ExtraTorrent | Sherlock Airs in China in Time to Fight Piracy

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It is perfectly known that unavailability of content is the main driver for piracy. Apparently, BBC realized this too, as the British national broadcaster has concluded a deal to broadcast Sherlock series on a Chinese streaming platform hours after its UK debut. This move is supposed to fight piracy, of course.
 

China is often associated with piracy, and therefore the country is always criticized by the largest entertainment companies in the world. The industry likes complaining about “99% piracy” on digital products and claiming that it’s impossible to fight the infringement. Now things are beginning to change.

Recently the National Copyright Administration of China labeled the QVOD video platform and Baidu, the local search giant, as top copyright infringers, and the MPA fined both services $41,000 for copyright violation. But just days later Sohu Video, a local platform with 390 million users, revealed that it had secured licenses to air NBC’s Saturday Night Live, and added that The Walking Dead and Modern Family licenses were also in the bag.

So, today the BBC is also trying to do something. Inspired by a Chinese obsession with Sherlock, the UK national broadcaster is airing the series just 2 hours after it debuts in the United Kingdom. The statistics confirm that the first episode has already been watched millions of times. As you can understand, all Chinese viewings would otherwise have happened through unlicensed sources.

This move by the broadcasting company might only chip away slightly at the piracy rate on the East, but still it is a great start. Industry experts agree that it shows real potential, as the more content video services buy, the less piracy industry gets.