Piracy, indirect « Sampling » and sequential adoption of TV series with multiple episodes

We analyze the impact of the illegal activity on the VoD commercial one, as well as the role of indirect « sampling » in the designing of optimal pricing strategies. For this purpose, we consider the case of TV series with multiple episodes which are set to be adopted in a sequential way. We find that the VoD commercial provider always benefits from integrating indirect « sampling » in her pricing scheme. However, this strategy does not lead her to systematically benefit from illegal activities, as her outcome directly depends on the combination of two opposite effects, namely « direct piracy » effect and « differential sampling » effect. Welfare results are discussed and do not support the attempts led by public authorities to deter outlaw activities for welfare-improving purposes.