ACE takes down major piracy service in Egypt

In a collaborative effort with Egyptian law enforcement, the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (ACE) has shut down CimaClub, one of the largest piracy services in the Middle East-North Africa (MENA) region, headquartered in Egypt.

CimaClub, known for providing unauthorised access to a vast library of nearly 50,000 movie and TV series titles in Arabic and their original versions, was a significant source of concern for ACE members. The service, attracting over 29m monthly visits across 65 domains, posed a substantial threat to the intellectual property rights of content creators.

The Egyptian police, with a strategic operation in Giza, identified and confronted the operator of CimaClub. ACE members, including leading entities like Shahid by MBC Group and OSN, emphasised the importance of such collaborative efforts in combating piracy.

Natasha Matos-Hemingway, Chief Commercial and Marketing Officer at Shahid, a leading Arabic streaming platform by MBC Group and ACE member, said: “ACE remains persistent in cracking down on piracy, collaborating closely with authorities to pinpoint unlawful operators in the MENA region. This wouldn’t be possible without the assistance of the Egyptian authorities involved, who work diligently to prevent illegal content sharing, and we are grateful to both. It’s no secret that piracy results in tremendous losses, not only for broadcasters, but for production companies and emerging content creators as well. At MBC Group, we remain aligned with ACE in its ongoing mission to protect the intellectual property rights of our creators. We are grateful to the Alliance for their great work throughout the year, and we look forward to continuing to fight content piracy together.”

Fiona Robertson, General Counsel of OSN, a member of ACE, added: “Content piracy has severe implications across the entertainment value chain. As one of the leading entertainment companies in the region, we are committed to protecting the rights of all content creators by working closely with law enforcement and regulatory authorities in our operational markets.”

Jan van Voorn, Executive Vice President and Chief of Global Content Protection for the Motion Picture Association and Head of ACE, stated: “We applaud the Egyptian police for their swift action in identifying the operator of one of the most notorious piracy services in the MENA region. The sheer breadth of this illegal operation affected every ACE member, compromising the intellectual property of numerous creators and content owners. Today’s action underscores the power of a global and joint effort to protect the integrity of the creative marketplace.”