Are the days of young people using the internet to illegally access media content over? According to a study by the European Union Intellectual Property Office, not exactly. Within the EU, Malta has the highest share of young people claiming to have intentionally used illegal sources to access media content at 43 percent. In second place at 29 percent are Belgium, France, and Estonia. In about half of all EU countries, between one-fifth and just under a third of young people report using illegal sources to access media online. Perhaps unsurprisingly given Germany's stringent copyright legislation, only 12 percent of young people there reported intentionally using illegal sources.
Share of internet users who have intentionally used illegal sources to access media content in Europe in 2022, by country
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The 2022 study was conducted in the 27 EU member states and follows on from earlier editions of the Intellectual Property and Youth Scoreboard, published in 2016 and 2019.
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EUIPO. (June 1, 2022). Share of internet users who have intentionally used illegal sources to access media content in Europe in 2022, by country [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved May 13, 2025, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1340973/intended-illegal-content-use-eu-youth/
EUIPO. "Share of internet users who have intentionally used illegal sources to access media content in Europe in 2022, by country ." Chart. June 1, 2022. Statista. Accessed May 13, 2025. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1340973/intended-illegal-content-use-eu-youth/
EUIPO. (2022). Share of internet users who have intentionally used illegal sources to access media content in Europe in 2022, by country . Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: May 13, 2025. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1340973/intended-illegal-content-use-eu-youth/
EUIPO. "Share of Internet Users Who Have Intentionally Used Illegal Sources to Access Media Content in Europe in 2022, by Country ." Statista, Statista Inc., 1 Jun 2022, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1340973/intended-illegal-content-use-eu-youth/
EUIPO, Share of internet users who have intentionally used illegal sources to access media content in Europe in 2022, by country Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1340973/intended-illegal-content-use-eu-youth/ (last visited May 13, 2025)
Share of internet users who have intentionally used illegal sources to access media content in Europe in 2022, by country [Graph], EUIPO, June 1, 2022. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1340973/intended-illegal-content-use-eu-youth/
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