In the US, the FBI just busted two movie piracy rings that they claim could be responsible for up to HALF of all the illegal recordings made of films in the US. Holy crap… if that’s even CLOSE to true, these guys must have been busy little bees.
The folks at Yahoo News give us this:
The FBI broke up two movie piracy rings Wednesday that authorities said specialized in sneaking digital camcorders into theaters and shooting hit films, then duplicating and distributing millions of bootlegs worldwide.
One of the movies the suspects were conspiring to profit from was “Superman Returns,” the highly anticipated film released Wednesday, officials said. The FBI learned that assistants were used to surround “cammers,” people who specialize in covertly filming movies, to conceal their filming and prevent people from blocking the view.
The suspects were awaiting arraignment in federal court in Manhattan. Each could face five years in prison if convicted of conspiracy, copyright infringement and trafficking in counterfeit goods.
Holy crap!!! 5 years in prison? Listen, I’m all for busting guys who pull this kind of crap… I really am. Trying to profit off of someone elses work is low… but 5 years in prison? Guys get probation for assaulting and beating the piss out of people on the side walks… but for sneaking a cam into a theater you could get 5 years?!?!
Meh… I guess if you violate the health and rights of poor people you get a slap on the wrist… violate the rights of the rich you get 5 years. Someone please tell me again why our culture is so much better than everyone elses. I forget sometimes.
They’ll probably just get a slap on the wrist. Remember, this is the same country that freed Michael Jackson, Kobe Bryant and OJ Simpson.
PS I’m not racist. Michael Jackson is white.
The length of the sentence is pro-ordained by the power of the lobbying group behind it ie. money talks.
Hey there Carlos,
I understand what you’re saying. 100%
But study after study has shown that while piracy has gone up… the number of productions has continued to go up as well. NO ONE has lost a job over piracy. No one.
The “joe jobs” (which if you’ve read The Movie Blog for any length of time, you’ll know I think should get a LOT more credit than they do) haven’t been touched at this point.
They’re still making more and more movies (this year will once again set a new record for most films given wide release in a single year) despite how much they cry about piracy hurting them.
Just food for thought.
Interesting, it starts out as debate topic about piracy then it turns into a endless rhethoric rant about the differences in western society.
Nobody said our society and our culture were perfect…
Let me remind you that the movie industry does not depend solely on the «rich» actors, directors and movie producers.
Studio employ staff to build, design and mantain sets, security officers for obvious reasons, scriptwritters, legal offices, fincancial offices and special effects teams. None of these have a pay-check as big as those mentioned above, but live by this industry.
In a nut-shell, if you bootleg something you might make the studios lose money meaning they can’t afford to pay everybody, which means someone will lose their job, just because you didn’t want to pay for a movie ticket or a CD.
To be honest, 5 years jail time and maybe just a fine is actually very little for making a studio lose millions and possibly making hundreds of people lose their job.
Think it over before you start ranting…
Heck, child molesters only get 3-5 years here in Cali. These guys won’t get the maximum, that’s silly. I wonder how the heck they infiltrated this ring? It had to be a pretty tight knit group…
The article says they COULD face up to 5 years. Chances are, the judge won’t give them that maximum sentence. They may serve a year, then some probation and probably communiy service (like speaking to kids about how horrible piracy is).
I know this because I am the world’s foremost expert on the law and judicial proceedings.
~ Drewbacca
MoviePatron.com
Drugs are a much bigger problem in society, than the occasional sicko who rapes and murders somebody.
Psychopaths will always exist, but fortunately they aren’t very common, as opposed to drugs which is everywhere. So if you are not going to legalize it, having harsh sentences is pretty much all you can do.
Anyway, since when did this turn into http://www.thesocietyblog.com :P
Hey Jim. GREAT comments!
I’ll just differ with you a little on the “seeling drugs” thing. I’m biased… a couple of my friends from my younger days had their lives destroyed by drugs. Thus, I think anyone who sells drugs should have their balls chewed off by rats and then have their heads slammed between 2 semi-trucks.
But like I said… I’m biased. :)
Yes, John, it‚Äôs ridiculous… Welcome to the American Judicial system. Murder someone and get a 5-10 year prison term and you could be out in 3… But, sell drugs and you could get 15-20 in prison! Download some ‘illegal’ MP3s? 2 Years in the slammer! Rape your next door neighbor? Also, 2 years in the slammer!
So the moral is… If you get caught selling drugs, why not murder an enemy or two while you‚Äôre at it. And, if you download illegally and get caught, might as well have some good rape sex before you get that same rape sex while you‚Äôre spending two years in the pokey.
Its because you are americans .
That guy is going to jail, and coming back will do everything again. :).
see you
Its because you are americans .
That guy is going to jail, and coming back will do everything again. :).
see you