Illegal 'dodgy boxes' are reducing GAA+ revenue by up to 40%

The GAA has called for stronger laws to tackle the use of illegal 'dodgy boxes,' which the organisation said is reducing its online streaming earning power by as much as 40%.

Noel Quinn, the head of streaming service GAA+, said piracy is crippling the amount of money being taken in by the online platform.

GAA+ bought out RTÉ's 50% share of the streaming service in February of this year, but Quinn would not be drawn on how much it was sold for when questioned at an Oireachtas committee on Tuesday evening.

The committee heard there are upwards of 400,000 so-called 'dodgy boxes' in Ireland, which both GAA+ and LOITV, the League of Ireland's streaming service, said are severely hampering their ability to grow their games.

'Dodgy boxes' are devices that allow users to watch pay TV channels illegally. Sellers provide customers with codes or links to watch streamed premium content, including sports and movies. Typically, content is downloaded onto an Amazon Fire Stick, which can be plugged into a TV.

Sellers have a range of services at different prices, from €50 a year. Quinn said there needs to be "stronger legislation" to go after the people selling devices.

He said: "In recent times, what the GAA would have done would have been to monitor and actually send cease and desists to particular individuals who are carrying out illegal processes.

"Stronger legislation to go after people who are selling dodgy fire sticks and codes would be something that's very helpful."

Quinn also said those who are using dodgy boxes are stopping the expansion of social outreach projects, as well as services such as summer Cúl Camps.

He added: "82 per cent of every commercial euro earned is repurposed back into the grassroots. Any threat to commercial earning power is obviously taken very seriously.

"Piracy is the very evident answer to that question, dodgy boxes and infringement of our copyright, and anybody who is ripping off official copyrights footage now is essentially dipping their hand into the GAA's pocket and reducing their ability to leap into capital infrastructure projects.

"The challenge is piracy, and... to continuously churn out quality programming and continue to invest in the best commentators, analysts and production companies in Ireland."

Both Quinn and LOI TV's Mark Scanlon agreed piracy remains the biggest problem affecting Irish streaming services. Scanlon told the committee many people don't realise they are essentially taking money out of the pockets of their clubs.

He said a survey by a fan's podcast in 2023 found 54% of people were accessing LOI TV through illegal streaming.

"That means there's a lot of lost revenue for the service, and that doesn't allow us then to increase our production levels, and it doesn't allow us to give money back in to continue to increase what they do. It's a valuable service, and piracy is a huge issue for us, so it's certainly one that we'd love to see tackled even further.

"I know there's been some good work done in recent times, particularly around sellers, but the end users are still a major problem for us, and I think the impact of that is still most of the general public don't realise on small services like ourselves in LOI TV and in GAA+ the impact that that has."

The two also spoke of the potential effects of the introduction of the streaming levy currently being considered by government.

While both organisations spoke of a potential exemption from any levy, they both acceded if that were not possible, they would prefer a tiered system, which would put a higher levy on international streaming giants and a lower charge for indigenous and smaller platforms like them.

The clampdown on dodgy boxes started in 2023 following a rise in their use. While gardaí previously focused on the sale of the gadgets, under the Copyright Act 2000, it is illegal to watch or use a dodgy box, with fines of up to €127,000 or a maximum prison sentence of five years.

The Federation Against Copyright Theft states many piracy networks are linked to organised crime, with profits used to fund other illegal activities.

Last year, father-of-four Ciarán Donovan was jailed for the possession of nearly €1 million in criminal proceeds from his illegal streaming business.

He ran King Kong Media, which charged for codes to access channels such as Sky and BT Sports. He was sentenced to three years and four months, with the final two years suspended for a 30-month period.

*This article was originally published on BusinessPlus.ie.