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The MPAA's propaganda ministry has been busy lately, and the latest stories they've been telling the US Congress is that the piracy fight, while mostly aimed at consumers, will be good for consumer choices in the future.
This is from the same group that sued one company for daring to allow consumers to choose to watch DVDs without the original disc (RealDVD), and also sued another company that offered consumers the choice to store their DVDs in a home media server (Kaleidescape).
What the MPAA actually means is that, if the Congress and the FCC gives them what they want, that is more DRM and laws to protect the DRM from being hacked, then their members will feel safer when it comes to releasing content in digital form, be it movies on demand or downloads. The problem with this argument is that DRM and laws that protect them have failed so far to provide any "safety", and has only drawn consumer ire. And that many studios, including MPAA members, have already released movies digitally without this "safety net" with little or not consequences when it comes to piracy.
The MPAA also urged the government use use foreign policy to motivate others into protecting IP. Or in other words, the MPAA wants the government to do their dirty work and force DMCA or worse style legislation onto other sovereign nations through threats so that their profit margins can be protected by law. The MPAA is also threatening ISPs to pick up the rest of the slack. The question is, how many other industries have their income protected through this way, via heavy handed government legislation, trade deals and through legal threats against other businesses? And for those that are protected in this way, are they in a better or worse shape than an industry that has just recorded record profits? Are there no other industries that need such protection more urgently that the government should be helping, or haven't these struggling industries lobbied hard enough (ie. not given enough money to the right politicians)?
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This is from the same group that sued one company for daring to allow consumers to choose to watch DVDs without the original disc (RealDVD), and also sued another company that offered consumers the choice to store their DVDs in a home media server (Kaleidescape).
What the MPAA actually means is that, if the Congress and the FCC gives them what they want, that is more DRM and laws to protect the DRM from being hacked, then their members will feel safer when it comes to releasing content in digital form, be it movies on demand or downloads. The problem with this argument is that DRM and laws that protect them have failed so far to provide any "safety", and has only drawn consumer ire. And that many studios, including MPAA members, have already released movies digitally without this "safety net" with little or not consequences when it comes to piracy.
The MPAA also urged the government use use foreign policy to motivate others into protecting IP. Or in other words, the MPAA wants the government to do their dirty work and force DMCA or worse style legislation onto other sovereign nations through threats so that their profit margins can be protected by law. The MPAA is also threatening ISPs to pick up the rest of the slack. The question is, how many other industries have their income protected through this way, via heavy handed government legislation, trade deals and through legal threats against other businesses? And for those that are protected in this way, are they in a better or worse shape than an industry that has just recorded record profits? Are there no other industries that need such protection more urgently that the government should be helping, or haven't these struggling industries lobbied hard enough (ie. not given enough money to the right politicians)?
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