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UK Film Critic’s Common Sense Solution To Piracy

Mark Kermode is a UK film critic, a member of the British Academy and a presenter and blogger for the BBC. He also has some great ideas on how to deal with the issue of movie piracy.

In an often complex debate, his simple and common sense approach is really refreshing. No more introduction needed. Enjoy.

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  • Anonymous

    Oh! This is a good point: by allowing more revenue streams to be avalible on the day of release (download, streaming, DVD, rental and box office) will allow for the movie to get more revenue via different sources! By limiting the possibility to seeing the film by going to the cinema is a bit stupid (Plus current generation is rather lazy).

    Very reasonable point, i think

    • http://twitter.com/uJonesing Utah Jones

      The current generation is lazy? Really? I work two jobs because I can, and have to be accessible 24/7 for one of them. From my experience, it was the generation two-fold before mine (babyboomers) who are lazy. All they want to do is sit on their asses and collect my tax dollars while watching wheel of fortune. Even the more “proactive” ones just collect cushy salaries while sitting on their asses trying to write new laws that force me to pay them more.

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  • Phobophobia

    remove false scarcity = remove the problem!

  • http://disqus.com/ Rob8urcakes

    OMG, I can just hear the MAFIAA spinning in their graves as they hear this intelligent plea to reform and change with the new tech and needs of a new audience.

    Heads-up MAFIAA, or stay in your closeted coffins.

  • http://profiles.google.com/scotchmizzed Scotch Mizzed

    brilliant thinking but the people who dream up region dvd’s are not going to go for simultaneous releases as it’s too logical.

  • Anonymous

    If they don’t hurry up and give us what we want. And they keep this war going against us until we are fully VPN encrypted P2P DNS users, we will never go back. Even if they beg us.

  • Lakanal

    The MPA studios would be really delighted if they had the freedom to release day and date – but they don’t. The exhibitors go on strike if it is attempted (cf Night in the Museum, Alice in Wonderland). The examples of films cited by Mark are minor titles that probably went out on a handful of screens if that.

    • DocGerbil100

      That’s… actually a very annoyingly good point.

      It’s a boycott of the specific films that’s threatened, rather than a strike, but beyond that minor difference, this seems to be correct.

      If a studio is dependent on box-office revenues to cover their costs and cinema chains boycott anything that smells of a simultaneous release, then it is the cinema chains we need to move, rather than Hollywood, per se.

      In all honesty, I have to admit I can’t think of anything particularly concrete that the cinema chains themselves stand to gain from accepting simultaneous releases.

      Which is a pain in the tits, frankly. :(

      • http://disqus.com/ Rob8urcakes

        Drooollllll, tits!!
        Simultaneous ones on-screen and released in coordination with the music … drooooooolllll….

        Oh oh, am I off-topic?

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  • mindless

    It’s a win but only for the public, and that is where his suggestion breaks down. This is because the movie studios see it a totally different way.

    They want you to pay to see it at the cinemas, because that is where they make their biggest return in the shortest time.

    If you like the movie, and there is nowhere else for you to see it, then you may go back and watch it again. They want to milk you for as long as they can, and as much as they can get. This is why you will get simultaneous releases of 3D, because your still confined to the theater, and it brings in a larger return.

    Releasing the film via other methods at the same time, will deter some people from going to the movies, therefor the studios will want to avoid that at all costs.

    Only once the sales drop off from the cinemas do they consider releasing it to the public in more conditional means. so that you can pay to watch the movie again.

    The movie studios really couldn’t care less about what the public want.

  • Imutau

    Another point not mentioned (I think? ) is that the cinemas movie ticket margins are very low, hence the rising ticket prices and the +$5.00 box of popcorn and drinks. As it is I could probably use the money and buy the freaking DVD or Blu-Ray?

    It’s the same difference as gas stations making more money in their convenience stores than at the pumps.

    If movie studios would wake up and see how much more money they would make by offering multiple avenues to see a film on release day they could stop charging gosh awful licensing deals to movie theater chains and we could actually not have to take out a second mortgage on the house to take the family to see a movie….At the matinée.

    But we all know the greed of Hollywood and the recording industry while we are at it in that making them see that is like trying to squeeze water from a stone. But ultimately that greed will eventually kill them…

    Sad part is the people I’d like to give my cash to, the actors and the people that actually create films (not the fools that finance) them would be the ones that suffer the most if this continues.

  • noko

    You know, if people really wanted to stop filesharing, then all they’d need to do is make fast speed Internet illegal.

    Just force everybody back onto dial-up.

    • noko

      I don’t support this idea by the way, I’m just saying…

  • feltch

    In their own words – it’s not about monetizing content, it’s about restricting infringement.

    Long live the dinosaurs…

  • Jellybeangetslean

    The uk,usa and canada should just boycott the cinema for a week. That will put a serious dent in their pocket and maybe make them think different. The big companies have all the power, the people need to take it back. There here for us and because of us they should remember that and not rape everyone that goes to the cinema (£9.00 to get in, medium coke and pop corn £5.60 and i wont even start on the pick and mix. Lets just say you need to be goldfinger to afford it) and if you want a dvd £15 and blu ray even more and they still dont no why i would rather want to download it for free.

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