Piracy in the Film Industry

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wonder woman

According to the online film database blog, Torrentfreak, the weekly statistics of the internets most pirated films allowed for DCs’ Wonder Woman (Patty Jenkins, 2017) to become the most illegally downloaded and streamed film of 2017 (BestVNP, 2017). Film piracy has been a major issue in the film industry for many years now, with the illegal distribution of films starting way before the internet age with the illegal copying of video and DVD (V. Crips, 2015). However, in the 21st Century, illegal film distribution and piracy is done mainly through the internet, with illegal streaming and downloading that makes the pirates around millions per year through advertisement on these sites (The Economist, 2017). With the issue only growing, and concern deepening, the questions really are: How did this all start? What is this actually doing to the film industry? And, ultimately, how can it be stopped?

Film piracy began to come to light in the early 1900s. As film began to become a popular leisure time and money-making practice pirates began to find ways of making further money from the industry in unethical ways. In the very beginning even producers were pirating creative work, “duping” copies and prints of other filmmakers works, that hadn’t yet been copyrighted, and distributing them for their own profit, sometimes even changing the titles (K. Segrave, 2003). “Duping” also took place in cinemas, where negatives would be copied to allow the film to continue to be shown even after the original screening reels were given back to the studios. The extent of piracy in the early 1900s became such an issue, film studios would buy ad space in newspapers to publicly warn and shame the dupers (Copyright Management Services ltd, 2015). Piracy in film didn’t die with age, in the 1960s/70s, when VHS technology was the home movie viewing platform, pirates would make their money by illegally distributing VHS tapes of unofficial films (A. Bajpeyee, 2016). As the internet age grew close, piracy moved onto the web, a much faster and more efficient was of illegally distributing film. Websites, such as Pirate Bay created in 2003, were created where BitTorrent protocols could be used to share very large digital files, like films, globally (R. CURLEY, 2011). From this point, film piracy began to spiral out of control, reaching such a fast pace on a global scale that the possibility of slowing down, and ending it all together, seemed to become more distant.

Although the issues that piracy is causing on the industry may seem minimal to the public, the illegal distribution of creative content is harshly harming the industries inner workings. According to a 2014 study by Ipsos, almost 30% of the UK population is actively involved in a regular form of piracy, whether through online streaming or the purchase of flocked DVDs, costing the UKs creative industries around £500 million per year (D. Lodderhose, 2014). This loss is estimated to be even higher to the US film industry, according to The Motion Picture Industry of America, estimating a huge $3 billion loss taken per year due to piracy (A. S. De Vany, W. D. Wallis, 2007). Although this may not noticeably affect the number of films released to cinemas every year, this major loss to Hollywood’s profits is causing many films to not be granted funding, mainly independent films (D. Lodderhose, 2014). Due to Hollywood needing guaranteed global hits in order to attempt to make back money lost from piracy, mainly franchise movies, such as additions to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the Harry Potter Universe, are being made by big studios. This means that independent filmmakers are having their ideas denied and their projects not funded due to the studios being unwilling to take the risk of not making enough profits (R. Vitale, T. League, 2014). Even though many films made are Hollywood franchise, according to a 2014 study by Carnegie Mellon piracy before the films are even released leads to a further 19% profit lost at box offices (N. Granados, 2015), meaning that 2017s highest box office grosser, Star Wars: The Last Jedi (Rian Johnson, 2017) which made $1.321 billion in theatres, lost an extortionate $250,990,000 to pre-release piracy. Such a large loss of money within the industry and with so many independent films being denied because of it, an estimate of 30,000 jobs in the industry are lost in per year Britain and an estimate 46,000 jobs are lost in the American film industry (M. D. Loeb, 2010).

the last jedi

How this major industry issue can be tackled and removed has been investigated since piracy came to light. As when “duping” became such an issue in the early 1900s that studios bought newspaper ad space, when VHS began to be illegally distributed in the 60s/70s Columbia created a method to ensure that consumers knew they were buying a legitimate and legal VHS by placing a red trim around their VHS, using the slogan “If it isn’t red, it isn’t real.” (A, Bajpeyee, 2015). As DVD piracy became the popular form of illegal distribution, laws began to be brought much more seriously into play surrounding film piracy. In the US, a specific law was brought in to prosecute pirates caught recording films in cinemas, whereas in the UK the offence falls under the form of the 2006 Fraud Act (J. Andrews, 2009). In modern day, as online streaming and Torrent websites allow for film piracy to run global, tackling the issue of piracy is a much harder task. With films being downloaded and reuploaded at fast rates all over the world, catching distributors and/or consumers in the internet ages is an almost impossible task. Across the world, the current and only effective solution comes with website blocking on a nationwide scale. The online streaming and downloading websites are being government blocked to stop the illegal activity, however, like stated previously, with the constant download and reupload capable globally with online film piracy, the websites, once blocked, are quickly replaced (M. C-Scott, 2015).

Overall the issue of film piracy is, and always has been, a relevant topic within the film industry, causing many problems both creatively and financially within the industry worldwide. Though we as consumers are still getting a heavy flow of new cinema released every year, many films, that could have once been a major success, are being denied from us by studios unwilling to risk even further money being lost. Film piracy costs the film industry millions and loses thousands of jobs worldwide. As problematic as it may be, the issue continues, and will continue, for much longer until a reliable and working method is created to tackle the modern day issue of online film piracy and the intense speed it moves at.

Words: 1125.

By Sophie Mann (P17186529)

Bibliography.

 

Filmography:

  • Wonder Woman (2017) [Film] Directed by PATTY JENKINS. USA: Warner Bros.
  • Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017) Directed by RIAN JOHNSON. USA: Disney.

 

 

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