and competitive assessments.

About ABI Research

For more than 25 years, ABI Research has stood at the forefront of technology market intelligence, partnering with innovative business leaders to implement informed, transformative technology decisions. The company employs a global team of senior analysts to provide comprehensive research and consulting services through deep quantitative forecasts, qualitative analyses and teardown services. An industry pioneer, ABI Research is proactive in its approach, frequently uncovering ground-breaking business cycles ahead of the curve and publishing research 18 to 36 months in advance of other organizations. In all, the company covers more than 60 services, spanning 11 technology sectors. For more information, visit www.abiresearch.com.