The European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) has hosted two events in Alicante related to the fight against live event piracy: (1) the fourth meeting of the Dedicated Network of administrative authorities on live event piracy, and (2) the Conference – Stepping up the fight against online piracy of sport and other live events – taking stock of progress and challenges.

On April 29^th, at the meeting of the Dedicated Network, the EUIPO and the European Commission provided an update on their work in the context of the Commission’s Recommendation on Combating Online Piracy of Live Events (the Recommendation). Representatives of national authorities exchanged information and experiences on combating live event piracy. Members took note of the national legislative developments and underlined the relevance of mechanisms to exchange information regarding piracy of live events, including opportunities for further cooperation on online piracy.

On April 30th, the second Conference on live event piracy took place, a follow-up to the Conference on live event piracy of October 9th-10th 2023. The event brough together private and public stakeholders, who took stock of progress since the adoption of the Recommendation, and discussed new developments, challenges and solutions.

“We all play a part in this fight,” stated Andrea Di Carlo, Deputy Executive Director of the EUIPO. “The more complex the challenge, the more essential our collaboration becomes. Success depends on coordinated action across borders, across sectors, and across digital infrastructures.”

Giuseppe Abbamonte, Director of Media Policy at the European Commission, announced the publishing of a Call for Evidence on the assessment of the Recommendation. It is addressed to all interested stakeholders that would like to share their views on the effects of the Recommendation and the remaining challenges. The Call for Evidence does not replace the monitoring exercise entrusted to the EUIPO, rather complements it with the goal of collecting further stakeholder feedback.

Various existing cooperations among players throughout the value chain were discussed, providing a clearer picture of the available mechanisms to curb (live event) piracy, which serves to improve the understanding between different sectors. The conference also underlined the challenges of IPTV. The discussion showcased the different approaches being adopted, and the importance of targeting live event piracy in the current legal landscape. There was consensus that increased collaboration was necessary to ensure the long-term viability of cultural and sports events.

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Categories: Articles, Business, Content, IPTV, OTT, Piracy, Policy, Regulation, Rights

Tags: EUIPO, European Commission, European Union Intellectual Property Office, live event piracy