On May 24, Recommendation (EU) 2023/1018 on combating commercial-scale online piracy of sports content and other live events, such as concerts and theatrical performances, was published in the Official Journal of the EU.
This Recommendation encourages Member States, national authorities, rights holders, and intermediary service providers to adopt effective, balanced, and appropriate measures to combat unauthorized rebroadcasts of such events. By stepping up the fight against online piracy, the Recommendation will help strengthen the competitiveness of the EU’s creative and sports industries.
The Recommendation focuses on three main areas:
– Prompt handling of notifications related to live events: This underscores the importance of hosting service providers taking urgent action to minimize the damage caused by illegal rebroadcasting.
– Dynamic injunctions: The Recommendation promotes the use of injunctions tailored to live events and, in the case of live sporting events, encourages Member States to grant sporting event organizers the standing to seek an injunction when this is not currently possible.
– Commercial offerings and awareness-raising: It recommends that organizers and broadcasters of sporting and live events increase the availability, affordability, and appeal of their commercial offerings to end users throughout the Union. It calls on Member States to raise awareness among consumers about legal options for accessing this type of content and to raise awareness among law enforcement authorities about the problem of piracy.
It also strengthens cooperation between the relevant national authorities and between rights holders and intermediaries to better address the issue of unauthorized retransmissions of live events. Cross-border cooperation among Member States is important given the nature of piracy, which transcends national borders.
Finally, the Recommendation establishes a robust monitoring system to assess its impact on the fight against piracy and to explore new measures if necessary, with the support of the EUIPO Observatory.
Given that the implementation of the Digital Services Act will advance the broader fight against illegal content on online platforms, the Commission will assess the effects of the Recommendation by November 17, 2025 (the deadline by which the Commission will assess how the Digital Services Act interacts with other legal acts, including copyright legislation).
Dr. Juan José Caselles, Head of the Anti-Piracy Department at Elzaburu