Video Gamer is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Prices subject to change. Learn more
According to research conducted by trade groups including the Entertainment Software Association, over 9.78 million games were downloaded illegally during the month of December 2009.
The figure is a result of monitoring downloads of 200 games on the most popular peer-to-peer platforms including BitTorrent, eDonkey, Gnutella and Ares.
However, the ESA estimates that the actual figure is much higher.
“These figures under-represent the true magnitude of online game piracy,” said the ESA. “They address only downloads of a small selection of ESA member titles.
“And while they account for illegal downloads that occur over select P2P platforms, they do not account for downloads that occur from ‘cyberlockers’ or ‘one-click’ hosting sites, which continue to account for high volumes of infringing downloads.”
Of the 9.78 million downloads, Italy was the biggest offender accounting for 20.3 per cent, Spain 12.5 per cent, France 7.5 per cent and Brazil six per cent.
The report, carried out by the International Intellectual Property Alliance (IIPA), recommends that 35 countries be placed on a ‘priority watch list’.
