People will be stopped from watching free films and TV shows illegally using secret ‘new technologies’, European Commission says

It also plans to set up a watchlist, which will come out in 2018

A pirate flag is seen during a protest by workers and trade union representatives from all over Europe against austerity outside Belgium's national bank (BNB) headquarters in Brussels February 29, 2012 (Reuters)

“New technologies” are going to be used to kill piracy, the European Commission says.

It has revealed a number of measures that will be used to tackle online piracy, which it sees as a growing problem.

If they’re implemented successfully, it could become much harder to illegally stream TV shows, films and live sports online.

The most intriguing line of the European Commission’s new Intellectual Property Rights Enforcement release says it will “[explore] the potential of new technologies such as blockchain to combat IP infringements in supply chains”.

It’s a very vague-sounding commitment, and the release doesn’t shed any more light on what these “new technologies” could be.

However, as spotted by TorrentFreak, European Parliament member Brando Benifei this week wrote an article in Euractiv, describing how blockchain technology can be used to give creators stronger control over their intellectual property (IP), and cut out middlemen.

The European Commission also says it wants to go after the biggest players, and is calling on countries to cooperate too.

“The Commission's approach is based on ... depriving commercial-scale IP infringers (the 'big fish' rather than individuals) of the revenue flows that make their criminal activity lucrative (‘follow the money’) [and] strengthening efforts to fight IP infringements at a global scale, by promoting best practices and stepping up co-operation with third countries,” the release says.

The European Commission has also called on more judges to specialise in IP.

Furthermore, it will set up an IP Markets watchlist, the first edition of which will be published in the second half of 2018.

To collect information on these markets, such as location, volume of traffic, types of infringement, estimated harm for right holders and possible enforcement measures, it plans to launch a public consultation.