Indonesian Use of Pirated Set-Top Boxes on the Rise

A study commissioned by the Asia Video Industry Association (AVIA) has found that almost 30 percent of Indonesian consumers are using pirated set-top boxes to stream content.

The study, conducted by YouGov for AVIA’s Coalition Against Piracy (CAP), says that 29 percent of Indonesian consumers are using so-called Illicit Streaming Devices (ISDs) to access pirated content. IndoXXI Lite, LiveStream TV and LK 21 Reborn are among the most popular apps for pirated content. Of those using ISDs, 66 percent said they had already canceled a legitimate subscription to an Indonesian online video service, while 31 percent had abandoned an international streaming service.

ISDs are also prevalent in Singapore (15 percent of consumers), Hong Kong (20 percent), Malaysia (25 percent), the Philippines (28 percent) and Taiwan (34 percent).

“The illicit streaming device (ISD) ecosystem is impacting all businesses involved in the production and distribution of legitimate content,” said Louis Boswell, the CEO of AVIA. “ISD piracy is also organized crime, pure and simple, with crime syndicates making substantial illicit revenues from the provision of illegally re-transmitted TV channels and the sale of such ISDs. Consumers who buy ISDs are not only funding crime groups, but also wasting their money when the channels stop working. ISDs do not come with a ‘service guarantee’, no matter what the seller may claim.”