#piracy ecosystem

Conditional access system (CAS) are used by content providers, such as pay-TV operators, to ensure only those subscriber devices which meet certain conditions can access the protected content.

Conditional access systems work by encrypting digital transport streams (the pay-TV content) and sending authorizations to decrypt the content separately via entitlement management messages (EMM) .

More advanced methods used by professional pirate operations include the use of high bandwidth digital content protection (HDCP) strippers to pull video from HDMI links to TV displays. The output control setting in the DRM policies is used to enforce a required specific HDCP version by the end device connected to the HDMI link.

Looking beyond entertainment, the growing popularity of live over-the-top (OTT) sports is prompting many cord-cutters, out of home viewers, and those without local access to view their favorite teams, to turn to piracy sites — sometimes unwittingly — to keep up with the action.

As noted in our previous piracy research blog post in this series, 54% of millennials admitted to researchers to having watched illegal streams of live sports – one-third of them regularly. Unlike pirated TV shows or movies, the value of a sporting event is fleeting, with revenue being lost in a very small window. If stakeholders aren’t fighting piracy in real time and in collaboration with others across the delivery chain, losses can increase rapidly.

More advanced methods used by professional pirate operations include the use of high bandwidth digital content protection (HDCP) strippers to pull video from HDMI links to TV displays. The output control setting in the DRM policies is used to enforce a required specific HDCP version by the end device connected to the HDMI link.

But since older devices don’t support later versions of HDCP, then that could limit the content reach for the streaming service provider, and therefore the latest HDCP versions are not enforced at all times. Therefore, professional pirates rely on HDCP stripper devices to set up their piracy ecosystem operations. Not only can they feed the pirated  content to origin servers for distribution of live streaming, but there is next to no loss in quality compared to the legitimate service. 

Content piracy is so big that its impact is felt beyond the bank account — it’s changing business models. Traditionally in the movie business, new releases often stayed in theaters for months to maximize revenues. As digital downloads, and now streaming, have made it easier for content pirates to obtain and distribute illegal copies, movie studios have continually.

A simple Google search turns up articles with headlines like “Which is the best website for watching free live sports online?” and “How to Install TV Portal Kodi.” A study of online sports piracy ecosystem in Spain found that 78% of access to pirated content occurs through the use of search engines.

After downloading and installing Kodi, users download apps or “add-ons” from piracy ecosystem sites that allow them to stream whatever content is offered from the site.