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– Since the start of 2024, 1,600 IPTV boxes have been blocked.
290 million euros. This is the amount of shortfall for the sports sector, Arcom indicated this Thursday, November 28, 2024, relayed by Ouest France. For the audiovisual regulator, the culprit is obvious: IPTV. The world of Football is bearing the brunt of the progression of case sales which allow illegal watching of matches. “Since the start of the 2024-2025 season, we have been facing a phenomenon of unprecedented scale”lamented Benjamin Morel, general director of LFP Media, commercial subsidiary of the Professional Football League, during a press conference.
A study by Ipsos, which echoes West Franceagrees with this. Since the start of the season, 37% of the followers of the Ligue 1 would be through illegal channels. Worse still, the last classic between Olympique de Marseille and Paris Saint-Germain would have been more followed thanks to l’IPTV (55%) than watching DAZN. If the prices of the broadcaster of the French football championship are high, they “can in no way justify piracy, which is theft”affirmed Benjamin Morel. According to him, in the long term, the success of IPTV could condemn, well beyond sport, the industry of broadcast platforms, music, illegal boxes offer a wide range of programs.
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A significant shortfall for the State
However, Arcom does not admit defeat. Its deputy general director, Pauline Combredet-Blassel, indicated that since the start of 2024, 1,600 boxes were blocked. However, this may not be enough, she admits. In terms of good news, “piracy is falling structurally”she rejoiced. The fight against illegal sites is more effective. The number of users of this broadcast channel fell by 18% between 2023 and 2024, in France.
The stakes are high for the sporting world. According to Pauline Combredet-Blassel, the 290 million euros that escape the world of sport represent “15% of the sports content broadcast market and weighs on the entire sector, clubs, federations and amateur sport”. This sector is not the only one to lose big. Thus, more generally, piracy would represent a loss of income of 420 million euros per year for the State in social and tax revenue.
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