Advertising on piracy websites is increasingly paid for by well-known brands. The EUIPO report published on 23 June 2026 found that major brands accounted for 36% of estimated ad impressions on the infringing websites it monitored in 2025, up from 20% in 2024, and that those sites earned an estimated EUR 382 million worldwide from advertising. For advertisers this is a reputational and contractual risk; for rights holders it is a way to cut off the money behind piracy.
Key takeaways
- The study tracked 5,671 infringing websites and 337 apps in 18 EU Member States, with the UK and US as controls, from 1 January to 20 November 2025.
- Major-brand advertising on these websites rose from 20% to 36% of impressions, and on apps from 7% to 16%.
- Fraud and malware ads on the websites also rose, from 14% to 25% of impressions.
- Watch lists still work: in Spain, major brands made up 11.6% of ads on sites listed in WIPO ALERT, against 28% across all monitored sites.
What did the EUIPO report on advertising on piracy websites find?
The 2025 Online Advertising on IPR-Infringing Websites and Apps report was carried out for the EUIPO (European Union Intellectual Property Office) by White Bullet. Of the monitored websites, 37% had been declared illegal by EU authorities and 63% were classed as high-risk: confirmed as infringing and popular with EU users. Spain was one of the 18 monitored countries.
| Indicator (monitored websites) | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Branded advertising, share of estimated impressions | 61% | 66% |
| Major brands, share of estimated impressions | 20% | 36% |
| Fraud and malware ads, share of estimated impressions | 14% | 25% |
| Unique major-brand advertisers | 4,259 | 4,778 |
| Estimated ad revenue, worldwide | – | EUR 382 million |
| Estimated ad revenue, 18 EU countries | – | EUR 28.5 million |
The websites generated an estimated 12.7 billion ad impressions in the monitored countries. The 337 apps generated 3.4 billion impressions worldwide and about EUR 15 million in revenue. Retail (47%), gambling (20%) and media (16%) were the leading sectors among branded ads on websites. Source: executive summary.
Why do major brands end up on piracy sites?
Most of these ads are bought programmatically, through chains of agencies, platforms and exchanges, so the brand rarely chooses the page. The report links the jump in major-brand advertising to the end in 2023 of several outreach programmes that warned brands about their ad placements, and it notes that infringing watch lists (lists of piracy sites shared with the ad industry) appear less effective with premium advertisers running large campaigns.
The cost goes beyond money. The report warns that legitimate ads can make users believe a site is lawful, while the rise in fraud and malware ads exposes the same users to scams.
Which tools exist in the EU and Spain?
- The Memorandum of Understanding on online advertising and IPR, a voluntary agreement facilitated by the European Commission since 2018, in which advertisers, intermediaries and rights holders commit to keep ads off infringing sites.
- WIPO ALERT, where authorised national bodies upload sites found to infringe copyright so that advertisers and ad-tech providers can exclude them automatically.
- In Spain, under article 195 of the Intellectual Property Act, the Second Section of the Intellectual Property Commission can require advertising and payment service providers to stop serving an infringing site; failure to cooperate is an infringement under the e-commerce law (LSSI).
What this means for your business
If you advertise:
- Require your agency and platforms, in writing, to apply exclusion lists that include WIPO ALERT and national watch lists.
- Ask for placement reports by domain and review them, not only campaign totals.
- Check whether your partners have signed the EU Memorandum of Understanding.
If you own content:
- Record the ads on infringing sites with dates: they show commercial scale and identify who is funding the site.
- Notify the brands and intermediaries involved, and in Spain consider the Second Section procedure, which reaches advertising services.
Our team for online copyright enforcement and digital rights can run both sides, from evidence to notices and proceedings.
Where companies get ad-funded piracy wrong
- Assuming “brand safety” settings cover piracy. They often target adult or violent content, not IP infringement.
- Treating it as a marketing issue. Placements on infringing sites can damage a brand’s reputation and its trademark image.
- Sending notices without evidence. Without dated captures, ad networks and authorities have little to act on.
- Acting in one country only. The same sites target users across Europe and Latin America.
Frequently asked questions
Is it unlawful for a brand to advertise on a piracy website?
The report does not say advertisers act unlawfully, and most such ads are placed automatically. The main risks are reputational and contractual. Under article 138 of the Spanish Intellectual Property Act, however, anyone who knowingly cooperates with an infringement, or has a direct economic interest and control over it, can be held liable, so continuing after a notice is hard to defend.
How much do piracy websites earn from advertising?
The EUIPO report estimates that the 5,671 monitored websites earned EUR 382 million worldwide from advertising in 2025, including EUR 28.5 million in the 18 monitored EU countries. The 337 monitored apps earned about EUR 15 million. These are estimates extrapolated from the monitoring period.
How can rights holders cut piracy sites’ ad revenue?
By documenting the ads and notifying the brands and ad intermediaries, getting sites onto national watch lists that feed WIPO ALERT, and using legal procedures that reach intermediaries. In Spain, the Intellectual Property Commission can require advertising and payment providers to suspend their services to an infringing site.
Can IP Global Guard handle this for my company?
Yes. For rights holders we gather the evidence, send notices and coordinate administrative and court action; for advertisers we review contracts and exclusion practices. We coordinate qualified local correspondents where needed, with a single point of contact across Europe, Latin America and Africa.
How IP Global Guard helps you follow the money
IP Global Guard, the IP services line of META Channel Corporation Limited, protects copyright and brands across more than 25 jurisdictions in Europe, Latin America and Africa, with one strategy and one billing relationship.
Send us the sites where your content or your brand appears, with a few screenshots of the ads. We will tell you which route fits, from notices to proceedings, and coordinate it from a single point of contact. Contact our anti-piracy team.
This article is general information, not legal advice; it reflects the position on the date of publication.
Sources
- EUIPO, Online Advertising on IPR-Infringing Websites and Apps 2025 (23 June 2026)
- EUIPO, executive summary of the 2025 report (June 2026)
- European Commission, Memorandum of Understanding on online advertising and IPR
- WIPO, WIPO ALERT
- BOE, Texto refundido de la Ley de Propiedad Intelectual (RDL 1/1996), arts. 138 and 195, consolidated
