MPAA Fights Pirates with Gentle Threats

Gillious writes "Wow! It seems the MPAA has learned from the RIAA's mistakes. It seems we aren't going to get mass-lawsuits for grandmothers and 12-year-old kids. I find this quote most interesting: 'The movie industry, he said, has to ask itself what the music industry should have asked years ago: 'Why do they want to steal from us?' The answer, he said, is simple: 'Because you won't sell them what they want.' The technologists say that what went wrong with the music industry can easily go wrong for movie companies, too.'"

Re:man that's fast

[Anonymous Coward]

700MB in 5 minutes = 2.3 megabytes/sec
Speed offered by broadband = ~2 megabits/sec

1 byte = 8 bits.

You figure it out.

Arg!

[FrostedWheat]

Copying is *NOT* stealing! It's "Copying". I've copied all my DVDs to computer to make it easier to watch them and keep the origial DVDs safe. Does that make me a thief? Nope. If I walked into a library or video store and stole a DVD or VHS then that is theft.

It's quite simple, you'd think they'd get it right more often.

Re:Irony ?

[chamenos]

oh and just to add on, i'll include an extract from the email universal studios productions sent to my ISP (which was forwarded to me when my ISP emailed me regarding the complaint):

"This unauthorized copying and distribution constitutes copyright infringement under applicable national laws and international treaties. Although various legal and equitable remedies may be available to Universal as a result of such infringement, Universal believes that the entire Internet community benefits when these matters are resolved cooperatively. We urge you to take immediate action to stop this infringing activity and inform us of the results of your actions. We appreciate your efforts toward this common goal"

seems pretty fair to me.

Well, *almost* right...

[Mulletproof]

'The movie industry, he said, has to ask itself what the music industry should have asked years ago: 'Why do they want to steal from us?' The answer, he said, is simple: 'Because you won't sell them what they want.'

It's not that we don't want what they sell, it's that they over-inflate the crap out of their products pricing and they're not fooling anybody. Anyway...

Re:price

[Anonymous Coward]

$50 canadian for 1.5 mb cable..

Re:Camcorder Law

[weave]

Why would you ever legitimately need a camcorder in a movie theater?

Ever been on holiday with your camcorder and your group wants to take in a movie and your car is nowhere nearby? Examples, Orlando area, Time Square, the beach. In my state now, it's illegal to just carry one into the theater, intent to use it or not.

I've run into a similar problem with no backpack rules in theaters. I drive a motorcycle and have a backpack for storage needs.

Now all of this could be solved with rentable locker space, but I doubt they think these potential hits to their revenue through. (And checking your stuff in at the counter is hardly a solutuon in my book. You don't trust me, but I'm supposed to trust some underpaid stranger with my stuff?)

Try Korea

[null etc.]

In Korea, there are several subscription services where you can download and watch full movies (ex. www.cineko.com). I guess it helps that nearly every household in Korea as a T1.

God, it sucks to be in a backwards country ruled by the obsolescence curve. In Japan, the free cell phones that come with plans are better than the phones we pay $299 for with a 2-year plan.

Can you hear me now?

Re:man that's fast

[muffen]

Do they mean there will come a day when one can download a 700MB Linux iso in less than 5 minutes? If my math is correct that's a 2333.3 kbps download speed!

There are many countries where this is a reality right at this moment... South Korea, Japan and Sweden are three that I can think of...

In Sweden, they are now offering 100MBits to your house, with a DL cap of 300gigs (scheduled to go live in January or April, cant remember exactly). 10 and 26 MBits (bi-directional) is more or less standard in the larger cities in Sweden, and it all costs less than 100dollars a month (10Mbit is less than 50dollars a month, uncapped).

Re:price

[Anonymous Coward]

Every one of your examples involves depriving the company of a sale. You stole a physical DVD, they no longer have it to sell. You ate some food, they no longer have it to sell. You sat in a chair for free, they can no longer sell that seat to someone. When you download a movie, that has not prevented anyone from selling said movie. No physical property was lost. For the last time, stop comparing copyright infringement to any other crime. It is not the same, and can not be compared, so STOP FUCKING TRYING. Now comes the part where people ask why this justifies copyright infringement. WHERE THE FUCK DID I SAY IT WAS JUSTIFIED?