Lobbying

Big media content producers have a lot of money (Disney has a market value of $65 Billion), and they have a real interest in protecting that money, so it should come as no surprise that if they can influence legislation in their favour then they will do it. With that in mind, check out Wired's article highlighting a new website that tracks political contributions and the legislation that it is tied to.

Hollywood, Big Software and Coal Miners Pros at Timely Political Donations
(LINK)

A Conspiracy Theory

"To get what you want, STOP doing what isn't working"(1)

"The time to stop a revolution is at the beginning, not the end"(2)

According to Nielsen ratings (HERE) the most popular cable television show in America is "The Closer, starring Kyra Sedgwick, with almost 7 million viewers. When you enter the search term 'watch "the closer" online free" in Google you return 963,000 hits. Clicking on some of these links will bring you to websites where full episodes have been posted by other individuals. You can watch these episodes, hosted on websites such as youtube and dailymotion, for free, without commercial breaks and whenever you choose.

My question is this: if I can find these links, why can't the copyright holders who are demanding more draconian copyright protections for their content?

It is so easy to find the allegedly infringing material that it would appear that copyright holders are not actively seeking these links, perhaps tolerating them because they build up a wider audience for their shows, as well as generating discussions amongst internet communities with the result that word of mouth increases the show's ratings.

Copyright holders seems to be having their cake and eating it too. Gaining more legislative protection for their content while also gaining more customers. Perhaps new legislation is not what copyright holders should be concerned with, instead they should police the web themselves and utilise the current legislative framework to protect their interests.

At least TNT and many other cable networks have realised that jumping on board the new technology is more profitable than not, and they have made "The Closer" available on their own website supported by online advertising.

Footnotes

(1) Earl Warren
(2) Adlai E. Stevenson

A Call for Some Imagination

“If you have ten thousand regulations you destroy all respect for the law”(1)

Old media industries are facing a tough time because they are simply unwilling to adapt to survive. The arrival of the internet has meant that news and entertainment are virtually instantaneous with the result that traditional forms of the media are struggling to keep up and maintain a healthy profit level. The reaction has not been to call for progress, but instead to demand an increase in copyright protection through over-reaching legislation. Which is great for the lawyers involved, but does nothing for the end-user of the copyright material.

“The best way to destroy an enemy is to make him a friend”(2)

Traditional media has been forced to evolve because of new technology before. When television arrived with its ability to relay the most up to date news to a large population, print media adapted and began to focus on providing commentary to the days events rather than the facts. Being unwilling to change will not prevent the change from occurring, instead copyright holders will be unable to tap into the growing market and will lose valuable potential revenue. This has been recognised by internet service providers in Ireland when they said: “The ISPAI is disappointed that the great potential of the internet, to provide opportunities to connect with users in new ways and develop new business models, is being missed by the music recording industry.”(3)

My suggestion would be to embrace the progress that the internet is bringing, both in terms of lowering distribution/production costs and in terms of the wider audience that can be reached. Forget drafting laws and treaties which are ineffective and inefficient. After all, the law is not designed to keep pace with new technologies. Instead, adapt your approach to doing business in the digital age, and then the government can draft laws that compliment the new era, not just try to impede its arrival.

Footnotes

(1) Winston Churchill quotes (thinkexist.com/quotation/if_you_have_ten_thousand_regulations_you_destroy/150122.html)
(2) Abraham Lincoln quotes (thinkexist.com/quotation/the_best_way_to_destroy_an_enemy_is_to_make_him_a/12577.html)
(3) Internet body labels IRMA legal threat ‘spurious’ (www.siliconrepublic.com/news/article/12506/comms/internet-body-labels-irma-legal-threat-spurious)

Source

Disney, YouTube forge video distribution pact
(LINK)
CD sales drop, digital downloads on the rise
(LINK)
When the Internet and TV take on print media, it’s a global battle
(LINK)

UPDATE - 22 August 2009

Traditional media producers are being forced to reevaluate their current business models in light of the effectiveness of online advertising.

Source

Bad news for TV as studies show online ads are more effective
(LINK)