40% of studios unaffected by piracy, study claims

A new survey of UK studios by industry body Tiga reveals that 40 per cent of developers don’t feel that piracy is currently affecting their business.

The study went on to suggest that 60 per cent of surveyed developers view the actual threat of piracy to their business as low, with 20 per cent marking the threat as medium and only 10 per cent regarding piracy as a big threat.

And yet, a vast majority (90%) claimed that piracy is an increasing problem for their businesses going forward.

40% of studios unaffected by piracy, study claims

Yet a vast majority view piracy as a problem for their businesses going forward

A new survey of UK studios by industry body Tiga reveals that 40 per cent of developers don’t feel that piracy is currently affecting their business.

The study went on to suggest that 60 per cent of surveyed developers view the actual threat of piracy to their business as low, with 20 per cent marking the threat as medium and only 10 per cent regarding piracy as a big threat.

And yet, a vast majority (90%) claimed that piracy is an increasing problem for their businesses going forward.

In what it calls a “snap survey”, Tiga approached an unknown number of its own membership to create a clearer picture on how piracy affects the game development sector. The entirety of the published results, taken at parentages, are in multiples of 5, implying that Tiga had surveyed a relatively small cluster of developers for the exercise.

Tiga found that the development sector was divided on the policies of Westminster. When asked about the Government’s plan to cub piracy through slowing down or cutting off offenders’ net access, only half of those surveyed saw it as a wise move.

Elsewhere, half of those surveyed claimed to be adjusting their business to tackle piracy, with three-quarters of that group citing digital distribution as a possible solution.

“The results of the TIGA piracy survey clearly demonstrate that UK developers are taking the initiative when dealing with the issue of piracy and looking for new ways of delivering content and communicating directly with their consumers,” said Tiga CEO Richard Wilson.

“Developers are not complacent in dealing with this problem and are mostly seeking to find solutions for themselves rather than simply relying on the Government to solve the problem of piracy. This is testament to the pragmatic approach of the industry.”