The National Authority for Management and Regulation in Communications (ANCOM) organized today a working session with representatives of the National Audiovisual Council (CNA), the Ministry of Culture, the Romanian Copyright Office (ORDA) and the Romanian Audiovisual Communications Association (ARCA), aiming to combat unauthorized retransmissions of live sport events and other live broadcasts. Representatives of several Romanian television networks also attended the meeting, including those of Pro, Antena, Digi, Național, Prima groups.
Discussions focused on Recommendation (EU) 2023/1018 of the European Commission, which encourages cooperation between relevant national authorities, rights holders and online intermediaries to effectively prevent and combat online piracy, in full compliance with applicable legal provisions.
According to industry representatives, for a single live sports event, between 25% and 75% of associated streaming are illegal, the losses this phenomenon generates in the national economy being estimated at over 50 million euro annually. The phenomenon is, however, much broader, affecting all types of audio-visual content, from series, films, shows to concerts and live sports events.
During the discussions, participants analyzed possible institutional collaboration mechanisms for the rapid identification and blocking of illegal retransmissions, thereby strengthening the authorities’ efforts to protect intellectual property rights and ensure a fair and secure online environment.
As Digital Services Coordinator (DSC) for Romania, ANCOM is responsible for supporting the development of an effective and balanced framework between relevant authorities and stakeholders involved in online content distribution (both rights holders and intermediary service providers who play a key role in this process). This framework must align with the European practices, considering that combating online piracy requires coordinated actions and constant collaboration among authorities, rights holders, and digital service providers.
ANCOM recommended that the authorities present at the discussions take into account the role of relevant authorities in identifying and reporting illegal content specific to their field of activity and resorting to the mechanism established by the existing regulations.
