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Illegal file sharing on the wane in Sweden

Swedes aren't downloading movies and music as much as before with more people preferring to pay upfront for legal services such as Netflix.

Illegal file sharing on the wane in Sweden

The study conducted by researchers at the University of Lund revealed that the percentage of users who have never shared files has rocketed from 21.6 to 30.2. 

Meanwhile the number of users who share files on a daily basis has dropped from 32.8 percent in 2012 to 29 percent in 2014. The researchers interviewed a cross section of people aged 15 to 24 over a four-year period

"There is now a trend where alternative payment solutions such as Spotify and Netflix are changing consumption patterns among young people," Måns Svensson, sociologist of law at the University of Lund, told Sveriges Television (SVT).

He added that although the decrease in the number of people who download daily was relatively small it was a "significant" as it wasn't associated with the a high-profile legal clampdown on file sharing, such as the Pirate Bay arrests of 2009.

Netflix launched in Sweden in October 2012 and according to figures released in 2013 the service had approximately 864,000 subscribers.

Swedes can also watch online via HBO Nordic, which broadcasts Game of Thrones, and Viaplay which offers movies and live sport.

DON'T MISS: Game of Thrones – How it's based on Sweden 

In 2013 a legal expert told The Local that Swedes had shown they were willing to pay for a reliable streaming service.

"People are willing to pay if they can get what they want when they want it," Daniel Westman, researcher at the Swedish Law & Informatics Research Institute at Stockholm University.

He added; "The content needs to be available, easy to access, fast, and reasonably priced. But there will also always be people willing to break the law, no matter how the problem is attacked."

The figures follow Sunday's arrest of Pirate Bay co-founder Peter Sunde who was apprehended in southern Sweden.  

The Local/pr

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