Comcast Wants To Convert Pirating Subscribers

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Comcast has a rough road ahead of it if the company plans on converting pirating subscribers over to the legal side of things. Let's all pretend for a moment we are all thieving bastards, what kind of "pop-up" would it take for you to change your pirating ways?

In collaboration with Hollywood, Comcast is reportedly working on a new anti-piracy project in addition to the current six-strikes scheme. Under the new plan ISPs will monitor subscribers’ Internet traffic and present pirates with legal alternatives through popups. The new system is still in the development phase and sources say it will co-exist with the existing copyright alert system.
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Thieving bastards... Steve, your views are usually really dumb, but you continue to impress.
 
"Popups"??? Like nobody has a popup blocker? Brilliant idea:rolleyes:
 
Well, you follow the model of steam and have content that's 50-75% off if its close to a year old to start.....

But who am I kidding, big movie and big music would never dare sell something at those prices
 
Only alternative i'd consider (if i was an illegal user) is a fully customisable channel line-up TV system, at a reasonable price, with NO commercials.
 
Piracy rates would drop like a stone if provider simply switched to an a la carte model. Being forced to pay for the "O" network just to be able to enjoy Speed Channel is preposterous. I have absolutely no desire to help feed Oprah's coffers. Let me enjoy those channels I choose and ignore those I don't and I'll happily re-subscribe to a paid TV service.
 
Inu said:
Only alternative i'd consider (if i was an illegal user) is a fully customisable channel line-up TV system, at a reasonable price, with NO commercials.
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TV programming doesn't exist without ad dollars.
We'll have to be content with On-Demand entertainment.
 
Either they offer a la carte, or I tell them they're Communists who rape children and take it up the ass. That's how much I'm willing to negotiate...
 
Comcast owns a broadcast network,so they need to show shareholders that something is being done to curb pirating.
 
WorldExclusive said:
TV programming doesn't exist without ad dollars.
We'll have to be content with On-Demand entertainment.
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It used to.

Remember the good old days wjen a cable subscription got you ad free programming? We've simply gotten desensitized to the necessity of ads.
 
Seriously, a la carte is what people want. I just don't see it happening without them gouging the price so high it wouldn't be worth it.
 
TheOrangeJuicer said:
Seriously, a la carte is what people want. I just don't see it happening without them gouging the price so high it wouldn't be worth it.
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+1 Just like with Verizon and AT&T and their share everything plans they would create the a la carte system in their favor.

It would probably cost most people the same or more for the channels they do watch. At least you guide wouldn't be stuffed with useless stuff.
 
CreepyUncleGoogle said:
Who says that they don't already? :p
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Because network TV can't track who's watching their shows let alone who's watching commercials instead they continue to use an archaic system because then they can ball park ad-pays random ass figures saying how many people will see their ads allowing them to rake in ad rev
 
Semantics said:
Because network TV can't track who's watching their shows let alone who's watching commercials instead they continue to use an archaic system because then they can ball park ad-pays random ass figures saying how many people will see their ads allowing them to rake in ad rev
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Why do you think Kinect is mandatory for XB1?
 
A felony?

Jail time. Fines. Never get a good job again. Lose your kids. Lose your right to own guns forever. Pay massive attorney fees.

Over streaming ANYTHING that is copyrighted? For pete's sake. That's going to be selectively enforced to begin with. There isn't enough capacity in the justice system to handle any of this.

And yet AGAIN... does the punishment even remotely fit the crime?
 
TheOrangeJuicer said:
Seriously, a la carte is what people want. I just don't see it happening without them gouging the price so high it wouldn't be worth it.
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Yeah, the problem with "a la carte" is that it would increase prices and also stifle innovation as networks would be even less inclined to take risks on new shows. It would get rid of a lot of the fluff but that would leave you with the Call of Duty situation with TV shows. On the other hand, we're seeing innovative shows from NetFlix and Amazon Instant, along with the re-emergence of some classics like Arrested Development. Plus, I find myself watching shows on them that I haven't even heard about. Oh, and, yeah, no commercials.
 
Show me my legal Anime and foreign TV solutions with subtitles...Your move Comcast.
 
ShamisOMally said:
Well, you follow the model of steam and have content that's 50-75% off if its close to a year old to start.....

But who am I kidding, big movie and big music would never dare sell something at those prices
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Look in the bargain bin at Walmart for Blu-rays. They do this already. Even for some more recent films. Not the huge blockbusters (those take a couple years), but you can find them for in the $7 bin. Not bad for a movie that was once $30 when released.

If there were legal alternatives, I'd subscribe. But, the legal alternative would be ala carte programming, which all providers have said no on already. I don't want 90% of the channels. I want just a few. Give me those, and I'll buy. Give me HBOGo without the cable/sat subscription, and I'll buy. The consumer wants this, but the models they have in place (they have to buy the whole package to help pay for the smaller, less profitable channels that have a smaller audience) are not tailored for it.
 
Hollywood has a 1980's view point on its content sales. It wants to rake you over the coals for every time you view a movie or tv show. Until it realizes we don't live in the 80's anymore and that physical copy right's management will NEVER apply to digital rights management and digital rights management should be handled with a modern approach then it doesn't matter what we want.

The "boy's" club of Hollywood studios that thinks its the only business in the world making movies and tv shows needs to grow up well before pirates would be willing to quit pirating entirely.

Side note : Pirates have been proven more likely than non-pirating users to buy content , by a large factor I might add. http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/...Are-Industrys-Biggest-Paying-Customers-122852

So really , how about offering a system that doesn't restrict with incredibly harsh DRM and get with reality?
 
Skripka said:
We've simply gotten desensitized to the necessity of ads.
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Pretty much. These days we're willing to pay for the equipment (even including extras that help advertisers) and a subscription all the while accepting ads all over the joint. Used to be we'd expect ads for things we got for free, and no ads for things we paid for :p
 
Perhaps if the pricing on the pirated materials was reasonable.. people wouldn't "steal" it.
 
Chunder said:
Perhaps if the pricing on the pirated materials was reasonable.. people wouldn't "steal" it.
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No, the prices are fine. It's the dirty thieves that are a buncha cheapos and they need to be locked away for not wanting to spend their money on things. :mad:
 
One more instance where they can steal from us but we can't steal from them.

I didn't know when I was a kid I'd grow up to be a cynic.
 
CreepyUncleGoogle said:
No, the prices are fine. It's the dirty thieves that are a buncha cheapos and they need to be locked away for not wanting to spend their money on things. :mad:
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Have you watched Grown Ups 2? I didn't want to spend my money on that. I did anyway. Very disappointed in my purchase.
 
CreepyUncleGoogle said:
Not sure why people still even watch TV. You pay for like one third of the time being commercials.
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I completely agree and pretty much don't watch anything unless it's pre-recorded/downloaded. I can't stand watching live tv, between the channel bugs, the pop over ads and the commercials it's awful and a complete waste of time and money. Free OTA broadcasting is allowed to have commercials and gets a free pass in my eyes but why would anyone purposely pay to watch ads and commercials?
 
Ur_Mom said:
Have you watched Grown Ups 2? I didn't want to spend my money on that. I did anyway. Very disappointed in my purchase.
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Any adult that willingly goes to a theater and watches that movie should have their mental state checked professionally..

Its tripe like that Movie that makes it hard to garner apathy for the studios when they fund total and complete garbage and expect people who even have a remote interest in it to fork over full price for perhaps some of the worst viewing possible that the entertainment industry can provide.

Make more movies that break the mold and land upon new ground and you'll have everyone including pirates willing to fork over large amounts of cash to see it.

Most of the greatest directors living and working today are perfectly happy putting together a canned and marketed piece of shit "blockbuster" but if you found the next Stanley Kubrick pitching a project like 2001 , he would likely be turned away because it doesn't have "broad appeal to the idiot masses".

All Hollywood wants is absolute certainty when such a thing DOES not exist. George Clooney recently was quoted complaining about this very problem (read this) :

http://www.deadline.com/2013/08/george-clooney-slams-sony-investor-daniel-loeb/
 
Not sure what this article is about, but comcast is apparently looking out for the pirates who initially put out the content, not the reuploaders. Apparently these are the top 5% BW users. I wonder if they do rid this problem if we will see our BW caps gone? (not holding my breath)
 
pirating is probably at their highest and year to year it might keep increasing. what is worst news is even after that entertainment industry is profiting.

i've no idea what tomorrow will bring but i know for certain it will bring tons and tons of angry customers for them.
 
Ur_Mom said:
Have you watched Grown Ups 2? I didn't want to spend my money on that. I did anyway. Very disappointed in my purchase.
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Why would you subject yourself to that? Even if the remote was across the room, I had a massive hangover, and grade 3 sprained ankle, I would roll myself across the room to change the channel if it started playing on my tv (which will probably premier next year since it is so bad). No one to blame but yourself for wasting your money on this one! :p
 
Godmachine said:
Hollywood has a 1980's view point on its content sales. It wants to rake you over the coals for every time you view a movie or tv show. Until it realizes we don't live in the 80's anymore and that physical copy right's management will NEVER apply to digital rights management and digital rights management should be handled with a modern approach then it doesn't matter what we want.
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People who bought media in the 80s aren't dying off, they can still gouge one last demographic (old) before it's over.

AOL is still a company, with significant revenue of charging someone for dial-up when they have broadband from another company.
 
singe_101 said:
People who bought media in the 80s aren't dying off, they can still gouge one last demographic (old) before it's over.

AOL is still a company, with significant revenue of charging someone for dial-up when they have broadband from another company.
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AOL makes a pathetic amount of money compared to what it use to and really the only reason they even offer dial up is that a small amount of people in this country are still without broadband.

http://gizmodo.com/5982853/aol-earns-most-of-its-money-from-subscribers

Compared to many other ISP's with the kind of branding AOL had/has they are making peanuts compared to them.

Its true , there are still demographics to drain from but the old blockbuster formula is beginning to fail and its not because of pirates .. its from lack of innovation. Ask any theater owner if they would still be in that business if they knew now what they knew 10 years ago and the response would be much more often than not "no".

The kind of money they have to pay to play films is crazy. Theater owners make more money selling popcorn and candy and soda than they do with ticket sales. If they were actually going for a real profit they would have to charge at least $20+ a ticket. People are simply not going to the movies like they use to because they have tons of digital , legal options to choose from that are often far more convenient than a night out at the theater. Hollywood lives in this world , a world where they still think people would rather go to the theater than watch a movie or tv show in the comfort of their own home.

Until that realization dawns upon them , its status quo and blame pirates for everything that's wrong. Nothing like a good scape goat to prosecute and blame for your fuck ups and laziness.
 
People are simply not going to the movies like they use to because they have tons of digital
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Incorrect sir this has been one of the highest ticket sales years, I dont have the article link but I just read it a couple weeks ago.

Totals: $6,843,352,995 2013 TOTAL box office sales till now, last year was 10.9 billion we still have the rest of the year to go which mean we will probably surpass last years amount....
 
haste. said:
Why would you subject yourself to that? Even if the remote was across the room, I had a massive hangover, and grade 3 sprained ankle, I would roll myself across the room to change the channel if it started playing on my tv (which will probably premier next year since it is so bad). No one to blame but yourself for wasting your money on this one! :p
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Actually, I blame my wife. I get to watch the guy movies all the time, so this one was all her.
 
Ur_Mom said:
Actually, I blame my wife. I get to watch the guy movies all the time, so this one was all her.
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I thought Grown Ups 2 was guy-friendly. It sort of crosses over into guy territory in the same way that Parental Guidance did.
 
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