Downloading Movies... Good or Bad?

Author: S.A.M.
Date: 8/2/2005

The answer is simple...
Yes it is bad. The same can be said about down loading music. But can the owners of this material really stop it? In short no they cannot. They may be able to delay a movie becoming available by hiring sharp shooters in every single movie theater, however, once it comes out on DVD, it can certainly be copied at that time.

What about better encryption?
No matter how much or how good they encrypt a movie or music file, at some point it has to be decrypted so that the signal can be sent to the TV or speakers. Its very simple if it can be seen or heard, it can be recorded.

What about Policing the Internet?
Between the billions of computer connections that happen each day and the marmalade of laws in every country, it is virtually impossible to completely stop it. Let's just say it would be much cheaper to pay the studios and the artists compensation for everything they have lost to pirating than to build this kind of infrastructure.

How can the movie & music industries be saved?
In short... Accounting and Marketing! It's that simple. We will discuss possible solutions separately but first lets look at the accounting aspect of these industries.

Salary Caps
Once they have figured out other ways to make money from a movie and a song other than the price of a movie ticket and the sale of a dvd or cd, these companies have to look at the projected bottom line and decide how much they can afford to spend on the production of a movie or an album. Simple math should be able to tell you how much you can afford to get Mel Gibson to resurrect Jesus Christ.

Saving Movies
First, not many people will ever be able to afford a 30 foot screen to watch a movie, so there will always be a certain appeal in going to a movie theater. What will happen is that patrons will be more discriminate and will attend these venues less often.

Secondly, movie studios need to (and some already do) get more sponsors and work them into their plots. It can't be that hard to work in a can of Pepsi or a paper bag from McDonals more than a few times in a 2 hour movie. Before the emails pile in, I know it is much easier to get those products to be featured in a movie that takes place in present or future times, than it would be in a movie that takes place in 2000BC or on an alien planet. I don't have all the answers, and having Jessica Simpson drink a Coca-Cola on screen is not the only answer. It's not the only answer but it's a start and the geniuses in Hollywood can figure out other ways to make money with a movie.

Saving Music
Ok... I can't really see the appeal of Britney Spears writing a sexy song about a bag of chips. They could certainly work in that bag of chips or some Nike shoes in a music video. She also made a few dollars making those McDonald's commercials didn't she? They can get sponsors for many of the things they do.

Pouting Industries : (
The problem with the music and movie industries right now is not that they can't figure out how to make some money... It's they are pouting and sulking like children because the Internet took their ice cream away. They don't want to accept change. Just like the internal combustion engine changed the transportation industry, the Internet will change these and many more. In My Opinion... they should get up, wipe their nose, restructure the way they do business and move on.

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