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Down with Piracy?

August 18, 2007

Avast, me hearties!

I have this really ominous feeling about the dawning of the Blu-ray age.

Blu-ray disc is the name of a next-generation optical disc format. The format was developed to enable recording, rewriting and playback of high-definition video (HD), as well as storing large amounts of data. The format offers more than five times the storage capacity of traditional DVDs and can hold up to 25GB on a single-layer disc and 50GB on a dual-layer disc. – www.blu-ray.com

What is not said in the site is whether this is yet another attempt to curb movie piracy. I guess the big businessmen involved have given up on government policies being the key driver to stopping illegal sale and distribution of movies via the very popular DVD format, so now they’re fighting off these digital pirates with technology.

photo from www.blu-ray.com

But Will It Succeed?

I don’t think so. One of the things that have been deplored by the movie and music industry over the years is the seeming inability of the DVD format to prevent unauthorized copying of its contents. I remember reading something a few years back about some controls that were put inside the DVDs where movies were printed on, but these DVDs were still ripped, copied, and distributed illegally.

photo from www.kotaku.com

Although the site mentioned does not expressly say it, I could hazard a guess that some preventive controls are bound to be included in the BD format. I don’t think it’s necessary to do that though; with its specs, BDs are bound to be expensive. Also, BDs can only be played using BD players and even if you have this, you need to have a high definition TV to make it worth your while. These things do not come cheap. The cheapest BD player I’ve seen sells for around Php30K.

In short, it is not for everyone.

I do not see the BD as a threat to DVD for now, which means that piracy will continue to fester for years to come.

Final Flurry

There is only one way that piracy can be eradicated. Sell those DVD movies at reasonable rates. Right now, in the battle between Original and Pirated, there’s a glaring mismatch as to which one third world consumers would prefer.

photo from www.everypicture.com

Posted by pop at 4:24 pm | permalink

Previous Comments

we have the same thought on selling original records for a much reasonable price. but this will be difficult for the recording companies, distributors and also for the artist…

Posted by pakjwan at August 19, 2007, 2:51 pm

I think it can be done. When the local music industry responded to calls of reasonableness in terms of pricing their cd’s, they actually brought it down from P450, to P250. Some businessmen are just plain greedy I think. They do not consider the majority of pinoy buyers who will have a hard time buying the original stuff.

Anyway, thanks for the comment. Appreciate it.

Posted by Javier at August 19, 2007, 3:06 pm

do you think that people will buy more orignals if they will sell the records for 250 pesos? I think some will buy it, but from what social class? B? C? they are also the bracket that can buy a record for 450 pesos. i hope you understand my point..and also my english..hehehe.

Posted by pakjwan at August 19, 2007, 3:32 pm

I hope so. I certainly did, and I’m not exactly from the middle-upper class. I understand your point, I do, but it’s impossible for record companies to sell their cd’s at pirated cd prices.

At P25 per cd? There’s no way a legit business can survive. There’s too much going on, ads, promotions, packaging, you know, overhead costs. This will have to be factored in when they compute the cd cost. Then there’s the artists’ fees.

Nah, I’m not sure if P250 is already reasonable, but it sure is better than P450. At least now, I can save P50 every week and then buy my favorite band’s cd after 5 weeks.

Posted by Javier at August 19, 2007, 3:44 pm

points taken…by the way thats very reasonable… i think.. for foreign artist records.. and i think you would suggest that local records will sell at 150 pesos.. lets make it that way… and it eradicate pirated cds, but its not only that… why i would spend much money if i could download it on the internet..through p2p… it involves many things…

Posted by pakjwan at August 19, 2007, 11:12 pm

well, music piracy via illegal download is another matter. I know Singapore is a bit successful in preventing that, but only because they closely patrol the internet usage in that country. in the Philippines? it’s virtually impossible.

Posted by pop at August 19, 2007, 11:24 pm