Study: Portugal loses €200m a year due to piracy
January 29, 2021
From Branislav Pekic in Rome
Portugal is losing an estimated €200 million annually due to piracy, according to figures made public by the Secretary of State for Youth and Sport, Diogo Nabais.
Speaking during a webinar organised by the Portuguese Professional Football League, he said that the country’s audiovisual sector loses around €140 million per year, while the remaining €60 million are related to lost state revenue, such as taxes and VAT.
Besides the financial damage, Nabais also pointed out the “lack of awareness” of the end consumers on “the evils of this type of conduct”.
He revealed that a package of legislative measures, involving several ministries, is being prepared at the national level. One involves “blocking the signal in real-time” in order to “dissuade this type of behaviour”, while a second measure concerns the “punishment of end consumers,” which can be “of a criminal or misdemeanor nature”.
In addition, to these measures, the Portuguese government is preparing a “large-scale, very tough campaign” to “educate the population that is not aware” of the consequences of piracy on football.
According to figures presented at the same event, 530 sport web sites were blocked in Portugal in 2019, mainly associated with the retransmission of premium channels SportTV and Benfica TV.
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