The pirate video market in Russia has returned to growth for the first time since 2019. According to F6, its volume increased by 4.2% in the first half of the year, reaching $17.3 million. Search traffic to illegal platforms grew by another 5.7%.

The main driver is foreign films and TV series, which are still scarce on legal Russian services. About 57% of foreign theatrical releases and only 10% of Russian ones ended up in pirate databases in six months. At the same time, the total share of leaked premieres decreased from more than 52% a year ago to 38%.

The platforms themselves are also changing tactics. Some start showing illegal content only in the evenings and on weekends to make it harder to catch them during inspections. Others disguise themselves as well-known online cinemas and video services, using similar domains and designs.

Online cinemas note that Russian content is now much better protected, but there is still a problem with films and TV series from departed rights holders: a third party cannot file a complaint for them.

At the same time, legal platforms are still growing faster than pirate ones – their attendance increased by 19.6% over the same period. This means that demand for official content remains, but the shortage of foreign new releases continues to fuel the gray market.