Theaters vs. Camcorders, Round 27 351
ackthpt writes "CNN is reporting two people, one in Los Angeles and one in Canada, were caught recording The Day After Tomorrow in cinemas, while a third got away. No mention if night-vision goggles, as previously mentioned, were of assistance." Reader azmatsci writes "Tuesday Sony was issued a patent for technology that will attempt to block camcorder recordings in movie theaters. Funny to me because I just came up with the same idea and discovered it while doing a patent search. Only problem with the idea is it will only block camcorders that use CCD recorders, which are sensitive to IR light. Another jamming idea which probably work for all camcorders can be found here."
Prosecution (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Prosecution (Score:2, Informative)
They are, however, covered by traditional copyright law.
Re:Prosecution (Score:5, Interesting)
I also think that if I were the MPAA I would go after the people distributing the copies in black market vs trying to get them in the theater, since a) many screeners and whatnot are leaked from studios anyway and do not use camcorders, and b) that is where the $$$ is and c) there are more people selling copies vs recording copies and when you put heat on the sellers then they wont sell and then people wont record.
Plus, it is an easier conviction with existing laws to go after the sellers when they have X numbers of blatently illegal copies of a movie vs. the guy that might be filming the movie for his dying daughter that cannot get out of the house and really would love to see the 3rd Harry Potter movie before she dies.
Re:Prosecution (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Prosecution (Score:4, Informative)
True...
and refers only to methods of copyrights protecting digital works.
FALSE!
The DMCA does *NOT* restrict itself to digital. For example there does exist analog encryption. Circumventing analog encryption is just as criminal as circumventing digital encryption. Distributing analog decyption devices is just as criminal as distributing digital decryption devices.
About the only part of the DMCA that is restricted to digital materials is the internet notice and takedown proceedures, and that is not actually a legale restriction, it is merely an implicit restriction because there do not exist any analog materials on the internet.
If someone were to make internet hardware that could carry analog data (rather difficult, but not impossible), then the internet notice and takedown proceedures *would* apply to analog materials as well.
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Up to no good. (Score:5, Insightful)
Assuming 'Intent' must be proven, maybe a quick ransac^H^H^H^H^H^Hsearch of their homes by the gest^H^H^H^Hauthorities could turn up a system and evidence of previous nefarious activity. I'm sure somewhere beyond the usual warning 'Use of recording devices is forbidden, yada yada yada' there are some teeth to back the warning up.
I also doubt 'Fair Use' has a twig to lean on here..."Hey, I was just capturing it in case I missed a part and wanted to rewind and see it again *during* the movie."
poor taste (Score:5, Funny)
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:poor taste (Score:4, Funny)
as opposed to the other Hollywood movies that are mentally stimulating. i will admit The Day After Tomorrow was enjoyable, mostly because it showed L.A. being destroyed
Re:poor taste (Score:5, Funny)
Everybody in my theater was fined $8.
IR - varmth (Score:5, Funny)
Re:IR - varmth (Score:5, Funny)
Re:IR - varmth (Score:2)
Re:IR - varmth (Score:5, Funny)
Re:IR - varmth (Score:3, Insightful)
Jeez bud, settle down will ya? I don't carry a cell phone myself, so don't think I'm one of your nemesises, but a ring could easily just be an honest mistake. If you had the very same visceral reaction to someone actually answering the phone and talking in the theater, I'd be a little more un
This won't help... (Score:5, Insightful)
I am not sure what the best solution would be. It's very hard to stop piracy on these types of thigns because of how many hands they cross when being produced. Most movies created these days require outside influence for CGI enhancements. From there it gets shown to have the music soundtrack added.. Include test audiences (and those that screen it for them), previews to movie theater employees and you have so many leaks along the chain you sometimes don't know where to start. This also isn't all inclusive of the movie industry either... The music industry suffers the same fate, albeit the music is a lot easier to take than a full-length movie.
What's their motivation? (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:What's their motivation? (Score:4, Insightful)
I would imagine that a pirate can pay said person to get the film. However, you bring up an interesting point... Where does the pirate get his money from? Surely not if he's going to release the film on the Internet. Does he sell them? And, if so, perhaps the person that buys turns around and floods the Internet with it?
Re:What's their motivation? (Score:3, Funny)
Re:This won't help... (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:This won't help... (Score:2)
The picture is far better on a movie screen than it is on your TV, at least until they start printing high-definition DVDs, and it's far bigger than your TV. The sound is usually better, too, unless you've gone to great lengths to set up a top-notch sound system. You may not want to see Brad Pitt killing people, but if you're going to, I'd think you'd enjoy i
Re:This won't help... (Score:3, Insightful)
That's just something to take into consideration for distribution companies to begin charging less. I'm not even positive the number of tickets sold is tracked any longer. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I know the news media certainly doesn't report it.
Another thing - we seem to think
Re:This won't help... (Score:4, Informative)
there arent any screeners available for that movie yet, its mislabed. but all a telesync is is a cam with an external audio source (ie the handicapped seat). but you are right in that the people recording usually are in on it with the projectionist. these people arent the same people who leak the stuff on the internet, these people are in the business and sell the copies on the street. the people who release on the internet just pick up the copies off the street and release them.
Re:This won't help... (Score:2)
Good! (Score:4, Insightful)
I love all our priveleges and i dig our open source OSes and software, but i don't feel everything should be free.
Let the slashdot hypocracy follow:
Re:Good! (Score:2)
Re:Good! (Score:2)
Re:Good! (Score:2)
I voted with my money by going to see movies that I knew would be worth the money, such as Lord of the Rings. I also paid for other, less "decent" movies that would be enjoyable and entertaining.
Re:Good! (Score:3, Informative)
Yeah, the world is full of crummy movies. But I've seen literally dozens of movies that made me extremely happy, from Branagh's Henry V to South Park (that is, great literature and lowbrow silliness).
Shrek also ruled.
Re:Good! (Score:5, Funny)
I've no really strong opinions on this at the moment, but looking at the situation from a pragmatic point of view, isn't the pirating a good thing for the studios?
By passing around these low-quality versions, the studio gets free publicity by people wanting to see the movie 'properly.'
The only time they really lose is if the movie is crap and they were just relying on the marketing hype to... oh, yes, I see why they're bothered.
Re:Good! (Score:4, Insightful)
I love people who rant on about "civil disobedience" in regards to IP, and then also try as hard as they can to do so without getting caught. The whole point of civil disobedience is to point out the injustice regarding a situation by purposely breaking the law in public and facing those consequences in a public setting so that the general populace might change their opinion.
Those that record movies in secret and distribute the results using technology to keep themselves anonymous are just filthy pirates, not great champions of social justice.
What about IR filters? (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:What about IR filters? (Score:3, Interesting)
Sure, you drop a couple hundred bux on it, but you're a professional right? You're going to reproduce and resell these things on every street corner for $5 profit a pop. It's a small price to pay - probably less than the projectionists cut of take.
Tinfoil (Score:3, Funny)
Infrared wouldn't work... (Score:5, Informative)
The thing with varying the framerate to introduce distortions sounds cool, but probably overly expensive for the limited scope of the actual problem itself.
Re:Infrared wouldn't work... Neither will timing (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Infrared wouldn't work... Neither will timing (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Infrared wouldn't work... (Score:3, Insightful)
No, it sounds terrible. Like those CDs that had high-pitched audio to prevent copying, and ended up eating people's speakers.
They claim they got the inspiration by noticing that computer monitors and TVs film poorly and have lines progressing down the screen (because the camera is filming faster than the screen can refresh, and is catching it in mid-frame. The image on your screen is being redrawn 60-85 times per second, dependin
Re:Infrared wouldn't work... (Score:3, Informative)
Miramax did it with Kill Bill (1 and 2). If you look, they put annoying little red dots (Cap Codes) all throughout the film:
http://www.thehotbutton.com/today/hot.button/20
The end result is that it apparently caught a couple pirates, and probably pissed off a lot of people who can see the dots easily (they're really obvious on high-contrast areas of the film).
N.
magnets! (Score:5, Funny)
Re:magnets! (Score:4, Insightful)
Do I have to say more?
Re:magnets! (Score:2)
Re:magnets! (Score:3, Funny)
Re:magnets! (Score:3, Funny)
Re:magnets! (Score:2)
Hollywood Greatest Weapon... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Hollywood Greatest Weapon... (Score:3, Funny)
Better Idea (Score:5, Funny)
Instead of trying to prevent copying, cinemas should just force all viewers to strip naked before entering. As an added benefit, if the movie is boring, the audience can devise their own entertainment.
Re:Better Idea (Score:2, Offtopic)
Re:Better Idea (Score:2)
Not good... (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Not good... (Score:5, Funny)
"I see your Schwartz is as big as mine..."
Re:Not good... (Score:2)
IR Filter (Score:4, Informative)
high end photography using filter [photoshot.com] astronomy using hot mirror [k3pgp.org]
Taping The Day After Tomorrow? (Score:4, Funny)
(And here's an amusing summary/parody [livejournal.com] of the thing for those who are up for a little MST3K style ribbing at it.)
Defeatable, as usual? (Score:5, Insightful)
And in terms of messing with the projection rate. All of the things they seek to exploit stem from the fact that the human eye doesn't see descrete frames, it sort of blurs them togethor. Couldn't the people using the camcorders decrease the shutter speed to accomplish basically the same thing?
Re:Defeatable, as usual? (Score:2)
Comment removed (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:whatever... (Score:2, Funny)
It's not that I don't have the willpower, it's just that I don't have a 100 foot screen and 30,000 watt sound system at my house (yet).
Re: (Score:2)
Re:whatever... (Score:5, Insightful)
The thing that pisses me off the most is movie theatres that are showing several 30 second commercials after the slide show and before the previews. It pisses me off because I paid almost $10 to see the movie but now I'm a captive audience practically forced to watch these commercials. If I'm going to have to see ads, why isn't the movie free?
I figure that having captive eyeballs to see your 30 second spot is easily worth $10 per person who sees it. So for each commercial I have to view before a movie, I consider myself entitled to watch one for free that I've downloaded from the net.
Re:whatever... (Score:2, Interesting)
I don't have any friends, you insensitive clod! And my crappy living room only has room for two sofas.
No ringing cell phones and crying children.
Nope, ringing regular phone, and crying child. Hardly a net gain.
You don't have to be subjected to 30 second commercials before the previews and the movie.
What movies are you getting on DVD? Seems l
Re:whatever... (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:whatever... (Score:3, Informative)
I bitched about this stuff yesterday in my blog [boonedocks.net].
I'll still take DVDs over going to the movies, but the DVD experience could be better.
Re:whatever... (Score:3, Interesting)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2, Funny)
A real problem, but not a geek problem (Score:3, Informative)
There's a huge flea market in the no-mans-land between Dallas and Grand Prairie, Texas, where you can buy just about anything you want. A friend of my daughter brought over "Freaky Friday" and "Freddy vs. Jason" the week they hit theaters -- she told me her mom bought them there. The image was grainy, the soundtrack muted, and of course there were no DVD extras -- you put it in and it started
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Idea (Score:5, Funny)
Tickets will now read "seating at 6.45. Movie starts at 7.00. Please be here two hours prior to the show due to security measures."
And this must work, since I haven't seen people recording movies on airplanes.
Counter Night Vision (Score:5, Funny)
Hmmm... this sounds like a really good Splinter Cell mod. Splinter Cell: Theaters VS Camcorders.
Re:Counter Night Vision (Score:3, Funny)
Colour CCD cameras (Score:5, Informative)
Alternative method (Score:2)
Oh... yay! (Score:2)
This is a dream come true, what a way to save $6 that's for sure.
Linux programmers source of problem again,,,, (Score:4, Funny)
Damn those Linux programmers, if we just had Windows virus/worm writers to worry about, the world would be a much safer place.
Re:Linux programmers source of problem again,,,, (Score:2)
Yeah, no kiddin' FF. I mean- to me that comment is just as acceptible as saying "since CSS was cracked by 'spic programmers in 1999." Geez. It's not like you can use the Linux KERNEL to crack CSS... so how exactly were the programmers who cracked CSS "Linux" programmers?
Last I checked, C was still a a valid and viable programm
The laws about camcorders in theaters... (Score:5, Funny)
Yes I do (Score:3, Insightful)
This goes double because the
Re:Yes I do (Score:3, Insightful)
How is Sony going to do it? (Score:4, Interesting)
Aluminum Foil (Score:2)
And the last part of the name is quickly becoming more and more ironic, what with RFID chips and all.
Re:How is Sony going to do it? (Score:4, Funny)
Congratulations, you just violated the DMCA!
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Better ways for theaters to fight back (Score:4, Insightful)
Tonight, at the Sony Metreon in SF: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban in IMAX [fandango.com]. Now that's the way to see the movie.
Re:Better ways for theaters to fight back (Score:2)
Of course, the bigger selling point for IMAX is simply that "the theater experience" is all about having the more expensive screen and sound technology that even rich people can't afford to run in their home theaters. It's a little surprising theaters haven't yet felt the survival need to de
higher ticket prices? (Score:3, Insightful)
my patent (Score:4, Funny)
We'll see how it goes. In tests so far it's been 100% effective.
bollocks (Score:3, Insightful)
Who the hell cares if someone watches a film before it comes out in their country? better yet, who the hell cares enough to stick nightvision in cinemas and go to all the trouble to try and stop cameras from working (which is just an up-hill battle that will go through round after round of expensive research and cheap ways to circumnavigate it).
And giving out serious charges and prision time for this is just total fucking bullshit on the highest level. I can understand listening to an mp3 instead of a CD, i can understand watching a divx instead of a DVD, but if someone actually seriously wants to watch a poor quality cinema video then they're either too cheap to even go to the cinema (so dont bother chasing them) or they are total fanatics who need to see star-wars the very second it comes out and who will likely go and see it in the cinema about 20 times aswell.
I believe in stopping things at the source but this just takes the piss, chuck people out if they have cameras but dont do this to your customers because some of us arnt sheep who will take your bullshit excuses and give you their money just like they take bushes bull shit excuses and wave their flags around or take blunketts crap as he says "duuhhhh i think we should have id cards because they help fight terrorists" or listen to the fucking criminal israeli government as they say "yeah that vanunu is evil, kidnap is ok", some of us don't give jack about jay-lo's failing career or ben afflecks right to have 3 jets, the cinema industry is just becoming shitty like all the other industries and soon they are going to wake up either to a society of sheep who will buy their DRM or a society of people who say fuck you and boycott every
ok im going to sit down now.
Re:bollocks (Score:3, Insightful)
Perhaps the movie industry is afraid that people will see just how bad most of the movies are and they won't go see them in the theaters? Just look at the piece of shit film the people got caugh recording.... Day After Tomorrow. Who in their right mind would go see that movie in the theater after seeing what a piece of shit it is? I think the movie industry relies on people not really knowing how good a movie is before th
I'm reminded of... (Score:2)
Expect rollerblading ushers with NVG's and long rifles by July 4th.
blind chamber? (Score:2, Interesting)
It's a pointless exercise.. (Score:2)
-color/brightness correct in softwar
Will they ever do their homework first? (Score:3, Informative)
I hope the next time an idea like this starts to shine like a bright strobelight in its inventor's mind, at least they'll have a look at some hardly known websites like these:
All i want to know is... (Score:3, Funny)
What is the point? (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:What is the point? (Score:3, Funny)
A quote from the article (Score:3, Insightful)
Relative to what? Taking a crap on celluloid?
Do ya think that maybe the MPAA had a little influence on this reporter?
Tomorrow's news? (Score:4, Funny)
Days after the initial implementation of this procedure, movie ticket sales have fallen to nearly $0, proof that piracy is responsible for reduced MPAA profits. The MPAA is going to begin suing individuals while lobbying the government to pass more stringent laws regarding movies, because the Constitution states that the MPAA has a God-given right to eternal perpetually increasing profits, and the government has a duty to guarantee that those profits increase by a satisfactory amount each year.
Cheap IR removing filter solves that. (Score:2)
Re:yes! (Score:5, Insightful)
But ya, Cams suck. I watched a few to see what they looked like, and the quality is poor, the audio sucks, etc.
If you've got a kickass 5.1 surround system with a DLP projection system, there's no reason to waste your time with "copies from theatres" anyway.
N.