There is a persistent and widely held misconception about the nature of the piracy audience, one that stems, in part, from the term ‘pirates’ itself. This label skews perception, reinforcing the idea of lawlessness rather than recognizing what we prefer to call The Unlicensed Audience, a vast, engaged group whose behaviour often signals unmet demand. This misunderstanding has led to strategic miscalculations across the entertainment industry.
Many assume that digital piracy is primarily driven by a fringe group of disengaged, non-paying consumers. However, when we look at the data, a different picture emerges, one that challenges long-standing assumptions and reveals digital piracy as an essential indicator of true audience demand.
A comprehensive study conducted by the University of Amsterdam, which surveyed 35,000 respondents (including 7,000 minors) across 13 countries, found that pirates (aka the unlicensed audience) are demographically very similar to the legal audience. The study concluded:
"Pirates and legal users are largely the same people: demographically, pirates resemble legal users quite closely."
This aligns with findings from multiple research studies conducted by Creative Content Australia CCA, as well as independent research agencies, and MUSO’s research alongside several VOD clients. While unlicensed audiences sometimes skew slightly younger and male, this is no different from the paying audience for VOD platforms. In fact, studies by Uswitch and the University of Hudderfield show that subscription services often skew even younger and more male than the general population.
Importantly, traditional audience measurement systems, such as Nielsen, BARB, and Médiamétrie, were originally designed to track linear television for advertising, meaning their methodologies introduce biases, including household demographic influences and paid respondent factors. By contrast, unlicensed audience data provides a more direct view of content demand, offering insights into audiences who may not be reflected in conventional research panels. In essence, unlicensed audience data reveals what people actually watch.
A widespread assumption in the entertainment industry is that those who pirate content are fundamentally different from paying consumers. The data, however, tells a different story.
A study by Cordcutting found that nearly one-third of US adults admitted to pirating content in the past year, with over half having done so at some point in their lives. Yet, surveys on unlicensed activity tend to underreport true numbers, as many respondents are reluctant to admit such behaviour. The real scale of unlicensed consumption is likely far greater than reported.
Interestingly, the demographic split of unlicensed audiences mirrors that of paid streaming subscribers. Deloitte’s 14th Digital Media Trends report found that men hold 58% of online entertainment subscriptions, a ratio strikingly similar to piracy demographics in studies like CCA’s Piracy Tracker 2023 (60% male, 40% female).
A 2024 Kearney study using MUSO data further segmented piracy audiences into three groups:
This last group represents a major opportunity for rights holders. Today’s piracy sites are no longer the clunky torrent hubs of the early 2000s; they offer slick, user-friendly experiences that often rival official platforms. Limited availability forces some consumers into piracy, not because they want to avoid paying but because they simply have no legal option.
Rather than viewing piracy purely as a threat, the industry must recognize it as a real-time signal of audience demand and a chance to close the gap between content and consumers.
Contrary to the common belief that digital piracy stems from an unwillingness to pay, research consistently shows that those who engage in piracy are among the most active consumers of legal entertainment.
A key finding from the University of Amsterdam study reinforces this:
"For each content type and country, 95% or more of pirates also consume content legally, and their median legal consumption is typically twice that of non-pirating legal users."
This aligns with years of research demonstrating that unlicensed audiences subscribe to more VOD services and visit cinemas more often than non-pirates. Rather than avoiding payment, piracy users are typically more engaged and willing to spend on entertainment.
For example, a large-scale survey commissioned by the Australian government in 2015 found that while 7% of the population were “hardcore” pirates who paid nothing for content, the majority of pirates, who also purchased legally, were among the industry’s best customers. In fact, most pirates pay for music, movies, or games, often outspending non-pirates by combining both free and paid consumption.
A peer-reviewed study by Bradley et al. examined how pre-release piracy impacts movie performance. It found that for blockbuster films, the circulation of a pirated copy actually increased theatrical attendance by approximately 24%. Many who sampled a low-quality illegal version still chose to pay for the full cinematic experience, ultimately boosting box office revenue.
Cinema audiences also tend to skew toward higher income and education levels, as highlighted by data from the Independent Cinema Office. This pattern is consistent across engagement with the arts, whether through licensed or unlicensed channels.
This dynamic makes intuitive sense: highly engaged consumers seek the broadest possible access to content. When availability, pricing, or regional restrictions limit access, they often turn to piracy, not as a substitute for legal consumption, but as a complement to it.
Another misconception is that piracy primarily affects films and TV shows that are unavailable or obscure. While availability does drive piracy, one of the biggest factors influencing unlicensed consumption is the same as in legal markets: marketing and awareness.
MUSO’s data demonstrates a high correlation (0.85 Spearman's Coefficient) between box office revenue and unlicensed consumption during the same period. In simple terms, the movies that perform well at the box office also see high piracy rates, because demand is universal, regardless of distribution method.
Similarly, MUSO’s work with major VOD platforms shows that piracy data correlates strongly with home entertainment demand. Unlike streaming services, which prioritize their own original content through recommendation algorithms, unlicensed demand offers a more organic and unbiased measure of audience interest, revealing what people would truly watch if given unlimited access.
The entertainment industry is increasingly recognizing the value of unlicensed data as a demand signal. Major studios, VOD platforms, and rights holders use MUSO’s insights to better understand audience behaviors, inform content acquisition strategies, and maximize revenue opportunities.
Rather than dismissing unlicensed audience data as a metric of lost revenue, forward-thinking industry leaders view it as a powerful indicator of true global demand, one that reveals gaps in availability, pricing strategies, and untapped market potential.
To move the conversation on piracy forward, we must challenge outdated assumptions and look at the data with clarity. The evidence is clear: unlicensed audiences are not a separate entity; they are an extension of the paying audience. Recognizing this opens the door to smarter, more strategic engagement with the most passionate consumers.
Rather than treating digital piracy purely as a threat, the industry has an opportunity to turn unlicensed demand into real-world revenue. Those who embrace this insight will be best positioned to thrive in an increasingly fragmented media landscape.
If you’d like to explore how piracy data is transforming content strategies for the world’s leading studios and VOD platforms, we’d be happy to share further insights.