Stop SOPA

Lamar Smith a real scumbag

sopa/pipa blackout

Members of Congress still in shock over yesterday’s massive internet protest. I’ve never seen a demonstration have an impact this quickly. — Michael Moore

Greed-driven Hollywood must be a rare example of an industry that treats its customers and potential customers as criminals.

I find it offensive to buy a DVD and then be forced to watch a video that tells me I am a criminal.

No, snatching a purse or handbag or a smash and grab raid, is not the same as copying a DVD. In the first case is is clearly theft, someone has been deprived of their property, in the latter, no one had been deprived of their property.

The irony is that if I had a pirate DVD, it would not have at the beginning the compulsive video that implies that I am a criminal for possessing a legitimate copy.

I find it offensive, have laptop will travel, but Hollywood puts regional encoding on its DVDs to stop them being played outside the region.

The irony is that it is simple enough to bypass, simply download AnyDVD or DVDFab Passkey and it sits in the background and removes the regional encoding, I can then watch at my leisure wherever I happen to be, any DVD from anywhere in the world.

If I borrow a DVD, I copy it so I can watch it when I get around to it.

I find it offensive when a student in the UK is facing extradition to the USA at the behest of Hollywood for having a website which directed visitors to where they might find free downloads. He himself was not supplying free downloads. What he did is not even a criminal offence in the UK! He faces 10 years in prison if extradited to the USA.

– UK student faces extradition to US after piracy case ruling
– British Student Faces Extradition to U.S. in Copyright Infringement Case
– Student loses extradition hearing
– ‘Piracy’ student Richard O’Dwyer loses extradition case
– TVShack’s student founder can be extradited to US, court rules
– Abandoned by British justice: Student faces 10 years in U.S. jail for setting up ‘illegal’ website

Now Hollywood is wanting to control the internet.

Hollywood is not losing massive amounts of money from piracy. We have all noticed it is an industry on its knees, though it deserves to be.

Hollywood makes its money from bums on seats in cinemas, TV rights for those endless repeats on TV. Money made from DVD and Blu-ray sales is cream on the cake.

You cannot equate blank DVD sales with loss of business. Sony has its fingers in both sales, likes to have its cake and eat it.

We hear a lot of bleating about loss of creative talent, artists in garrets working for a pittance. If they are only getting a pittance it is because Hollywood keeps for itself too large a slice of the cake.

Brazilian writer Paulo Coelho found he sold more books when pirate copies were made available for free download.

– Pirate Coelho/ help your community

Hollywood, in dark corners with corrupt politicians up for sale, thought they could control the Internet through SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act). Users thought otherwise, as did many of the big internet players.

Yesterday many internet sites went black. Many internet junkies like Paulo Coelho, refused to use internet for 24 hours.

The result has been almost instantaneous. US politicians are reeling from the public backlash. many, who supported SOPA, who were even sponsors, have suddenly found it is not a hot potato they wish to be caught holding.

We do not have to jump to corporate lobbyists. We can bring Hollywood to its knees. How about a worldwide boycott of Hollywood, no going to the cinema to watch their rubbish films, no buying their DVDs?

– The Day the Internet Roared
– We are the lobbyists now
– SOPA is dead. Are you happy now?
– Battling Internet Censorship: The Long War
– Why Hollywood Is Losing the Public Relations War on Piracy
– Supreme Court Bashes Public Domain
– It’s time to place the Internet in Safer Hands
– Senate Democrats hold fast to anti-piracy bill
– Senate and House slow PIPA/SOPA votes, but promise it’s just a delay
– SOPA: Anti-Piracy or Censorship?
– Feds Shutter Megaupload, Arrest Executives
– Anonymous Retaliates Against MegaUpload Takedown, Knocks MPAA, RIAA Sites Offline [plus DOJ]
– Thoughts of Paulo Coelho on Sopa

Tags: censorship, greed, Hollywood, internet, movies, PIPA, Sopa, StopPIPA, StopSOPA