Filmmaker Unions Want to Criminalize Streaming Piracy

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Two prominent filmmaker unions are urging the government to criminalize streaming piracy. The labor unions describe streaming as the preferred viewing experience and argue that those who stream copyrighted movies without permission should face prison.
 
And I'd like to criminalize government employee unions.

Maybe we can work a compromise?
 
Could you imagine?
Stream a movie go to prison. With murderers, rapists, etc.

These people proposing this should be laughed at but sadly they might get some consideration. Big corporations with profits at risk get all sorts of things criminalized. This country is a mess.
 
As long as they're willing to pay for every criminal they put away in prison.
The figure is 15k to 60k per year depending on the state.
If they're found innocent, then the company lawyer and execs should go to prison.
 
The Gonz said:
Could you imagine?
Stream a movie go to prison. With murderers, rapists, etc.

These people proposing this should be laughed at but sadly they might get some consideration. Big corporations with profits at risk get all sorts of things criminalized. This country is a mess.
Click to expand...

It's really absurd if you think about it.
 
Selective accountability. How about we prosecute Wall Street, corrupt CEO's and any number of worthless politicians that get away with the real crimes.
 
I'm fairly anti piracy, but prison and thinly veiled extortion schemes aren't the answer.
 
The Gonz said:
Could you imagine?
Stream a movie go to prison. With murderers, rapists, etc.
Click to expand...

Out here in California they are letting the murderers, rapists out earl.
With all the early releases, it might soon be safer in prison.
 
In fact, let's put small children in prison too who steal a pack of gum while their parents aren't looking. Theft is theft after all. :rolleyes:
 
The article isn't entirely clear and neither are the statements from the filmmakers union. The claim appears to be that currently, downloading a movie is a felony but streaming it is a misdemeanor(read: they're both technically crimes, currently). The goal is to make streaming a felony as well.

My question is - they reference streaming being a "public performance" hence why it's not a felony...but then in that case, aren't they talking about the person doing the streaming on the source end and not the person watching the stream? So are they talking about making people into felons for watching a stream, or just the people who provide it?
 
The Gonz said:
Could you imagine?
Stream a movie go to prison. With murderers, rapists, etc.

These people proposing this should be laughed at but sadly they might get some consideration. Big corporations with profits at risk get all sorts of things criminalized. This country is a mess.
Click to expand...

They're almost certainly referring the commercial sites that stream movies without authorization or paying royalties. It's pretty much a given that anything that prevented you from using Sling or streaming from your home server to some other place of your choosing is a non-starter.

I'm sure the language will be way to broad, but it's hard for me to support commercial entities that are clearly breaking the law for profit.
 
PeaKr said:
Yeah because petty theft deserves prison time.
Click to expand...

have you searched for movie streaming on google? movienight sure doesn't look like it's petty theft. I didn't click through to see if I could stream the movies (way too worried about malware), but assuming it works, you can get Steve Jobs (a movie that went wide this weekend), The Martian and probably most movies in the top 10.

It's not petty.
 
Spewn said:
The article isn't entirely clear and neither are the statements from the filmmakers union. The claim appears to be that currently, downloading a movie is a felony but streaming it is a misdemeanor(read: they're both technically crimes, currently). The goal is to make streaming a felony as well.

My question is - they reference streaming being a "public performance" hence why it's not a felony...but then in that case, aren't they talking about the person doing the streaming on the source end and not the person watching the stream? So are they talking about making people into felons for watching a stream, or just the people who provide it?
Click to expand...

That's a good question. I assume they're referring to those running the sites, but maybe I'm wrong. If it was me, I'd go after the big guys. There's less of them.
 
nilepez said:
have you searched for movie streaming on google? movienight sure doesn't look like it's petty theft. I didn't click through to see if I could stream the movies (way too worried about malware), but assuming it works, you can get Steve Jobs (a movie that went wide this weekend), The Martian and probably most movies in the top 10.

It's not petty.
Click to expand...

That I can agree with. I wouldn't want my work being stolen and distributed either. I get that. What I don't get is the people that see only in black and white from the top to the bottom. Seriously, it seems like some people on here would imprison their own grandmother for a minor traffic violation.
 
nilepez said:
That's a good question. I assume they're referring to those running the sites, but maybe I'm wrong. If it was me, I'd go after the big guys. There's less of them.
Click to expand...

This I would obviously have no problem with. However historically they have instead chosen to use these laws as a means to legally bully and extort. So unless the wording is very precise and prevents that, I'm utterly opposed.
 
J3RK said:
That I can agree with. I wouldn't want my work being stolen and distributed either. I get that. What I don't get is the people that see only in black and white from the top to the bottom. Seriously, it seems like some people on here would imprison their own grandmother for a minor traffic violation.
Click to expand...

Yes, but there are more that essentially side with any media distribution is OK. Sure it's illegal and they wouldn't do it ;), but there should be no prosecution and any civil action is quickly denounced too. I'm not keen on moving things to much/quickly, but assuming they're going after sites like the one I mentioned, I'm 100% OK with that. Streaming first run movies (unless authorized by the copyright holder) is wrong on every possible level.
 
Dekoth-E- said:
This I would obviously have no problem with. However historically they have instead chosen to use these laws as a means to legally bully and extort. So unless the wording is very precise and prevents that, I'm utterly opposed.
Click to expand...

I don't think they've done that in some time. They go through the ISP who may or may not forward the notification.

I do have a bit of a problem with criminal charges for torrent aggregators. They're not hosting the media, nor are they hosting the torrent server. They're no different than a Google/Bing that specializes in torrents. And a Google search for The Good Wife Torrent turns up hits for that show (or if kickass is an aggregator, then it turns up links on their site to some other site).
 
I think they should just be locked in a room and forced to watch the Twilight series movies over and over until they start crying and promise to never do it again.
 
For punishment they should charge movie ticket prices for fines. Even after the movie is released. It would make life so much easier.
 
I am a IATSE member and I don't agree with them...

The industry has never been busier and I don't see too many staving crew members out there. It's not like we are going to all get raises if they pass this POS law.
 
I will agree that the DGA guys will get paid better if they have more sales. But us IATSE members won't

DGA is the big money arm of the industry
IATSE is the "construction" "unskilled labor" arm (DGA likes to think of us as "unskilled")
 
mynamehere said:
Odds are you'd get a lesser sentence for murdering a **AA lawyer.
Click to expand...

NOW THERE IS A THOUGHT! Interesting alternative. I mean, sure you might get caught for murder.... but once they're all dead, you won't go to prison for streaming! The sentence is bound to be a couple of hundred years less and much easier on your pocket. Not to mention, you might get some cred that you won't be visiouly raped in prison... at least without some planning or hesitation on your rapist's part.
 
ca prop 47, 15 dollar movie its under the 950 dollar theft charge. you're free to go. :D
 
The ones running the sites are oversea's and rather difficult to prosecute.

So yeah, go after the little guy sitting at home with their media software starting with a K running on an android box with addons that were sold specifically advertising watch all the tv and movies you want without paying ever off amazon.
 
We need to stop people with all the money making all the laws. It's really gonna bite us in the ass one of these days.

Soon, all restaurants will all be Taco Bell.
 
I have coworkers coming up to me all excited about discovering websites that have free streaming movies. They seem shocked when I tell them that those sites are illegal and that they could get sued. There ain't no such thing as a free lunch.
 
The people running illegal streaming sites should be prosecuted, maybe. But not the people using it. If you put out a bag of dvds on the street you can't expect people to don't take it. And as long as it's on the street unattended it's not stealing.
 
Love these communists in Hollywood. They make 10,000x more than a PA or GRIP but that's ok, we need to focus on CEO pay vs everyone else. Also nobody has any right to private property except them. Hypocrisy at its best.
 
Old_Way said:
I think they should just be locked in a room and forced to watch the Twilight series movies over and over until they start crying and promise to never do it again.
Click to expand...

You have no idea what a bad movie actually is if you think Twilight is the worst.

Plan 9 From Outer Space

Killer Clowns From Outer Space

Watch either of those and then you will know what real punishment can be.
 
WHAT?! Killer Clowns from Outer Space was fuckin AWESOME!
 
cyclone3d said:
You have no idea what a bad movie actually is if you think Twilight is the worst.

Plan 9 From Outer Space

Killer Clowns From Outer Space

Watch either of those and then you will know what real punishment can be.
Click to expand...

...or "The Room"

*shudder*

With costs of seeing films in theatres skyrocketing as the movie studios try to squeeze more and more from the public, these types of sites are only going to grow and become a popular, albeit illegal, alternative.
We see it already with mandatory minimums for certain crimes, harsh consequences have little to not effect as most people are simply oblivious to them.
 
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