43% of Maltese youths between the ages of 15 and 24 have knowingly accessed pirated content in the last 12 months, marking the highest percentage in the European Union for piracy, a survey revealed.

The European Union Intellectual Property Office’s (EUIPO) survey on attitudes towards piracy and counterfeiting revealed that the percentage of those who have accessed pirated content in the EU was 21%. 60% of youths in the EU have not accessed pirated content, which included using, playing, downloading, or streaming content from illegal sources.

The types of content from illegal sources accessed most in Malta were films (64%), television series or shows (51%), music (22%), software (32%), live sports events (25%), video games (28%) and e-books (35%).

Moreover, 41% of youth in Malta have intentionally bought at least one fake product in the last 12 months, compared to 37% in the EU. The most purchased counterfeit goods were clothes and accessories (15%), footwear (9%) electronic devices (13%) and hygiene, cosmetics, personal care and perfume products (7%).

60% of young Europeans said they preferred to access digital content from legal sources, compared to 50% in 2019. In Malta, this percentage amounts to 44% of youth.

The main factors contributing to buying counterfeits and digital piracy are price and availability, followed by peer and social influence which has become increasingly important, the survey said.

The main deterrents to not access pirated content or buy fake products are cyberthreats, cyber fraud and the environmental impact.

Over half (52%) of the youth surveyed in the EU had bought at least one fake product online over the past year, either intentionally or by accident, and a third (33 %) had accessed illegal content online.

Executive Director of the EUIPO, Christian Archambeau said that the new analysis provides a valuable tool to help stakeholders, policy makers, educators and civil society organisations to raise awareness initiatives to support the informed choices of young consumers.