According to a report by Vaunet, a German private broadcasters’ association, illegal TV streaming has been rising steadily in Germany. This trend has led to billions of euros in damages, with the TV industry being the most affected.
The Vaunet report revealed a sharp increase in the use of illegal TV streams compared to another study in 2022. The most concerning aspect of the findings is that digital piracy has continued to grow despite technical safeguards, legal enforcement, and public awareness campaigns.
Millions of German users are using illegal TV streams
In 2025, 7.7 million people in Germany used illegal TV streams. The figure represents a 40% increase in illegal TV streaming, compared to the 2022/23 Vaunet report, which put the figure of illegal TV streamers in the country at 5.5 million.
The demographics of illegal TV streamers have also changed over the years.
In 2022, illegal streaming was more prevalent among people aged between 22 and 33 years. Three years later, an increasing number of young people are turning to illegal TV streaming, particularly those aged 16 to 33.
Pay-TV operators are suffering huge losses
Pay-TV operators are the biggest victims of the rising illegal TV streaming in Germany. According to Vaunet, media companies suffered around €1.5 billion in direct damages in 2025 due to illegal TV streams.
Besides pay-TV operators, other parties also suffered huge losses due to linear TV piracy. The 2025 report revealed that the German state lost around €542 million in taxes and social security contributions.
The current losses are a sharp increase compared to the 2022/23 Vaunet report, which placed the total economic losses at €1.1 billion (€587 million for media production and €277 for taxes and social contribution losses).
Vaunet calling for tougher anti-piracy measures
Vaunet has raised an alarm on the sharp increase in TV piracy in Germany, and is calling for tougher measures.
“The figures show that TV piracy remains a widespread phenomenon with a significant impact on media providers, media diversity, and the public purse. Therefore, more effective instruments are urgently needed to sustainably curb illegal TV use and thus protect media diversity,” stated Frank Giersberg, Vaunet’s Managing Director.
The organization has also suggested several recommendations to curb TV piracy. These include faster responses to illegal content, quicker and more flexible blocking measures, and efficient and effective allocation of responsibility to perpetrators of streaming piracy.