Most Americans regard the illegal downloading and distributing of Hollywood movies as something on par with minor parking offenses, according to a report issued Wednesday.

“There is a Robin Hood effect. Most people perceive celebrities and studios to be rich already and as a result don’t think of movie downloading as a big deal,” said Kaan Yigit, study director at Solutions Research Group.

The survey found that 59 percent of Americans polled considered “parking in a fire lane” a more serious offense than movie downloading.

No surprises here. More validation of the perception most have of the MPAA and their kissing cousins in the RIAA.



  1. Tom 2 says:

    Is it a big deal, if everyone stopped downloading music do you think the riaa would let up on its endless assault on creativity?

  2. Gig says:

    You seem to be blowing off the study because it backs up what the MPAA is saying. I doubt you would have the same reaction if the study had said, “Downloading movies increases producers income.”

    Since most people think that stealing the material is OK then you shouldn’t be surprised when they do things to protect their property.

    P.S. I keep getting the 15 second warning even when this is the first thing I’ve posted all day.

  3. Dan F. says:

    I hope people remember that a lot of not-so-rich people work in the motion picture industry. Their livelihoods depend on box office receipts and DVD sales.

  4. Cognito says:

    I’m starting to think that there should be an ‘honesty box’ where downloaders can pay what they think they owe.
    I’ve got a few copied CDs I’d be prepared to pay something for some of them, others I’d need paying to listen to again.

  5. JT says:

    If I download a movie from a TV signal to my VCR or DVR, that isn’t considered illegal. Why should downloading the same content from the Internet be any different?

  6. Jim says:

    #3 : I think only the NOT “not-so-rich people” make money off of the box office money and DVD sales… i doubt a grip on a movie gets a percentage of the DVD sales…

  7. Dennis says:

    How do you stop something like this? Oh, I know: Lets make programs that infect users computers when they try to watch this AFTER they bought the media. That way, they won’t even be able to watch it, but we will already have their money!

    Yah. Thats what they think.

    Locks only keep out Honest People.
    Computers began the world as free entities. Until someone decided they needed to quit sharing their code and ideas, and make money off what was before given away.

    Is this a Pro rant or a Con rant? Neither. Like the 80 million plus who download from the Internet – It just is.

  8. JT says:

    #6 Most people skip past the advertisers & sponsors anyway. Oh yeah, that’s a topic for another discussion. Pretty soon we won’t be allowed to do that either.

  9. venom monger says:

    I think only the NOT “not-so-rich people” make money off of the box office money and DVD sales… i doubt a grip on a movie gets a percentage of the DVD sales…

    Yeah, but in that sense they’re better off. There are a lot more stinkers than hits out there, and the “small credit” people pretty much get paid the same no matter which the movie ultimately turns out to be.

    And, in fact, that pay is pretty good. They’re pretty much all unionized, and the jobs are very hard to get. (Why do you think you see so many of the same last names in movie credits?)

  10. gtriamy says:

    #9 and #6

    Honestly, if I got the content for free, i could watch it anytime I wanted, I would gladly watch commercials every 15-10 minutes. People aren’t downloading movies and TV to steal the content (although if advertisers also paid for movies too, we wouldn’t have to pay an outrageous 20 dollars for a dvd), they are downloading them for sheer instantaneous gratification. Content producers are missing out on a huge number of prospective customers, all because they think we are “stealing” content. Consumers want their content, they want it now, not later. H***, people watch superbowl ads for entertainment, I know people who actually just watch the super bowl, just for the ads! So, if content can be served up free/at a minimal cost, with entertaining commercials, and can be consumed whenever we want, producers could make a LOT more money.

  11. Improbus says:

    I would download some movies … if there were any worth watching. I mostly download TV shows from bittorrent. I figure it is about the moral equivalent of taping a TV show.

  12. Uncle Dave says:

    There are two kinds of people on a movie: “above the line” and “below the line.” The latter are the majority of the people who work on a movie and are paid hourly. Because of their fixed costs, their total cost can be calculated and budgeted for on the show. They never get a cut of DVD sales, etc.

    Above the line people are the stars, director, writer, producers and occasionally others (like a star DP) whose income in negotiated. They are the ones who sometimes get a cut of gross and/or net, get a cut of DVD sales and so on..

  13. DSchuster says:

    It is not just illegal downloading that is causing problems for the industry, broadcasters such as CTV are airing programs for free on their websites. Actors and crew aren’t getting compensated for that either.

    Online distribution of new media has caused quite a stir for the actors in Canada. ACTRA, the union governing actors has gone on strike in at least four provinces since the beginning of January.

    Their beef? Actors want to be compensated for their work showing up online.

  14. spsffan says:

    In my book, there is a definate divide between things that are broadcast and those that are not. If I’m subjected to the radio frequency waves I have a right to watch/listen/decode/record at my whim.

    Copying a “not yet broadcast” movie is a bit dishonest. And then there are those programs (or movies) that just can’t be found easily elsewhere.

    But is there really such a thing as honesty in an industry that is remaking “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” a second time? As if the first remake wasn’t enough to set you off of Hollywood for good!

  15. doug says:

    downloading a movie to watch once is every bit as immoral as borrowing the DVD from a friend. downloading a TV show is just as immoral as recording it on your DVR and fast-forwarding through commercials.

    ever go to a movie the first weekend it is out? did you buy popcorn? if not, you have stolen that movie from the theater, since theater owners typically kick back all the ticket revenues to the studio that first weekend.

    ever listen to NPR without pledging.? shame on you, you filthy thief!

    and so on.

  16. doug says:

    #18. no problem, pedro, all my posts are GPL.

  17. Angel H. Wong says:

    I like to watch movies at the theater than seeing them on DVD or on the computer.

    BUT LATELY THERE ARE WAY TOO MANY MOVIES NOT EVEN WORTH THE ELECTRICITY SPENT ON TRANSPORTING THEM.

    I still want my money back for watching snakes on a plane…

  18. Mike Voice says:

    3 … a lot of not-so-rich people work in the motion picture industry.

    And a lot of not-so-rich people stand at traffic intersections, and freeway on-ramps, holding pieces of cardboard…

    As we often told each other in the Navy: “If you’re looking for sympathy, its in the dictionary – between shit and syphilis.”

  19. Shawn says:

    Copying something isnt stealing since you still have the same use of the product.

    I guess Jesus was the first person the MPAA and RIAA should go after since he set the precedent for copying.

    I’m sure the jewish fisherman, breadmakers and wine makers were mighty peeved at his ability to feed so many just by copying his products for the poor masses.

    I’m sure the present day solution would be the same: Hang ’em

  20. Les says:

    Sorry, “parking in a fire lane” is a much more serious offence than downloading a movie. Someone could die if you are block fire department access.

    Downloading a (not released to broadcast) movie is a worse offence then parking with an expired meter. IMHO YMMV

  21. John Paradox says:

    remaking “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” a second time

    SECOND time? It’s been remade no less than THREE times:
    Kevin McCarthy original version
    Leonard Nimoy version
    NobosywhosenameIrecognize version
    (and there’s also the VERY similar “The Puppet Masters” based on the Robert Heinlein novel)

    BTW – the novel I Am Legend is also supposed to be undergoing a third version… the first two
    The Last Man On Earth (starring Vincent Price)
    The Omega Man (Starring Charlton Heston)

    J/P=?

  22. Smartalix says:

    The problem is the pricing structure is still slanted towards old-school marketing and distribution efforts.

    When prices are reasonable, people don’t steal. Look at iTunes. I downloaded the entire first season of Robot Chicken for about $15, and the entire third season of Battlestar Galactica for about $35.

    The RIAA is dying and will eventually become a debating society fed from legacy contracts, as there will come a generation of artists who will use the web as their springboard to fame, creating a new path for artists to develop using the new media for the new ways people experience music.

    There is no difference beween the problems in the newspaper, music, magazine, and other pre-electronic media industries. They are all threatened with extinction by the next generation, and must adapt or die. Look at the recent layoffs by Time Inc.

    The RIAA is like a wounded animal, or a politician facing bad poll numbers. They will twist the ring in our nose as hard as they can for as long as they are able because they know if we bypass the RIAA now they are f*cked.

  23. joshua says:

    #16….a classic movie. To bad you didn’t get the message in it.

    #20…Angel…so your the one who paid to see that movie huh?

    #24…John Paradox…there is another version that was made as well. It was a British movie, with a guy from New Zealand starring and it took place in Australia. I can’t for the life of me remember the name. I got it from Netflix. It looked like a 60’s made movie.

    I wouldn’t have any problem paying a minimum fee to download a decent movie. Say, 5.00 or something. That way they all can get some profit from the movie and everyone is happy.

  24. TJGeezer says:

    26 – Joshua, I often disagree with you but when you’re right, you’re right. Put a modest but reasonable fee on downloading a movie and I’d go for it too. It’s such a stupidly reasonable solution – but most entertainment moguls will have to be dragged kicking and screaming into such a system. They assume everybody is out to steal from them. Psychologists call that projection.

  25. jOE says:

    Nice one 27, about projection, lol. What happens if you park in a fire lane and a firetruck shows up for a fire or whatever, they park their truck in the lane of traffic and they break your windows and run their hoses thur your car so ur stuck. They take turns breaking the windows so all the firemen get a shot eventaully. LOL who cares about showbiz! pirate all the shit u can get ur hands on and when u cant get ur paws on any more sell your pirated collection FOOL! Im going to go steal some bikes.

  26. B. Dog says:

    Some say Canadians, up North there, are to blame for many pirated movies. An AT&T study points the finger further South, towards Hollywood insiders.

  27. jbellies says:

    #31 – Interesting article! There’s an irony here, that Canadian film makers had been frustrated for decades in getting their films shown in Canadian cinemas–because the whole distribution process is owned or dominated by Hollywood. Note that I’m not talking about Hollywood movies made in Canada, but Canadian-produced films. So if Hollywood films stopped appearing in Canadian cinemas, that would be a great boon for Bollywood, Britain, and even our own homey productions. Does Karma warm the cockles of your heart, or what?

  28. Dennis says:

    Just to clear the record:

    Puppet Masters – Robert Heinlein

    The best and ORIGINAL.
    Invasion of the BS was a rip off of the book by Heinlein.

  29. Mike Voice says:

    30 ignore the problems of those under-the-line hollywood workers

    Yes.

    The same way I ignore the people holding pieces of cardboard…

  30. George of the city says:

    You know I have a attic full of content baught and paid for. LP,8tracks, beta max, ect. So now If I download the same content im stealing. I do not know about these kids but I feel I have paid my dues.


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