on piracy, torrenting, and such things

[deird1]

While I have indeed ranted about this before, I feel the urge again. Bear with me.


I am currently reading John Rogers' blog, where he discusses, at length, what it was like to make Leverage. He also, at regular intervals, tells off his overseas fans for torrenting episodes from America.

And then, he says things like this:

The history of the "Zanzibar Marketplace", a criminal clearinghouse, is quite interesting, but you're going to have to buy the DVD to hear us discuss it.

Allow me to explain why this gets my goat.

1) I actually own the dvds. All five seasons – because, after all, Leverage is one of my favourite shows, and I want to watch it lots, and I have a private rule that if I have a legal way to pay for something I'm going to watch more than once, I should pay for it.
2) I cannot listen to the dvd commentary he's referencing, because it's only on the Region 1 dvds.

In fact, as a fan who would really like to listen to the commentaries and really loves supporting the people who make my nice shows, I would have to:
- buy a second set of Region 1 dvds via Amazon, hoping desperately that they'll actually sell it to me (because Amazon won't sell some things to Australians no matter how hard we beg)
or:
- torrent it

We get our dvds:
- late (cf: everything, ever)
- if at all (cf: Early Edition, another show I'd love to check out)
- with half of the special features missing (cf: BtVS, and the Seth Green commentary)

We get our tv:
- late (by which I mean years)
- or by piracy

THESE ARE OUR ONLY OPTIONS.

I have no legal way to watch half the stuff you guys watch. Ever. Because I live overseas. And, while I will happily spend money on watching things, if there is no way possible that I can ever give you my money, I'm going to go "screw it", and pirate it. Want me to stop, John Rogers? Give me the chance to buy the damn thing.

Comments

[beer_good_foamy]

I know the feeling.

I remember I had a discussion with some promoted-to-FOX-intern fan over at Whedonesque about the lack of extras on the European Dollhouse DVDs, where she accused me of "wanting things for free" even after I repeatedly offered to send FOX cash money in exchange for the extras. Apparently, some things really can't be bought for money. And you wonder why the industry is doing badly...

[nothorse]

First of all: International Copyright Licensing Contracts are an evil on the scale of Shub-Niggurath. And it's not so much copyright itself, that's the problem, but the "organically grown" tangle of agreements/broadcast rights/dvd rights and more, oh so terribly much more.

Second: There's extras on the US Dollhouse DVDs that are not on the EU versions? anybody know a torrent for those?

[beer_good_foamy]

Oh, I know, though you'd think that when it came to original FOX material (commentaries etc) featuring the same people they obviously already have overseas deals with, they'd be able to avoid that issue if they wanted.

What pissed me off about that situation was more the idea that the "fans just want things for free" meme often seems to be so established that they're unable to understand when people offer to pay them. Complaining that people won't pay you looks a little hypocritical when you refuse to take their money when it's offered.

[nothorse]

Actually, the deals are entirely separate for each little thing[1]. We are lucky, if all the seasons of any show have the same international licensee. The rest is the usual american bullshit, that is, the rest of the world is at most an afterthought if not actively dissed.

The "for free" comment is yet more of the "poor piracy victims" talking points. I'm pretty sure people are contractually required to mention this.

[1] viz. shows that have different soundtracks on dvd, because the rights to the songs have only been acquired for broadcast...