AMSTERDAM: Live sport is the crown jewel of streaming — and the favourite target of pirates. The digital-security specialist Irdeto has launched a new feature for its cloud-based multi-DRM platform, Irdeto Control, designed to make life harder for stream hijackers and easier for broadcasters under pressure from rights holders.
The enhancement centres on high-frequency key rotation: a technique that shrinks the exposure window for encryption keys, forcing frequent re-authentication. Each cycle destabilises pirate streams by disrupting the stolen keys they rely on, making common tricks such as key extraction and CDN leeching far less effective. The result, says Irdeto, is the gradual degradation of illegal feeds — a frustrating user experience that pushes fans back towards legitimate platforms.
Irdeto Control already delivers more than 15 billion DRM transactions monthly, protecting content for over 200m users. It supports Widevine, FairPlay and PlayReady, while layering on piracy countermeasures such as concurrency management, vulnerable-device blocking, emulator detection and geo/VPN enforcement. The new key-rotation capability slots into existing multi-DRM workflows without requiring changes to players or packagers — a crucial point for operators wary of integration headaches.
“Piracy in live sports continues to evolve rapidly, and rights holders are demanding tougher security standards that don’t hinder operational efficiency,” said Irdeto chief operating officer for video entertainment Andrew Bunten. “This is a major step forward in protecting the value of live content.”
The economics of piracy are sobering: for broadcasters, unauthorised streaming of premium leagues erodes subscription revenues; for rights holders, it undermines billion-dollar licensing deals. Regulators, too, have begun pressing platforms to prove they can safeguard live streams against theft.
Irdeto, which has long positioned itself at the intersection of video platforms and security, hopes its latest upgrade will strengthen its pitch to both camps. By degrading pirate feeds rather than merely chasing them offline, it aims to tilt the balance in favour of legal distribution.
The announcement comes ahead of IBC 2025 in Amsterdam, where Irdeto will showcase its full suite of video-protection tools. In a marketplace where streaming platforms compete as much on content security as on user experience, the company is betting that tougher defences can help keep live sport the revenue engine it has always been.
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