BitTorrent Facilitating Illegal File Swapping of Star Wars On Day of Opening

“Statement by MPAA President Dan Glickman

Washington, D.C. - - Responding to news reports today that BitTorrent is already facilitating the illegal file sharing of the final Star Wars episode, Revenge of the Sith which opens in theaters today, Motion Picture Association of America, Inc. (MPAA) President and CEO Dan Glickman made the following statement:

‘There is no better example of how theft dims the magic of the movies for everyone than this report today regarding BitTorrent providing users with illegal copies of Revenge of the Sith. The unfortunate fact is this type of theft happens on a regular basis on peer to peer networks all over the world.

Fans have been lined up for days to see Revenge of the Sith. To preserve the quality of movies for fans like these and so many others, we must stop these Internet thieves from illegally trading valuable copyrighted materials on-line.

If piracy and those who profit from it are allowed to flourish, they will erode an engine of economic growth and job creation; undermine legitimate businesses that strive to unite technology and content in innovative and legal ways and limit quality and consumer choice.’…

‘My message to illegal file swappers everywhere is plain and simple: You are stealing, it is wrong and you are not anonymous,’ said Glickman. ‘In short, you can click, but you can't hide. There are lots of ways to legally download our products through companies like CinemaNow, Movielink, Ruckus and others.’ ” [MPAA Press Release in Word document format only, via the Interesting People mailing list]

This statement would indeed be alarming, if it wasn’t for the fact that the original copy leaked onto BitTorrent was stolen by someone associated with the film and if “Revenge of the Sith” hadn’t made $50 million the first day alone. Glickman shoots himself in the foot by noting that the movie was pirated and yet “fans have been lined up for days to see” it. He wants to have his cake (fans lined up everywhere!) and eat it, too (but piracy “will erode an engine of economic growth and job creation”).

Explain to me again why Congress listens to him? Oh yeah - the money.

Hopefully they’ll cry wolf one too many times, and they and their record profits will be seen for what they really are – a successful business that needs no further legislation from our government. The legal business models Glickman refers are indeed working and with time, they will grow into a thriving business if they stop concentrating on disabling customer playback devices with overly-restrictive DRM and concentrate instead on producing a good product. Just like every other business out there.