Significant changes are made to the use of pirate content, as the law that clarifies the criminal offense for the end user of illegal access to protected material has been recently passed.
At the same time, according to reports, the Joint Ministerial Decision (JMD) of the Ministries of Culture and Finance was also signed, which implements the procedure for imposing fines, both on pirates and the final users who gain illegal access to protected content. The publication of the relevant Government Gazette is expected within the next few days.
What does the JMD and the new legislative framework foreseen
The use of pirate services is accompanied by significant risks and has adverse effects on end users. In particular:
- Illegal access of users to protected content becomes clearly criminal offense punishable by Imprisonment of at least 1 year and a fine of at least 2,900 euroswhile the criminal procedure accelerates.
- It is envisaged to impose an administrative fine on the end user of pirate subscription, those who display illegal, public, protected content, with or without commercial benefit (pirates, pirate activists, cafes and bars with illegal subscriptions) and to those who advertise pirate services.
The administrative fines provided for are 750 euros For the end user, 1,500 euros For pirate activists and 5,000 euros When there is illegal commercial activity (for pirates, cafes and bars, etc. and for those who advertise or advertise pirate services).
In case of recurrence, administrative fines are doubled (1,500, 3,000 and 10,000 euros respectively). It is worth noting that the offense is eliminated when the offender pays twice the fine (2 × 750 euros for the end user).
Piracy in Greece
Piraeus of audiovisual content in Greece is a long -term problem, which contributes to profits for creators, subscription providers and the state.
According to a recent study by the Center for Planning and Economic Research (KEPE) on behalf of the audiovisual project protection company (EPO), the total annual impact on the country’s GDP from audiovisual piracy is estimated at over € 400 million.
It is estimated that jobs lost each year even exceed 5,000 (a total of economy). Tax losses from pay TV (VAT, 10%special fee) are estimated at up to € 59 million a year, while losses for the domestic legal market amount to up to € 162 million a year.