Apple TV+ joins ACE, the entertainment industry's anti-piracy group

Reported by Variety, Apple TV+ is joining the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment, an entertainment industry group that protects against piracy. It is a move that helps to strengthen Apple's position with the industry. According to the report, Apple will be on the governing board of the group, along with Amazon and the Motion Picture Association.

ACE was founded in 2017 by the MPA and 30 entertainment companies. At the time, it represented a novel partnership among the legacy studios and the streaming services. Netflix subsequently joined the Motion Picture Association in 2019, cementing the partnership.

Charles Rivkin, chairman of the MPA and of ACE, says that the board that Apple TV+ will now be a part of, sets the group's strategy on how to fight against piracy in the market.

"We are the premier anti-piracy force," said Charles Rivkin, chairman of the MPA and of ACE, in an interview. "The governing board is what determines the strategy and where to spend the budget."

ACE specifically investigates piracy services and hardware that gives access to pirated content. The group has filed lawsuits that have succeeded in shutting down services and hardware companies that aid piracy efforts.

"It's an ongoing fight but i'm really proud of the way ACE has been advancing and protecting content creators," Rivkin said. "When you shut down these illegal sites… what happens is it drives traffic to legitimate sites."

According to the group, over 23 million users currently subscribe to a pirating entertainment service.