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Movie moguls fight the attack of the pirates
Wednesday, June 05 2002
by Ralph Averbuch


In the last few weeks we've seen two major movies getting lots of media exposure.
First there was  Stars Wars: Episode II -- Attack of the Clones and any
day now we've got Spider-Man, reputed to have cost USD100 million, coming
to a screen near you.

These are interesting times, not only because both movies make extensive use of
the latest CGI to create believable movie sequences and characters, but also
because of the manner in which they are being distributed. In the case of Star
Wars, some cinemas are actually receiving the whole film via a satellite
connection, downloading straight to the cinema in digital form, ready for
projection using the latest digital projectors.



At one stroke such a method of digital delivery eradicates the huge on-going cost
of duplication and physical distribution involved in getting movies across the
globe on 35mm reels of film. 



However, the fact that movies are now being converted from chemical to digital
images also causes some new concerns. It's been suggested that the reason why the
Star Wars movie has gone on global general release has more to do with the
success of Internet software piracy and the ease with which perfect copies can be
obtained, and less to do with the fact that a new system of delivery makes global
releases increasingly easy to achieve.



In the past the studios were happy to distribute on a fairly arbitrary region by
region basis. It allowed them to build up interest in one market, gain a buzz
about a film in another and then release it in an orderly fashion, sometimes long
after it had appeared on US screens. The studios were in total control of their
product. They didn't need to worry too much about piracy. Illegal tapes of movies
still in cinema were generally of low quality and couldn't hope to deliver
anything matching the experience delivered on a big screen. But the Internet is
changing that, and fast.



According to the Motion Picture Association of America, by the time of the recent
launch of Attack of the Clones, hundreds of thousands of people had
already downloaded illegal digital copies to their PCs, for free. This bothers
the movie-makers, who want people to go to cinemas, pay to watch the movie, pay
to buy the popcorn, and six months later pay to watch it all again in the comfort
of their home on DVD. 



And this is possibly why we're seeing a sea-change in the behaviour of the big
studios. They know that to release a movie piecemeal across the globe only gives
people more time to access illegal copies, so it now makes more commercial sense
to roll out films globally, as quickly as possible.



The studios also know that efforts to sue the perpetrators are most likely time
and effort wasted. Many music companies learnt this lesson with Napster. Despite
bringing about the music downloading service's demise, hundreds of (if you'll
excuse the pun) Napster clones were spawned. Now it's as easy as ever to download
MP3 files of all your favourite bands, if you really want to.



This is where the studios need to make a careful decision. Do they want to spend
vast amounts of money pursuing the pirates, trying to develop unbreakable
systems, or do they want to play on the fact that people love movies?



Cinema-going is in a healthy state, with box office takes on blockbusters making
amounts unimaginable a few years ago. The Internet has had its part to play in
this, with all the major Web sites carrying lots of gossip and background on each
major (or minor) release. All this talk, all the illegal copies, all the people
giving away the plot before they've seen the movie, has not stopped people going
out seeking the unique experience offered by the cinema.



Sure, it might be possible for me to get my hands on the latest movies before
they even hit my local cinema thanks to the Internet and a decent ADSL connection
(that's another story for another time). But it won't stop me from spending my
money to sit in a dark room with a bunch of strangers and enjoy the experience in
the way it was originally intended.