ACE, a group of media companies that include Amazon, Apple TV+, NBCUniversal, Netflix Studios LLC, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Paramount, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, and Warner Bros. Discovery, has teamed up with Korean media companies to stop piracy. This partnership will bring the skills of The Korean Copyright Protection Agency and the Motion Picture Association together to fight piracy.
Together the two groups will work on ways to stop piracy around the world. Their goal is to find the source of piracy and stop it. This marks one of the most extensive partnerships to come together to fight piracy.
“Today’s MOU serves as a symbolic opportunity for KCOPA and MPA/ACE to cooperate on expanding the network to deter and combat copyright infringement of entertainment content, not only in the Asia-Pacific region but also around the world,” said Jung Youl Park, President of KCOPA in a press release. “The two organizations plan to continue cooperating on various copyright protection issues to increase synergies in copyright enforcement through the use of mutual networks, and to support the continued growth of the creative content industry.”
“Online piracy in the APAC region continues to threaten jobs, puts consumers at risk of malware, undermines investment, reduces tax contributions to governments, and stifles creativity. By signing this MOU with KCOPA we are signaling a new era for content protection in Korea and the Asia Pacific region,” said Jan van Voorn, the Motion Picture Association’s Executive Vice President of Global Content Protection and Head of ACE. “I am confident that together, KCOPA and ACE will make significant strides in preventing and reducing the distribution of pirated content on a regional and worldwide basis, ensuring that consumers can enjoy their favorite television series and films safely and legally.”
The current governing board members for ACE are Amazon, Apple TV+, NBCUniversal, Netflix Studios LLC, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Paramount, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, and Warner Bros. Charles Rivkin is Chairman and CEO of the Motion Picture Association and Chairman of ACE.
The Korea Copyright Protection Agency (KCOPA) was established in 2016 to contribute to the development and improvement of culture and cultural industries by supporting the formulation and execution of copyright protection policies, deliberating on matters of copyright protection, and implementing projects required for copyright protection.
As TV revenues continue to fall, studios are looking at piracy more closely now. Their hope is to stop as much privacy as possible and make it as hard as possible. This studio’s hope will push people to buy their media from legal services.