Dutch pay-TV providers cite success with anti-piracy efforts

Efforts to stamp out pay-TV piracy are working, according to the Dutch industry group NLconnect. In the past year and a half, around 80 percent of illegal providers have been taken offline.

Since early 2016, the pay-TV providers have worked closely together to track illegal providers and take down their services. While the sale of prepackaged boxes and subscriptions is illegal, streaming of protected content has become a greater problem. The industry works with its suppliers to cut off any security vulnerabilities in systems but it's more difficult finding the actual culprits of illegal streams. The industry group said it's found more signs of organised crime, operating also at the international level.

NLconnect unites telecom and cable operators and includes KPN, M7, VodafoneZiggo and Fox Networks Group.