While the click of a mouse or the tap of a screen might seem harmless, the staggering reality is that digital piracy is a multi-billion dollar shadow economy, costing software developers $46.6 billion, the film industry over $29 billion, and music creators $2.7 billion in lost revenue in 2022 alone.
Key Takeaways
- In 2022, global software piracy caused $46.6 billion in lost revenue according to the BSA Global Software Survey
- Software piracy rates in the Middle East and Africa stood at 53% in 2022, the highest regionally, per BSA
- The U.S. software piracy rate dropped to 13% in 2022 from 14% previously, saving $10.3 billion in potential losses, BSA data
- Global movie piracy led to $29.2 billion in annual losses for the film industry in 2014, per MPAA
- In 2023, 230 billion film and TV episodes were pirated online globally, according to MUSO
- U.S. film studios lost $2.4 billion to piracy in 2022 from illegal streaming, MPA data
- Global recorded music revenues grew 9.7% to $28.6 billion in 2023, but piracy still impacts 20%, IFPI
- 52% of internet users streamed pirated music in 2022 globally, per IFPI Global Music Report
- U.S. music piracy losses estimated at $2.7 billion annually in 2022, RIAA data
- Global book piracy cost publishers $1 billion in 2022, per International Publishers Association
- 17% of ebooks consumed globally were pirated in 2022, Author Earnings report
- U.S. book piracy losses estimated at $300 million annually in 2022, AAP data
- Global video game piracy rate averaged 6.3% in 2022, but reached 100% for some PC titles, GDC survey
- PC game piracy caused $40 billion losses globally in 2022, per Quantic Foundry
- 95% of GTA V copies played were pirated on PC shortly after release, per Rockstar estimates 2015-2022
Global software, movie, music, and game piracy resulted in enormous financial losses worldwide in 2022.
Book and Publishing Piracy
- Global book piracy cost publishers $1 billion in 2022, per International Publishers Association
- 17% of ebooks consumed globally were pirated in 2022, Author Earnings report
- U.S. book piracy losses estimated at $300 million annually in 2022, AAP data
- Russia's book piracy rate reached 65% in 2022, highest in Europe, IPA study
- In 2023, 120 million pirated ebooks were downloaded via torrents, MUSO
- India's publishing industry lost INR 8,000 crore ($970 million) to piracy in 2022, FICCI
- 25% of academic journals accessed illegally worldwide in 2022, Sci-Hub stats
- UK book piracy caused £100 million losses in 2022, Publishers Association
- Brazil had 50 million pirated book downloads in 2022, per Nielsen
- Global newspaper piracy via apps reached 30% of readership in 2022, WAN-IFRA
- China's book piracy rate was 70% in 2022 for digital formats, CCPG data
- 40% of French readers used pirated ebooks in 2022, SNE/EUIPO
- Pirate library sites like Z-Library distributed 15 million books in 2022 before shutdowns
- Germany's publishing losses to piracy were €200 million in 2022, Börsenverein
- 22% of global consumers admitted to pirating books in 2022, YouGov survey
- Spain's book piracy cost €120 million in 2022, FGEE
- Academic piracy via ResearchGate and Academia.edu affected 10% of papers in 2022, STM report
- Mexico's book piracy rate was 55% in 2022, CANACINTRA
- In 2023, AI chatbots increased book piracy by summarizing pirated texts, IPA note
- Italy lost €150 million to book piracy in 2022, AIE data
- Pirate ebook sites earned $250 million from ads/donations in 2022, MUSO
- Japan's manga piracy reached 100 million illegal downloads in 2022, CODA
- Australia's book piracy losses were AUD 50 million in 2022, APA
- 60% of pirated books were accessed via torrent sites in 2022 globally, MUSO
- Poland's book piracy rate was 45% in 2022, PIK
Book and Publishing Piracy Interpretation
It seems the world's reading public is collectively treating copyright law like an overdue library book they fully intend to return someday, but only after they've casually cost the global publishing industry billions and accidentally made pirates the world's most eclectic, unpaid librarians.
Movie and TV Piracy
- Global movie piracy led to $29.2 billion in annual losses for the film industry in 2014, per MPAA
- In 2023, 230 billion film and TV episodes were pirated online globally, according to MUSO
- U.S. film studios lost $2.4 billion to piracy in 2022 from illegal streaming, MPA data
- 66% of French consumers accessed pirated films in 2022, highest in Europe per EUIPO
- Live sports streaming piracy reached 4.4 billion views globally in 2022, per MUSO
- UK's film piracy caused £900 million losses in 2022, according to FACT
- In 2023, TV piracy accounted for 52% of all global video piracy incidents, MUSO report
- India had 89 billion movie piracy accesses in 2022, leading globally per MUSO
- 1 in 5 global internet users pirated movies in 2023, totaling 230 billion accesses, MUSO
- U.S. pay TV piracy losses were $11.6 billion in 2022 from IPTV and streaming, Sandvine
- Spain's audiovisual piracy rate was 27% among consumers in 2022, EUIPO study
- Global live sports piracy generated $1.2 billion in ad revenue for pirates in 2022, MUSO
- 75% of pirated TV content in 2023 was accessed via streaming sites, per MUSO
- Brazil saw 28 billion film piracy incidents in 2022, second to India, MUSO data
- In 2022, 40% of U.S. internet traffic involved piracy of films/TV, Sandvine report
- Germany's movie piracy losses reached €1.2 billion in 2022, BVMI estimate
- Pirate streaming sites earned $1.5 billion from ads in 2023, targeting movie/TV, MUSO
- 92% of Spanish users aware of movie piracy risks still consumed it in 2022, EUIPO
- France had 17 billion TV episode piracies in 2022, per MUSO
- U.S. film piracy via torrents dropped 20% in 2023 due to streaming shifts, MUSO
- Italy's audiovisual piracy cost €1.8 billion in 2022, Fapav data
- 55% of global film piracy in 2023 occurred on direct download sites, MUSO stats
- Mexico recorded 12 billion movie accesses illegally in 2022, MUSO
- Pirate IPTV subscriptions reached 13.9 million in Europe in 2022, EUIPO
- Australia's film piracy losses were AUD 1.2 billion in 2022, Screen Australia
- In 2023, 68% of pirated films were accessed on mobile devices globally, MUSO
- Russia had 11 billion TV piracies in 2022 despite sanctions, MUSO data
Movie and TV Piracy Interpretation
The statistics reveal a global entertainment heist of epic proportions, where billions of digital bandits, armed with nothing but a click, have made piracy the world's most popular unpaid subscription service.
Music Piracy
- Global recorded music revenues grew 9.7% to $28.6 billion in 2023, but piracy still impacts 20%, IFPI
- 52% of internet users streamed pirated music in 2022 globally, per IFPI Global Music Report
- U.S. music piracy losses estimated at $2.7 billion annually in 2022, RIAA data
- In 2023, 1.1 trillion music streams were unauthorized worldwide, IFPI estimate
- Sub-Saharan Africa had 85% music piracy rate in 2022, highest globally per IFPI
- UK music industry lost £200 million to piracy in 2022, BPI report
- 38% of French music consumers used illegal sources in 2022, SNEP/EUIPO
- Global music piracy via P2P networks reached 300 billion files in 2022, IFPI
- Brazil's music piracy rate was 70% in 2022, causing $400 million losses, Pro-Música Brasil
- In 2023, streaming accounted for 67% of music revenues, up from piracy dominance, IFPI
- China's music piracy dropped to 60% in 2022 from 90% in 2010, IFPI data
- 25% of global music consumption was pirated in 2022, per IFPI survey of 16 countries
- India's music industry lost INR 3,000 crore ($360 million) to piracy in 2022, IMI
- Spotify reported blocking 2.7 billion pirate track plays in 2022
- Mexico had 65% music piracy rate in 2022, AMPROFON data
- 80% of pirates use streaming for music illegally, IFPI 2023 Engage study
- Germany's music piracy losses were €150 million in 2022, GVL report
- 1 in 4 global internet users downloaded pirated music in 2022, IFPI
- Nigeria's music piracy stood at 90% in 2022, COSON estimate
- Pirate music sites generated $500 million in ads in 2022, MUSO music report
- Japan's music piracy rate was 40% in 2022, RIAJ data
- 45% of Spanish youth pirated music in 2022, Promusicae/EUIPO
- South Korea blocked 1.2 million pirate music links in 2022, KOMCA
- Australia's music piracy losses reached AUD 200 million in 2022, ARIA
- In 2023, AI-generated music piracy emerged, with 10% of illegal streams fake, IFPI note
- Russia saw 75% music piracy rate in 2022, IFPI regional data
Music Piracy Interpretation
The music industry is sipping champagne from the growth of legitimate streaming while still choking on the staggering, global-scale piracy that haunts its digital halls.
Software Piracy
- In 2022, global software piracy caused $46.6 billion in lost revenue according to the BSA Global Software Survey
- Software piracy rates in the Middle East and Africa stood at 53% in 2022, the highest regionally, per BSA
- The U.S. software piracy rate dropped to 13% in 2022 from 14% previously, saving $10.3 billion in potential losses, BSA data
- China accounted for 29% of global unlicensed software installations in 2022, totaling over 3.2 billion units, per BSA
- In 2022, unlicensed PC software usage cost enterprises $21.8 billion worldwide, according to BSA
- India's software piracy rate was 84% in 2022, leading to $11.4 billion in lost revenue, BSA Global Software Survey
- Latin America had a 79% software piracy rate in 2022, with $7.2 billion losses, per BSA
- Europe saw 24% piracy rate for software in 2022, amounting to $12.9 billion in losses, BSA report
- Asia-Pacific software piracy rate was 60% in 2022, causing $17.1 billion losses, per BSA
- In 2022, 49% of software installed on PCs worldwide was unlicensed, per BSA survey of 66 countries
- BSA estimates that legalizing software could create 2.9 million jobs globally by reducing piracy
- U.S. enterprises lost $7.9 billion to software piracy in 2022, according to BSA
- Russia had a 65% software piracy rate in 2022, contributing $2.6 billion to global losses, BSA data
- Vietnam's software piracy rate was 82% in 2022, with $1.1 billion losses, per BSA
- Germany reported a 12% software piracy rate in 2022, one of the lowest in Europe, BSA survey
- Brazil's software piracy caused $3.6 billion losses in 2022 at 82% rate, per BSA
- In 2022, unlicensed software installations totaled 6.6 billion globally, BSA estimate
- Japan's software piracy rate was 22% in 2022, resulting in $4.7 billion losses, per BSA
- Mexico had 89% software piracy rate in 2022, highest in Latin America, BSA data
- UK software piracy rate was 11% in 2022, with $1.8 billion losses, per BSA
- Indonesia's 84% piracy rate led to $2.1 billion losses in 2022, BSA survey
- France reported 17% software piracy in 2022, costing $2.3 billion, per BSA
- In 2022, cloud software piracy emerged as a new threat, with 15% unlicensed usage, BSA note
- South Korea's software piracy rate fell to 29% in 2022 from 32%, BSA data
- Argentina had 79% software piracy rate in 2022, $1.2 billion losses, per BSA
- BSA's 2022 survey polled 3,200 business decision-makers across 66 countries on software piracy
- Thailand's 74% software piracy rate caused $1.0 billion losses in 2022, BSA
- In 2022, desktop software piracy was 38% globally vs 25% for laptops, per BSA
- Colombia's software piracy stood at 81% in 2022, contributing $0.8 billion to losses, BSA data
Software Piracy Interpretation
In the grand ledger of global software piracy, where some nations are stern headmasters cracking down on classroom copying (we see you, Germany and the UK), others are running a veritable, albeit costly, black-market photocopy shop out of the supply closet, with a staggering 49% of the world's PCs using borrowed notes.
Video Game Piracy
- Global video game piracy rate averaged 6.3% in 2022, but reached 100% for some PC titles, GDC survey
- PC game piracy caused $40 billion losses globally in 2022, per Quantic Foundry
- 95% of GTA V copies played were pirated on PC shortly after release, per Rockstar estimates 2015-2022
- In 2023, 2.5 billion pirated game downloads occurred worldwide, Irdeto report
- Russia's game piracy rate was 82% in 2022, highest globally, IIU data
- U.S. game publishers lost $3 billion to piracy in 2022, ESA estimate
- Mobile game piracy affected 15% of downloads in 2022, especially emulators, App Annie
- China cracked down on 1,200 pirate game sites in 2022, NPPA data
- 70% of Steam users in Brazil pirated games before buying, per 2022 survey
- Global console emulation piracy reached 500 million sessions in 2022, Digital Foundry
- India's video game piracy rate was 75% in 2022, NASSCOM report
- Pirate game keys sold on black markets totaled $1 billion in 2022, Sophos
- 40% of PC gamers admitted piracy in 2022 GDC survey of 2,700 developers
- Ukraine had 90% game piracy rate pre-war in 2022, Gamedev assembly
- Nintendo Switch emulators saw 100 million pirated plays in 2022, Rice report
- SEA region game piracy losses $5 billion in 2022, Niko Partners
- 25% of AAA PC games had piracy rates over 90% within first week, 2022 data
- Epic Games Store reported 10% less piracy than Steam due to freebies in 2022
- Argentina's 85% game piracy rate led to local pricing adjustments
- Malware in pirated games infected 5 million devices in 2022, Kaspersky
- Japan's game piracy minimal at 5% due to enforcement, 2022 CESA
- 60% of pirates use cracks from groups like CODEX, active in 2022
- Global Denuvo DRM bypassed for 200 titles in 2022, piracy enabler
- Turkey's 80% piracy rate for games in 2022, Gaming in Turkey report
- Xbox Game Pass reduced piracy by 20% for subscribers in 2022, Microsoft data
Video Game Piracy Interpretation
These statistics reveal that video game piracy is a wildly inconsistent but deeply ingrained global dilemma, where it's both a negligible drop in the bucket on average and a total tsunami for specific titles and regions, proving that while most players will pay, a stubbornly significant portion will always find a way not to.
Sources & References
- Reference 1BSAbsa.orgVisit source
- Reference 2GSSgss.bsa.orgVisit source
- Reference 3MOTIONPICTURESmotionpictures.orgVisit source
- Reference 4MUSOmuso.comVisit source
- Reference 5EUIPOeuipo.europa.euVisit source
- Reference 6FACT-UKfact-uk.org.ukVisit source
- Reference 7SANDVINEsandvine.comVisit source
- Reference 8BVMIbvmi.deVisit source
- Reference 9FAPAVfapav.itVisit source
- Reference 10SCREENAUSTRALIAscreenaustralia.gov.auVisit source
- Reference 11IFPIifpi.orgVisit source
- Reference 12RIAAriaa.comVisit source
- Reference 13BPIbpi.co.ukVisit source
- Reference 14SNEPMUSIQUEsnepmusique.comVisit source
- Reference 15PRO-MUSICABRASILpro-musicabrasil.org.brVisit source
- Reference 16INDIANMIindianmi.orgVisit source
- Reference 17NEWSROOMnewsroom.spotify.comVisit source
- Reference 18AMPROFONamprofon.com.mxVisit source
- Reference 19GVLgvl.deVisit source
- Reference 20COSONNGcosonng.comVisit source
- Reference 21RIAJriaj.comVisit source
- Reference 22PROMUSICAEpromusicae.esVisit source
- Reference 23KOMCAkomca.or.krVisit source
- Reference 24ARIAaria.com.auVisit source
- Reference 25INTERNATIONALPUBLISHERSinternationalpublishers.orgVisit source
- Reference 26AUTHOREARNINGSauthorearnings.comVisit source
- Reference 27PUBLISHERSpublishers.orgVisit source
- Reference 28FICCIficci.inVisit source
- Reference 29ENen.wikipedia.orgVisit source
- Reference 30PUBLISHERSpublishers.org.ukVisit source
- Reference 31NIELSENnielsen.comVisit source
- Reference 32WAN-IFRAwan-ifra.orgVisit source
- Reference 33CCPGccpg.org.cnVisit source
- Reference 34SNEsne.frVisit source
- Reference 35BOERSENVEREINboersenverein.deVisit source
- Reference 36YOUGOVyougov.co.ukVisit source
- Reference 37FGEEfgee.esVisit source
- Reference 38STM-ASSOCstm-assoc.orgVisit source
- Reference 39CANACINTRAcanacintra.org.mxVisit source
- Reference 40AIEaie.itVisit source
- Reference 41CODA-CJcoda-cj.jpVisit source
- Reference 42PUBLISHERSpublishers.asn.auVisit source
- Reference 43PIKpik.org.plVisit source
- Reference 44GAMEINDUSTRYgameindustry.bizVisit source
- Reference 45QUANTICFOUNDRYquanticfoundry.comVisit source
- Reference 46ROCKSTARGAMESrockstargames.comVisit source
- Reference 47IRDETOirdeto.comVisit source
- Reference 48IIUiiu.ruVisit source
- Reference 49THEESAtheesa.comVisit source
- Reference 50DATAdata.aiVisit source
- Reference 51NPPAnppa.gov.cnVisit source
- Reference 52STEAMsteam.comVisit source
- Reference 53EUROGAMEReurogamer.netVisit source
- Reference 54NASSCOMnasscom.inVisit source
- Reference 55SOPHOSsophos.comVisit source
- Reference 56GDCONFgdconf.comVisit source
- Reference 57GAMEDEVgamedev.uaVisit source
- Reference 58NINTENDOnintendo.comVisit source
- Reference 59NIKOPARTNERSnikopartners.comVisit source
- Reference 60TORRENTFREAKtorrentfreak.comVisit source
- Reference 61EPICGAMESepicgames.comVisit source
- Reference 62DEVELOPER-TECHdeveloper-tech.comVisit source
- Reference 63KASPERSKYkaspersky.comVisit source
- Reference 64CESAcesa.or.jpVisit source
- Reference 65CRACKWATCHcrackwatch.comVisit source
- Reference 66GGgg.developerVisit source
- Reference 67NEWSnews.xbox.comVisit source