A total of 28% of North Americans engage in media piracy at least once per month, according to a poll conducted by BestOntarioCasinoSites.BestOntarioCasinoSites writer Edward Daniels said while digital content is more accessible than ever, media piracy remains a challenge across North America. “This trend not only affects the economics of media production, but also shapes how content is distributed and consumed — and based on the data, this trend isn’t going anywhere,” said Daniels in a blog post. Daniels said Saskatchewan was the Canadian province with the largest percentage of people who engage in media piracy (51%). After Saskatchewan was Nova Scotia (48%). This was followed by Manitoba (47%), Ontario (43%), and Quebec (41%). He pointed out Oregon was the American state with the largest percentage of people who engage in media piracy (53%). After Oregon was Georgia (46%). This was followed by Iowa (42%), South Carolina (36%), and Washington (31%). The writer went on to say movies topped the list of pirated media people access (68%). With movie tickets costing between $10 to $20 depending on where people are located, he said it is “safe to say cost is a major reason people are opting to pirate their Friday night film rather than see it on the big screen.”Television shows came in second place (53%). The media following TV shows were music (36%), e-books (26%), and games (21%). He said streaming websites were the most common method for accessing pirated content (41%). While streaming websites dominated, torrent websites came in second (20%) and social networks were third (16%).In a world where inflation keeps going up, 68% of North Americans cited cost savings as the primary reason for watching pirated media. Pricing strategies and styles for obtaining legal content might make some of them feel excluded, which could motivate them to turn to piracy as a cheaper option. However, 45% said they resort to piracy because they feel there is no other way to obtain the content they want, regional availability issues, and delays or differences in release dates. Another 37% found pirating more convenient. While most streaming services are easy to use, this means people find that to not be the case. Daniels concluded by saying media companies should “consider enhancing the convenience of their platforms through a combination effort or improving (perhaps offline) accessibility.”“As 69% of respondents believe a shift in the affordable access of legal content would be the best approach, finding flexible and fair pricing for consumers in order to protect the artists behind the scenes rather than simply aim for profit seems to be an inkling toward an answer,” he said. “Sure, at the end of a long day we’d all just like to Netflix and chill, but until the price tag and accessibility improves for most streaming services, piracy will likely be a favored alternative for a significant portion of the population — undoubtedly shaping the future landscape of media consumption.”The poll was conducted online with 1,000 Canadian and 2,000 American adults in April. No margin of error was assigned to it.
