Digital technologies have over the last few decades reshaped how we consume music, films, and live performances. Consumers can access content with the click of a mouse or the tapping of an icon, and while there are countless legitimate sources for that content, there are perhaps just as many illegal sources, so-called pirate sites.
Content piracy is nothing new. Back in the pre-recorded days when many people had musical instruments, such as pianos, in their homes or access to them in pubs and other venues, printed sheet music was the equivalent of a recording of a song. You could recreate the song in your own home for pennies or less if you could get hold of a pirated copy of said sheet music. Today, the world is a very different place, but the principles are the same. People want to hear music, and many of them don’t want to pay much, if anything, for that privilege.
Research in the International Journal of Intellectual Property Management has looked at piracy in the age of online live streaming. The work shows that copyright systems are struggling to keep pace with technological change, particularly in fast-growing digital markets such as India. The study focuses on the legal and technological obstacles confronting regulators as new forms of piracy proliferate.
Digital piracy refers to the unauthorised copying, distribution or use of copyrighted works. Copyright itself is a form of intellectual property protection covering creative output such as music, books, films, sculpture, artworks, artistic performances, and even light shows. Unlike patents and trademarks, copyright largely operates as what legal scholars call a negative right. This means that rights holders cannot compel others to use their work but can prevent others from reproducing or distributing it without permission or payment.
Copyright is meant to encourage creators to produce new work by protecting their economic interests, while at the same time allowing the public to gain reasonable access to knowledge and culture. That balance becomes more difficult in a digital environment where copying and distribution occur almost instantaneously across global networks. Online streaming services, user-content platforms are on the cold front of the copyright conflict. Platforms support legitimate creative activity but also make it easy for users to distribute unauthorised material.
To counter copyright theft, rightsholders often use Digital Rights Management, or DRM. DRM refers to technological systems designed to control how digital content can be used. These protections may limit copying, restrict access only to authorised devices, or require authentication through a paid account. However, as with much of illegal activity, those developing DRM systems are increasingly vulnerable to circumvention from pirates who develop their own systems to counter the DRM systems. The newest programmes, sometimes enhanced or even developed with generative artificial intelligence, GenAI, can break or evade DRM protection with relative ease.
International agreements such as the Rome Convention and treaties administered by the World Intellectual Property Organization have common standards recognising performers’ rights and requiring member states to extend equivalent protection to foreign creators, but with increasingly sophisticated piracy techniques, legal mechanisms lag way behind.
Nath, A. and Chakravarty, G. (2026) ‘Evolving copyright paradigms in the age of live streaming in music and video piracies’, Int. J. Intellectual Property Management, Vol. 16, No. 1, pp.28–44.
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