A few thoughts about the whole filesharing debacle

[darkemeralds]

I read somewhere that Megaupload accounted for 4% of ALL THE TRAFFIC ON THE INTERNET, which is an incredible amount of traffic. The odds against the FBI singling any one individual out for an occasional one-off download, among 4% of the whole internet's traffic, must be astronomical.

Still, one would be kind of crazy to continue the practice. It's no longer feeling vaguely daring, or comfortably familiar. It feels like high-risk behavior, and I'm notoriously risk-averse.

Besides, speaking for myself, I can't say that most of the TV content I've consumed (ever) has enriched me very much in its own right. It's my fannish interactions with the content--fic, chatwatches, reviews, comments, conversations--that add value to my life.

I would miss that, and I wonder what might come along to replace it.



BUT! When will the content producers understand that many of us would gladly pay a buck or two per episode to enjoy their damn shows? When will they get that most of us no longer want to own a bunch of bulky, stupid DVD boxes? Or watch the soul-sucking commercials that have nothing to do with our lives?

Why can't they provide content the way I want to enjoy it--streaming, with control over start/stop/reverse/re-watch so that I can synchronize with a friend in a different time zone or a different house, and watch in virtual togetherness? Maybe capture a frame or two for my personal enjoyment or icon-making?

I don't want to steal content or put it back up online. I don't even really want to own most of it. I just want to share it--maybe once or twice--with my friends or family, the way I used to with a DVD set, or sitting together in front of the TV.

Audible.com has a pretty good model--monthly subscription fees for x-number of audiobook titles per month, and access for up to five devices. It lets me and my sister share books without buying two copies--just like with a paper book. They get a lot of money from me and return a lot of value, and it's a happy relationship.

Hollywood should do the same, instead of spending all their resources on congresscritters and stupid draconian laws designed to save a dying business model. I don't understand them at all.

Comments

[executrix]

As a convinced cheapskate I'm waiting until July to see the latest season of Breaking Bad on Netflix DVD, but I *could* spring for, I think it's $2 per, to get it from iTunes--I know I actually did that once or twice last year.

[legionseagle]

This is exactly the point I keep making; SOPA and its cognates are trying to impose an outdated revenue model on a world which has moved beyond them, and name-calling those who don't accept their attempts is counter-productive.

[weimar27]

i agree with this. Hollywood needs to start adapting to the 21st century.

This is why I like my zune pass, and services like netflix and amazon where even if it's the day after I have some kinda of control.

The annoying thing though is that i can really share it with someone who wants to watch the show.

[lamentables]

Not to mention the ridiculousness of region coding, which is all about a stupid mix of greed and control and which, I believe, promotes 'piracy'. I'd love a legitimate, DVD copy of The Middleman, for instance, but it's not available with Region 2 coding which means while I can buy it, I can't watch it. (And those sites that do stream US TV don't allow other parts of the world to watch.)

India doesn't region code its DVDs, leading to massive shopping sprees every time we go there.

[jumpuphigh]

Both cbs.com and abc.com are reliable about putting up episodes by 5 or 6 a.m. eastern the day after they show. I do get tired of the same one or two commercials over and over though. Also, they don't keep the episodes up very long so if you are like me and like to save up episodes and then just watch them all in a gorge-fest, that doesn't work. I use Hulu as well but their selection doesn't much match with what I want to watch. Then there is BravoTV which doesn't put up episodes until weeks after they've shown (although they put up clips and such which will spoil you even if you don't watch the clips and that frustrates me).

All that to say, yep, I agree with you.

[ruric]

hen will the content producers understand that many of us would gladly pay a buck or two per episode to enjoy their damn shows? When will they get that most of us no longer want to own a bunch of bulky, stupid DVD boxes? Or watch the soul-sucking commercials that have nothing to do with our lives?

So much yes. I mean we've been heading this way since I got seriously into fandom back in 1996/1997 - 14 years and they still haven't got their heads around it or come up with a working business model?

If producers gave me a legitimate way to get my hands on the content I want in a timely fashion and at a reasonable price I'd be there in a flash. And you know what? If they then produced DVDs with extra content and special features not only would I buy the download ep on day of showing but I'd probably buy the DVD box sets for 25-50% of the shows I watch too. (See I like to have the extra content even if I don't get around to watching it for a couple of years). *G*

[kis]

I think it's all bound up with advertizing. Everything is a kind of soap opera these days. It's not just the series they're selling, but the adverts they come with, the merchandise, etc etc.

[tehomet]

It's like the Napster case, IMO. It will cause a change, not an ending.

/two cents