Just two months after strict anti-piracy legislation came into force, Russia’s largest online video services have formed the Internet Video Association in order to help shield the market against pirated video content. The union defines itself as “a nonprofit organization that assists in the proper application of the anti-piracy law while avoiding discrimination and repression,” according to its chairman Oleg Rumyantsev, cited yesterday by news agency TASS Telecom.
The new union now comprises 11 major market players, including Amediateka.ru, ivi.ru, Megogo.net, Molodejj.tv, Now.ru, Tvzavr.ru, Stream.ru, Tvigle.ru, Viaplay.ru, Zoomby.ru, and 1tv.ru.
One of the Internet Video Association’s key short-term objectives is “seeking a constructive dialogue with search engines that might introduce new technical solutions for legal content to appear in the top search results.”
Among the association’s other goals are the formation of industry standards in the field of online video, coordinated PR and communications policies, and joint market research, said Egor Yakovlev, vice-chairman and CEO of online video site Tvigle.ru, in an exchange with East-West Digital News.
The Association is building its own portal to guide visitors through a swarm of video content and advising them on where to find legal video. The union is ready to cooperate with Russia’s Internet and telecom regulators and wants to “raise its voice regarding the essential issues of Internet development,” Rumyantsev said.
By 2018 an estimated 100 million Russians will be watching movies online. Today legal video portals account for about 10% of the total, according to Yakovlev.
Also aiming at protecting copyright and intellectual property are copyright holder associations. Among them are the Russian Authors’ Society (RAO), created in 1993, and the Russian Organization for Intellectual Property (VOIS), launched in 2008, which specializes in the protection of IP rights for music and recordings.
- RUSSIAN ONLINE VIDEO REPORT – East-West Digital News has conducted a in-depth research on Russia’s online video market in partnership with comScore, Ernst & Young, the Higher School of Economics, and more than 20 market players. The report is scheduled for release later this month in partnership with The Next Web. To receive a free copy, please contact us at [email protected].
