Need some answers about my sins

[LilyM]

Well…if it’s not exactly illegal and it’s a TV show that’s readily accessible to you in your television/cable setup and you only download it because of the translation, then I don’t think there’s anything wrong, but I’m not an expert.

Speaking as a filmmaker myself, if it generates interest in my product, it could be seen as a positive.

All well and good but if EVERYONE did it, reasoning that their downloading wasn’t wrong, then what reason would they have to buy anything you produce? And getting your stuff for free, they’d have no incentive to pay for other peoples’ product either. Pretty soon neither you nor any of your fellow filmmakers would have a realistic prospect of making any money out of your product now or at any point in the future.

Now money might not be an issue for you, but a lot of filmmakers don’t have the luxury of being able to make uncommercial films. So it would lead to a lot of films simply not getting made. For these reasons their interests have to be protected by law.

 

[BRZ]

Yeah but this isn’t an exact science. You know, movie producers and such were saying the same things when VHS came out and people could easily tape movies on their VHS tapes. Or in the music industry with tape decks, people copying songs off the radio with cassettes. Both of these things did not hurt sales at all. Sometimes when people get interested in something enough, they do go and buy the product which they might not have bought without first seeing it. I think what he was trying to say is that if interest is generated from people with the movie and or show, it might increase sales, not hurt it.

I honestly don’t think the problem with the movie industry in the U.S. is because of people downloading movies. In Korea, it is pretty much acceptable to just download movies and/or buy bootleg movies in the subways or even from legitimate street vendors in the city. However, the movie theatres in Korea do exceptionally well. They are always packed pretty much any day but movie theatres in Korea are much cleaner and safer than in the US. They are places where couples, families, friends, etc. go and it is almost like going to see a broadway musical. People dress up and everything is very clean and professional. No one talks while the movie is playing, etc. In the US it is another story. I recently visited back home in the US with my Korean g.f. and she was pretty shocked how terrible our movie theatres are.

 

[JPUSC]

All well and good but if EVERYONE did it, reasoning that their downloading wasn’t wrong, then what reason would they have to buy anything you produce? And getting your stuff for free, they’d have no incentive to pay for other peoples’ product either. Pretty soon neither you nor any of your fellow filmmakers would have a realistic prospect of making any money out of your product now or at any point in the future.

Now money might not be an issue for you, but a lot of filmmakers don’t have the luxury of being able to make uncommercial films. So it would lead to a lot of films simply not getting made. For these reasons their interests have to be protected by law.

We’re talking specifically about television, not film. The way filmmakers profit off of the two mediums are very different.

Films depend on box office and DVD/VHS sales while television programs depend on advertisement revenue. The important factor for television programs are Nielsen ratings. Someone not a part of a Nielsen home does not affect ad sales. To counter illegal downloading, there are solutions the industry is currently testing; one example being the insertion of advertising within the program’s storyline or set design.

Often, downloading does increase interest in the product and increases the sales of future merchandise. A good example is ABC’s “Lost”. The producers purposely leak out video clips and such on the internet to generate interest and to appease the fan base. Often, fans download episodes and post their own fan videos on YouTube and other media outlets, generating even more interest which is good for ad revenue.

An example of a product’s fan base affecting a TV program’s fate is Seth Macfarlane’s “Family Guy”. The program was shortlived on television and was pulled off the air. Due to it developing a steady fan base after its DVD release, the network decided to put the series back on the air after a year.

BRZ stated that he downloads the program because of the translation and there was no DVD set available for purchase. A translated version circulating, while illegal, may be seen as a positive by the producers since it exposes their product to new audience demographic - a new following of potential consumers.

Anyway, the film/TV industry is changing and the future is the internet as industry leaders Steven Speilberg and George Lucas have acknowledged. Many made-for-the-internet TV pilots are currently being produced because of the demand.

The phenomenon of downloading which led to the prominence of legal download outlets, such as iTunes, has changed the entertainment industry forever and some producers are using certain negatives (e.g. downloading) to their advantage.