Anti-DVD Piracy rant

[2099net]

I've just opened my Angel S5 DVD set (which is the UK release), which retails for a recommended price of £79.99! Even ignoring the dollar for pound conversion rate, you can see how that compares to the $59.98 retail price for the American set. Apply the conversion rate, and the UK set has a recommended retail about two and a half times that of the US set.

So why, after spending all this money, am I bombarded with anti-piracy propaganda? First, there's a loose sheet in the set telling us not to buy pirate DVDs as they are poor quality (Hello? I've just spent mega-pounds on an original DVD set which was originally freely available on TV), and then each disc has a part-skippable anti-piracy "advert" at the front.

Now, personally I find this offensive. And pointless. I don't dispute piracy is a problem, but I think it is way overrated by the Studios. Secondly, if I had decided to pirate the discs, a stupid MTV style advert isn't going to stop me!

Really, why are legitimate customers being treated as criminals? Would any other industry do this? If you buy a car, a non-skippable computer voice doesn't warn you about breaking the speeding limit every time you start the engine? Even if you do speed, a voice doesn't warn you that you're breaking the law! And breaking that law could result in a death or worse!

So why does the entertainment industry think they can get away with snide adverts indicating they assume everyone is a lawbreaker?

[PatrickvD]

I agree, it's completely pointless. I think turning to consumers who buy legitimate dvd's is a pretty stupid thing to do. I've seen some commercials of this new "MTV style" campaign and I really don't think it is gonna have any affect. If they wanna stop piracy this is not the way to do it.

[deathie mouse]

Agree.

[The Little Merman]

agreed

[Disney Guru]

I agree with you, that is outrageous, and rather silly and stupid. What's the point in it,

[Sunset Girl]

I laugh at these ads, despite the fact that they insult my intelligence.

They even have these play in the theaters now, alongside commercials. Commercials?!!! When I've already paid to see the freakin' movie?!!!

And while I'm on the subject, why should I have to pay for cable channels that show commercials?

And the movie industry wonders why people turn to bootlegs.

But to get back to topic, there has to be better, much more capable ways to fight video piracy that doesn't offend me as a paying consumer. If I had gone for a bootleg, would I be holding their disc in my hands? Yeesh.

[dvdjunkie]

The point is..........if it isn't there then you will have a pirated copy and you would have paid good money for a bogus collection. Just quit your bitchin' and enjoy the product. Anti-Piracy ads have been around since the days of VHS. You will not get away from them, no matter how hard you try.

I like them, and they are only on the screen for a minimal amount of time. They do serve a purpose.

[Starion]

I'm not sure why you would need to consider the dollar to British pound rate. Did you buy a Region 1 disc? Oh, I see, are you upset at paying two and a half times as much for the British Set comparted to the American set? I would be upset at paying a high price too.

I keep thinking that pound is a mesurment of weight (lb).

[Wonderlicious]

As a fellow UK citizen, I can safely agree that this is getting out of hand. One or two posters or a skippable advert at the start of the DVD is fine to point out awareness, but with every DVD having three fliers about it is just pathetic. I think that Fox is to blame; they seem to do this the most. Some of my 20th Century DVDs contain propaganda inside them.

[Invader ZIM]

Production studios realize video piracy is a big problem, that's only going to get larger. P2P swapping was one thing, now dual Layer DVD writers make exact disc copies. Anti-piracy reminders are a safe way to at least give the buyer second thoughts. The idea is so people don't make copies for friends, relatives etc. It's a preventitive measure. Bottom line, the studios prerogative is to protect investment properties.

[2099net]

Well, if its to stop people making copies for friends, then people could do that on VHS days. Also, people can copy CD's, but they don't have a voice over at the start of each CD warning people. And like I say, people can speed in a car and commit an offence, but there's no warning, even if the driver is speeding.

When if comes down to it, there's a difference between a skippable Anti-Piracy screen like most R1 titles have, and a 2+ minute film filled with crap music, rapid edits and bogus messages, which even if you skip it, results in the final 30 seconds being shown and unskippable (or just as annoying, the Fox UK "Not for Rental" screens, with the slowest voice-over in history, and again, unskippable).

Basically, the studios think everyone is a criminal. They're methods seem to be aimed at "guilty until prooved innocent" and, quite frankly, its offensive and wrong.

Oh, and DVDJunkie, I take offense at your comment too. Your not the only one with a big DVD collection - I have over 1,800 and everyone is original.

[ichabod]

I have over 1,800 and everyone is original.

Holy cow!

I also hate these ads however my main problem with them is that they are unrealistic. They always proclaim that all copies have terrible picture and sound and they are grainy and there are always heads popping up and down because it was recorded in front of a cinema screen and they always show a really poor example.

However in reality most copies are actually not that bad, gone are the daya or VHS pirate copies, most dvd copies today are done straight from dvd to dvd. Also I have seen a pirate DVD of Home on the Range which was recorded in a theatre and surprisingly the picture is almost as sharp as the DVD!

[Invader ZIM]

Basically, the studios think everyone is a criminal. They're methods seem to be aimed at "guilty until prooved innocent" and, quite frankly, its offensive and wrong.

How could studios know which buyer copies and who does not? It's an all or nothing approach. Until changes are made with computer companies involvement, I see no end to DVD backups by anyone with a DL writer.

Email or call one of the studio customer relation departments. As a purchaser you feel greatly slighted, let them know.

[Sunset Girl]

I'd like to point out that I give my whole-hearted support (not to mention hard-earned cash) to the studios that create my favorite films and TV shows, but sometimes I question their integrity.

I have taped countless Disney movies from TV for free that were decent quality. I could have stopped there, but I upgraded to the VHS pre-records. For certian films, I eventually bought more than one copy. And that was before I had to upgrade to DVD!

I do not care to admit how many times I saw Pirates of the Caribbean in the theaters, LOL! I was also among the first to pre-order the DVD. And how does Disney thank a loyal fan like me? They release the exact same edition with an added "lost disc" less than a year later that I'm supposed to spend another twenty bucks on?! Get real! I feel so cheated. At the very least, they could have offered some kind of mail-in program for the pre-existing owners to receive the new disc. Sigh. They've lost some of my respect.

I also became angry at the announcement of the special edition 2-disc set of Lilo and Stitch shortly after I bought the one disc version. Granted, that still hasn't come to the US, but I am more than tempted to buy the R4 set for my multi-region player. I know that they are out to make a profit, but such things make me question my loyalty.

See, I think a lot of people have the mentality that it's gonna eventually be shown on TV anyway, or that they make enough money as it is, so why not make a copy for a friend, or better yet, borrow a copy from someone and make a copy yourself? I'm not saying it's right, but it kinda goes along with the fact that a lot of songs are played over the radio for free, so why not download a number one hit so you can listen to and appreciate it whenever you want?

Perhaps the ads need to come from a different angle. They remind you that it's illegal to copy movies (duh!) and also try to make you believe that bootlegs are always poor quality, anyway. And they totally forget to define what constitutes as "fair use" of the material. For example, one of my friends has asked me to make back-up copies of her children's movies. That way she keep the originals safe and can let her 3 and 7 year olds handle the discs without worrying that they'll get ruined.

How about throwing in an ad that thanks us for purchasing or renting the official version of the DVD, and how that support allows our favorite film makers more clout to make the kind of films we enjoy? I don't like being accused, talked down to, or threatened, even if it's only an ad.

Another way they might battle the piracy is to simply lower the prices of the material. They've begun to do it with CD's already. I mean, compare the average price of an album to minimum wage in the fifties. Then do the same thing for this era. Crazy, isn't it?

[dvdjunkie]

To this day I have never received a flyer or piece of paper in any of my DVD's urging me not to buy or sell Pirated copies of movies. That must be something condusive to the UK.

If those flyers bother you so much, throw them away. Geez, guys, c'mon let's not let a little thing like the FBI warning bother you so much, it has been around for a lot longer than most of us.

As for copying CD's.......you must not be collecting the good music, because they have put anti-copy guards on most of the top ten CD's that are available. "Velvet Revolver" is a good example. You can download into your computer, but you can't make copies from it to a CD-R without breaking the law. And DVD's have a great copy guard that can't be broken by the average person who doesn't have the techno know-how. Why would you want to copy a DVD anyhow. They really aren't that expensive.

And my over 1800 DVD's are all original. I don't count my collection of Taiwanese Disney titles in my collection because they are considered, for the most part, bootlegs even though their quality is far superior to most DVD's that are here in the US.

[RJKD23]

Well, I was waiting for someone to post an opinion like mine.

To this day I have never received a flyer or piece of paper in any of my DVD's urging me not to buy or sell Pirated copies of movies. That must be something condusive to the UK.

I don't count my collection of Taiwanese Disney titles in my collection because they are considered, for the most part, bootlegs even though their quality is far superior to most DVD's that are here in the US.

Out of ALL the DVDs I own and bought, I only own ONE DVD Bootleg: Lion King II. Eventually I got an original, but I'm still pissed that I spent money on it...but the quality was good ! (EBAY ID: doritopaw [no longer active])

P.S.: not everyone is a criminal.

[2099net]

P.S.: not everyone is a criminal.

Yes, I know. That's my whole point! The studios are treating it as if everyone is.

Plus, its not an FBI warning. Its a long anti-piracy "advert" which you can't even skip properly. Remember how everyone in America got annoyed about unskippable trailers for Universal films on their DVDs? Well, isn't it worse to have something you can't skip which is almost saying "We know you've a criminal, but don't"?

As for copying, I don't dispute priacy is a problem, but copies of discs for friends aren't that big a problem. You cannot assume a copied DVD results in a lost sale. Organised piracy or a teenager copying loads of discs and selling them are another matter entirely. But then again, a cheap looking advert isn't going to stop them.

If you look at your legal writing on a DVD, it says it is illegal to "distribute" it. Well, many people here sell or buy second hand discs, which are "distributed" after the initial purchase. And they result in a lost sale for the studio. But the studios aren't clamping down or lauching publicity awareness campaigns about second-hand discs.

[dvdjunkie]

A long "Anti-Piracy" advert? On the disc? Where? All I ever see is the FBI warning which changes to the "short" anti-Piracy slide. This is on less than 20 seconds combined. C'mon, let's lighten up. It's part of a life and we might as well get used to it. The FBI ads have been around since the first video tape was issued.....way back when I was just a old teenager.

People who let 3 and 7 year-olds handle DVDs are only asking for trouble. Why are they so lazy that they can't supervise the movies that their children watch. You are breaking the law making back-up copies, because they can't legally be done without having some kind of "zipper" machine to override the copyguard. Think about it. Some people are just to lazy to raise their children. If they didn't want them around why did they have them?? In our house my grandchildren know that grandma or grandpa will take care of their movie needs. They always let us know when the movie is over so we can change it, but for the most part we only allow one movie a day so they can do other creative things. That is why today's kids are lost, they had no parental supervision growing up and we would be a whole lot better off if those people never had kids.

Sorry for the rant, but it just irks me to no end to hear about people who let "little" kids handle the movie watching on their own. A child under the age of ten should not be allowed to touch any electronic equipment having to do with the television, VHS player, DVD player, etc. Adult supervision is required and if they can't do that, hire a nanny or babysitter to do "their" work for them.

Again, sorry for the rant guys and gals. I am a family man and letting a 3 or 7 year old handle DVD's is just out of the question.

[orestes.]

A long "Anti-Piracy" advert? On the disc? Where? All I ever see is the FBI warning which changes to the "short" anti-Piracy slide. This is on less than 20 seconds combined. C'mon, let's lighten up. It's part of a life and we might as well get used to it. The FBI ads have been around since the first video tape was issued.....way back when I was just a old teenager.

People who let 3 and 7 year-olds handle DVDs are only asking for trouble. Why are they so lazy that they can't supervise the movies that their children watch. You are breaking the law making back-up copies, because they can't legally be done without having some kind of "zipper" machine to override the copyguard. Think about it. Some people are just to lazy to raise their children. If they didn't want them around why did they have them?? In our house my grandchildren know that grandma or grandpa will take care of their movie needs. They always let us know when the movie is over so we can change it, but for the most part we only allow one movie a day so they can do other creative things. That is why today's kids are lost, they had no parental supervision growing up and we would be a whole lot better off if those people never had kids.

Sorry for the rant, but it just irks me to no end to hear about people who let "little" kids handle the movie watching on their own. A child under the age of ten should not be allowed to touch any electronic equipment having to do with the television, VHS player, DVD player, etc. Adult supervision is required and if they can't do that, hire a nanny or babysitter to do "their" work for them.

Again, sorry for the rant guys and gals. I am a family man and letting a 3 or 7 year old handle DVD's is just out of the question.

I don't think I would let a three year old handle movies as well although possibly a seven year old. By seven I knew quite a bit about the electronics we did have and I know some seven year olds who know quite a bit about computers.

About that anti-piracy thing being discussed in this thread, it sounds like it's an R2 campaign.

[orestes.]

Oh and I wanted to mention... isn't making DVD copies legal actually? In Canada I believe it is anyways only if the copies are made for yourself. I believe the same goes for music.

I won't copy DVDs but I will copy music and share them with friends. It's illegal to even share with friends but who is going to stop me?