Earlier this year when discussing ongoing work to block pirate sites and services, Minister of Culture Lina Mendoni said that a system of fines targeting end users in Greece would complement these efforts.
As part of an administrative system, fines would be issued against people who “illegally obtain access to audiovisual media” from an illegal source, such as a website or pirate IPTV subscription, with penalties increasing depending on the seriousness of the violation.
The framework received the green light and the full text was published in February.
Procedure for Imposing and Collecting Fines
Joint Ministerial Decision 358834/2025 published by the government this week outlines the procedure for imposing and collecting administrative fines for IP violations.
The procedure specifically targets violations of intellectual property rights as defined under paragraphs 1, 2, 2A and 2B of Article 65A of Law 2121/1993 and provides details on the authorities responsible for initiating investigations, issuing infringement notices, and the collection of fines.
The administrative procedure is initiated by ‘competent control authorities’ on their own initiative or in response to a written complaint. Authorities include the Independent Authority of Public Revenue, the General Directorate of the Financial Crime Prosecution Corps, the Interdepartmental Market Control Unit, police, and Port and Customs Authorities.
Relevant to users of pirate IPTV are violations under paragraph 2b of Article 65A (full text below). Here, the fines procedure can also be initiated based on data received from the judicial authorities obtained as part of a separate criminal prosecution under Article 66 of Law 2121/1993. In plain language, if an IPTV provider or seller is prosecuted for more serious offenses and customer details are available to the authorities, that could trigger fines for the seller’s users.
Pirate IPTV-Related Fines
Evidence to support the imposition of a fine is reflected in a document containing the personal details of the offender and the infringement, plus details of any previous offenses. Details of how to dispute the allegations, within the allocated 10-day period, are also provided.
For the regular consumer, administrative fines start at €750 and when the full amount is paid without any objections, the matter is brought to a close. If the same consumer is flagged again, based on records held in a database, the fine doubles to €1,500 euros.
If the use is deemed to be commercial in nature, administrative fines start at €5,000 for each violation, increasing to €10,000 for each violation in the case of repeat infringement.
The same fines also apply to users of any equipment, such as decoders or software, through which they illegally gain access to audiovisual content without authorization from rightsholders.
For the most serious violations, usually involving sales, distribution, and other commercial components, fines start at €2,900. Offenders who pay double the administrative fine can avoid criminal prosecution but can still be pursued by rightsholders.
Joint Ministerial Decision 358834/2025 is available here, previous reporting with additional detail here
From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.
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