Every April 26th, World Intellectual Property Day is celebrated. A date that invites reflection, but which in the current context demands something more: making decisions.
Because in an increasingly digital economy, intellectual property is not just a right. It is a critical economic infrastructure and, yet, in Spain we continue to have a structural problem: we generate value, but we are not always capable of protecting it.
Audiovisual fraud is today the most evident expression of that gap. It is not a cultural or marginal issue, it is an economic, industrial, and state challenge, as the companies in the sector themselves have recognized within the framework of CEOE.
In an increasingly digital economy, intellectual property is not just a right
The data are eloquent and speak of 7,800 accesses, with an economic impact of up to 3 billion euros per year in Spain, in addition to 400 million euros in tax revenue for the State. In terms of employment, it is estimated that around 180,000 jobs are affected.
Therefore, we are talking about a serious problem that can be quantified and that, in any case, also makes us think about investments that do not arrive due to fraud, about jobs that are not created, and about economic activity that is diverted to other countries.
To understand the real dimension of the problem, it is also advisable to go to the base of the model. Both in the cultural industry and in professional sports, a substantial part of the financing depends on intellectual property rights and, in particular, on audiovisual rights.
In sports, these constitute the main source of income. In Spain, the commercialization of broadcasting rights generates around 1.4 billion euros per season, being in many cases the financial pillar that sustains clubs and competitions.
In the audiovisual industry, the logic is equivalent: investment in content, from production to distribution, is articulated on the ability to exploit and monetize those rights in different markets and windows.
In Spain, the commercialization of broadcasting rights generates around 1.4 billion euros per season
The conclusion is structural, not sectoral: intellectual property is not just a legal framework, it is the financing mechanism of the creation economy. When that mechanism weakens, the entire value chain suffers.
The scale of the problem further reinforces its systemic nature. Spain presents piracy levels higher than the European average, with special incidence among young people, where around 45% consume sports content illegally.
This, combined with the technological sophistication of illicit platforms, capable of replicating the user experience and monetizing at scale, configures a scenario in which fraud has ceased to be individual behavior to become a parallel economic model.
In this context, the business movement acquires special relevance. Within the framework of CEOE, the Alliance for Creation has made it possible to articulate a response based on the recognition of audiovisual fraud as a structural threat; the commitment to move forward from unity of action; and the development of a common roadmap.
That roadmap is structured into clear operational lines, such as the agile blocking of illicit content, especially live; the reinforcement of the responsibility of digital intermediaries; the improvement of administrative and judicial mechanisms; the promotion of public-private collaboration; and social awareness strategies.
Therefore, under the essential principles of zero tolerance for piracy and shared responsibility of all actors, the Alliance provides fundamental value, not only as a source of diagnosis, but as a tool for operational agreement.
In other words, the Alliance emerges as a response to the gap between the speed of fraud -immediate, global, technological- and the response capacity -slow, fragmented, insufficient-.
At a time when Europe places competitiveness at the center of its agenda, it is worth remembering a basic idea: there is no efficient market if value is not protected. Therefore, intellectual property is not, therefore, a sectoral issue. It is an economic policy decision.
Spain has demonstrated the capacity to generate content, talent, and investment. But that capacity depends on the value generated being able to be returned to those who create it. Allowing that value to shift to illegal circuits implies accepting a structural loss of economic efficiency.
World Intellectual Property Day should not remain a commemoration. It should be a turning point. Because protecting rights is not just protecting creators. It is protecting investment, employment, and competitiveness. It is protecting culture and sport.
Audiovisual fraud is today one of the main points of value leakage of the Spanish digital economy
Audiovisual fraud is today one of the main points of value leakage in the Spanish digital economy. And, for the first time in a long time, there is a differential element: a common, articulated, and operational business position.
The question is no longer whether the problem exists. The question is whether we are willing to address it with the ambition it demands.