For many years the big record companies have been whining that downloads and file sharing are killing the music industry. My opinion is that music industry execs are the ones killing the industry and that their paradigm is out of date. High prices for lower quality products, antiquated distribution methods, competition from other entertainment products (games, DVD, etc), and flat out greed are all primary factors.
But my experiences with DVD burning over the last couple weeks have really been a sobering experience. For those following my posts in the Square Circel lately, my initial reason for wanting a DVD burner was to compile uncompressed 16 bit WAV. files to make 3 or 4 hour music discs without the sonic compromises of MP3. That proved tricky, but ultimately successful.
Along the way however, I've seen how incredibly easy it is to copy DVD movies. The process isn't nearly as complex or time consuming as I'd assumed it would be, which is cool. But also scary.
Why? Because for the first time in my life, I can actually understand why you'd want to pirate something. In my CD collection you won't find a single pirated disc, only things I own. I've occasionally had a friend record something for me to try out, and I've maybe got a couple CD-Rs of OOP stuff that isn't available new at any price. This is partly d/t my wanting the musicians I admire to be able to profit from their efforts and afford to keep recording, etc etc. But mostly it's less from some great moral objection to copying than my desire to own the the jewel case art, read the liner notes, etc.
But I find that isn't so with DVDs, especially DVDs of TV series. Most of them are packaged pretty cheaply with little supplemental material and a flimsy cardstock case. No real pride of ownership, there. Those discs are merely information, software. And from a rationalization standpoint, I paid to watch them when I paid my cable bill for decades, and the cost of the program was recouped years ago with syndication and ad revenue. In that sense, a program that was obtainable completely for free over the air is now being sold (sometimes for over $100 per season).
I realize IP is still IP, and there is a cost associated with the mastering, but that begs the issue: if a guy as anti-piracy as I am can even consider copying discs, what of the average guy that just wants his movies?
There are more technical hurdles to copying movies than downloading music, of course. There aren't nearly as many sites to download movies, meaning someone actually needs the hard copy (or to rent it...). And even with broadband the process isn't quick. But what about tomorrow? The 'net is just getting faster, and computers and burners are, too.
What will happen when movie burning is as prevalent as music burning? When a $100 million dollar movie can be burned for $1 and everyone has access to the technology, what will happen to the movie industry?
