If people view or purchase pirated copies of a film, they are not making trips to the cinema, they are not purchasing official DVDs and so film producers and cinemas lose potential money.
Most films are not big-budget Hollywood films and they cannot afford to lose money from their smaller profit from piracy. If we continue to pirate these low-budget films which target certain niche audiences and encourage people to express individuality, then soon there will be a decrease in the amount of films that can be made as they will not be able to make a profit from it! This means that we will only be able to watch these big budget films and we will not have the chance to watch these unique films that we may love. Meaning it is us who are loosing out from pirating!
What percentage of the population pirate films?
In 2009 32% of the population pirated films and the percentage is increasing roughly 3% each year. That year 77.75 million pirated DVDs were sold and there was 278 million lost revenue.
Why do you think piracy is increasing?
Mainly, advances in technology. People have become more comfortable with using the internet to distribute and to download or watch pirated films. Broadband speed has also increased, making it easier for people to watch high quality movies at the click of a button.
Technological software such as DVD burners have also become cheaper and more readily available, so that people who pirate films can burn many at one time in high quality.
How is the film industry attempting to stop piracy?
Educational visits to schools etc have been set up to inform people of the affects that piracy has in the hope that the next generation will be more aware and refrain from purchasing pirated films.
There are also adverts in cinemas and at the beginning of DVDs to thank people for not pirating the film and inform them that piracy is stealing.
If you buy the official DVD you are guaranteed a certain quality, whereas if you download it or purchase a pirate copy you are unsure as to what the quality will be like and it is likely that it will not be anywhere near as good as the original.
Unlike DVDs, Blu-ray discs are really difficult to copy being such a high quality, and the discs themselves are more expensive to copy onto. By releasing these more advanced, high-quality discs which the public know will not be replicated the same by anyone else, they are more likely to purchase the official Blu-ray disc online or in store.
Although you can view your film in high quality Blu-ray, watching it on the big screen in the cinema with surround sound and possibly even 3D effects is still going to be better quality and much cheaper than purchasing all the necessary software and equipment yourself! This means that people are more likely to go to the cinema for the real experience of the film, rather than watching a low quality image with a grungy noise coming from their computer at home, as the day to day distractions such as the telephone or children disturb their experience.
Another way to persuade you to purchase the original copy is to offer you 'triple play'. This means that you have a standard DVD as not everyone has upgraded to Blu-ray, but you have the Blu-ray disc there for future use, and you also have a copy that you can download to your computer and put straight onto your phone or iPod so that you can watch the movie when you're out and about. This stops people ripping films off websites such as pirate bay for this easy access reason.
Unlike DVDs, Blu-ray discs are really difficult to copy being such a high quality, and the discs themselves are more expensive to copy onto. By releasing these more advanced, high-quality discs which the public know will not be replicated the same by anyone else, they are more likely to purchase the official Blu-ray disc online or in store.
Although you can view your film in high quality Blu-ray, watching it on the big screen in the cinema with surround sound and possibly even 3D effects is still going to be better quality and much cheaper than purchasing all the necessary software and equipment yourself! This means that people are more likely to go to the cinema for the real experience of the film, rather than watching a low quality image with a grungy noise coming from their computer at home, as the day to day distractions such as the telephone or children disturb their experience.
Another way to persuade you to purchase the original copy is to offer you 'triple play'. This means that you have a standard DVD as not everyone has upgraded to Blu-ray, but you have the Blu-ray disc there for future use, and you also have a copy that you can download to your computer and put straight onto your phone or iPod so that you can watch the movie when you're out and about. This stops people ripping films off websites such as pirate bay for this easy access reason.
Working Title Films are part of NBC universal who had previous existing business links with Apple and so came together so that their films could be distributed via the Apple iStore. This means that people can purchase a digital copy of films such as Atonement and Paul.
People often pirate films so that they can watch them immediately. They do not have to wait for the DVD they ordered to arrive in the post and then wait until the weekend again when they aren't working to be able to watch it, they can simply do it there and then - it fits into people's current busy lifestyles. By allowing them to purchase or rent a digital copy of the film they desire to watch which they can instantly stream to their iPod/TV etc, in high quality, means that people are less likely to go for the option of pirating the film.
Giving people the opportunity to rent the film means that they do not have to pay a high price when they know that they will only watch the film once. But a profit is still made apposed to when people pirate the film – this alternative is fair for everyone.
Working title films are also available for rental using Love Film - which sends the films you request to your door and lets you post them back for free with no late fees! All of these new methods of allowing people to view a certain film have been based on what the consumer wants - which is being able to watch the film when and where they want, so that they can fit it into their busy lifestyles.
Are there any positives to piracy?
Although piracy is wrong, it has caused some benefits to us as the consumer. We no longer have to part with £15 for a DVD, prices have come down considerably due to competition between online stores and with piracy on the rise, they want to make sure that the films are affordable so that people will purchase them.
It has caused film distributors to look at our individual needs, and we can now purchase films offline or get triple play DVD versions so that we can watch the film whenever it is convenient to us.
Piracy may also have increased the amount of people who are aware and interested in the film. If someone watches a pirated movie and recommends it to all their friends, then their friends will likely talk about it and may go out to purchase it. Even the person who pirated the movie in the first place may decide to buy a better quality version of the film after watching it and liking it!
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