Nordic TV viewers increasingly support pirate services

Creators and channels suffer losses in middle of crisis

Despite having the image of a highly ordered society, many Nordic nations are among the highest users of illegal TV services in Europe. The media analysis service Mediavision has highlighted the growing problem in Sweden. Despite efforts to curb piracy, consumption of pirated content such as movies, series, and sports is increasing. In autumn 2024, over 700,000 Swedish households paid for such services, marking a 25% rise from spring 2024.

Overall, Denmark and Sweden recorded a 13% uptake of illegal IPTV (internet protocol television); standing at 10% in Norway and 8% in Finland. Industry body EUIPO notes a similar rise in traffic to illicit internet protocol television (IPTV) sites across Europe.

The issue is very simple, illegal IPTV allows users to access thousands of TV channels and streaming services at a significantly lower monthly cost than legal services as they are not paying for them. Mediavision estimates that there are currently about 5 million pirate users in the Nordics, aged 15-74 - a year-on-year growth of 0.4 million.

Losses of more than €7 million per month in Sweden alone

The new levels of piracy come at a time when local production is achieving a high level of respect, particularly in the domain of TV series. But the sector is fragile. Inevitably, the loss of revenue affects these productions as local channels often help finance them. Some services are being sold openly from as little as €9 per month. In Sweden alone, this means more than €7 million per month is not going to the people that create the content.

Natalia Borelius, project manager at Mediavision, told industry magazine Cineuropa: “Nordic consumers are very digital, which may explain why piracy is so common here.”

At the beginning of 2024, the Swedish government launched an additional directive to consider a ban on private individuals who use illegal IPTV. The TV companies Discovery, TV4 and Viaplay also filed a lawsuit against Swedish telecom companies Telia, Telenor, Tele2 and Hi3G Access AB to get them to crack down on illegal IPTV services.

(Michael Leahy. Source: Cineuropa. Photo: Karolina Grabows / Pexels)