Italy’s ambitious anti-piracy campaign, ‘Piracy Shield,’ has shut down thousands of illegal streaming sites over the past year. Yet, according to telecom regulator AGCOM, this crackdown has failed to drive more viewers to legal platforms like DAZN. The data has reignited debates among stakeholders and copyright holders about the effectiveness of such measures.
One Year of ‘Piracy Shield’
Launched nearly a year ago, ‘Piracy Shield’ was designed to combat unauthorized sports streaming. Since its inception, thousands of IP addresses and domains linked to illicit broadcasts have been blocked.
Authorities and rightsholders have hailed the program as a major step forward in curbing piracy. However, incidents of excessive blocking—where legitimate sites were caught in the crossfire—have drawn criticism. These issues, dismissed by some as early-stage setbacks, continue to raise concerns among industry experts.
Plans to Expand Blocking Efforts
Instead of reconsidering its approach, Italy is looking to expand ‘Piracy Shield’ beyond live sports. There are growing calls to include movie premieres, live television broadcasts, and other forms of entertainment in its scope.
Proponents of the initiative are also exploring additional legal tools to strengthen enforcement. VPNs, DNS services, and content delivery networks like Cloudflare have become focal points in the discussion, with some arguing that more aggressive measures could yield better results.
AGCOM, responsible for overseeing the program, recently met with industry players to assess its impact. Among those involved was Brian Turnbow of CDLAN, a cloud and hosting solutions provider. While details of the discussions remain private, Turnbow later analyzed the latest AGCOM report, leading to some unexpected insights.
Measuring Success: Blocking vs. Actual Impact
Determining whether ‘Piracy Shield’ is successful depends on how one defines effectiveness. Supporters claim that reducing pirate site traffic is proof that the initiative is working. However, the bigger question remains: Has this effort led to more people subscribing to legal streaming services?
Turnbow’s analysis suggests otherwise. While pirate traffic may have declined, users have likely found alternative sources. Even if piracy numbers have dropped, there’s no clear evidence that legal services have gained new customers as a result.
No Growth for DAZN
Turnbow’s investigation focused on DAZN, a major rights holder for Serie A football matches and a key supporter of the initiative. His findings revealed no increase in DAZN subscribers for 2024 compared to 2023. The total hours watched remained unchanged as well.
“The number of users post-Piracy Shield in 2024 is the same as in 2023… no gains. The number of hours watched in 2024 is the same as in 2023, again no gain. 2024 overall is below 2022 when there was no Piracy Shield,” Turnbow reported.
The only notable change he observed was an increase in DAZN’s subscription price, which rose from €40.99 to €44.99—something AGCOM’s report did not address.
“So after 12 months, the data says ISPs sustained costs to implement the service, no users or hours gained for DAZN, and higher prices for end users,” Turnbow commented in a LinkedIn post.
A Need for a More Balanced Approach
Turnbow does not claim that his findings offer a definitive conclusion. Some might argue that without anti-piracy measures, DAZN’s subscriber numbers could have declined even further. However, his report raises concerns among online intermediaries about whether broad blocking campaigns provide tangible benefits.
Over the past year, a lack of transparency and openness to industry feedback has hindered progress. Extreme positions—either fully supporting or entirely opposing blocking measures—often prevent meaningful discussions from taking place.
The fact that skepticism is now emerging from within copyright advocacy circles highlights the complexity of the issue. Even long-time anti-piracy proponents are divided, raising questions about whether ‘Piracy Shield’ is a true deterrent or merely a symbolic measure.