Readers Debate Online Piracy and the Future of Digital Entertainment

On Sunday, The New York Times published the story of a popular — and illegal — website that let people stream and download movies and television shows at their leisure. The site was taken offline in 2010 by the federal government, and the administrators behind the site were charged with conspiracy and copyright infringement. Nearly all served time in prison. The article touched a nerve among Times readers, eliciting hundreds of reactions about copyright infringement and intellectual property, and how the digital world complicates both.

Here is a sampling of their comments:

One reader who identified himself as Art, from California, felt that cases like these were crucial for helping the entertainment industry consider adapting its business model to an on-demand, digital climate. He said:

“The film and television industry’s efforts to stop unauthorized online distribution of their product is like building a dam in the middle of a vast ocean. They instead need to invest resources to bring their business model up to date, taking into account how their audience wants entertainment to be made available and what price point will work. Like iTunes trumped peer-to-peer in music distribution: compete with free via convenience, dependability and value.”

Some of our international readers, like Mark from Norway, described illegal downloading as an unfortunate reality of their daily lives, because the content is not yet available for legal viewing. He wrote:

“For those of us not in the USA, mostly we are faced with ‘that content is not available in your geographical area’ messages. The truth is that it is available, just not legally. Either sell it to us or we will watch it anyway, for free and commercial free.”

Claire, a reader from Los Angeles who said she works in the movie business, said Mark’s attitude and approach may not put a dent in the wallets of the large movie studios, but does have an effect on the lower level workers in the industry:

“You’re penalizing the little guys — meaning the writers, directors, actors, film scorers and anyone else who relies on residuals for their livelihood. Every time you stream illegally I don’t get paid. Period.”

Jessica Burstein agreed and cautioned against underestimating the long-ranging effects of illegal download and streaming:

“Having served on the National Executive Board of the International Cinematographers Guild and as the photographer for the first Anti-Piracy print campaign, I am well versed in the effects of such actions. On a practical level, every time there is theft of intellectual property in the entertainment industry, below-the-line crew member’s jobs in this industry are being put at risk. People work very long and hard hours and their livelihoods depend on the money paid to the studios and networks who hire them.”

A number of readers shared their thoughts on the criminal justice system and questioned the severity of the sentences and punishments given to Hana Beshara and others involved with the Web site, NinjaVideo.

One reader noted:

“While I don’t support illegal activity, the public resources used to track these bootleggers is silly. Bankers committed huge scams that brought the economy of the U.S. crashing down all around us, yet not one of their homes were raided.”

JHM, a reader from Taiwan, disagreed:

“I am sure 20 years from now, at the most, we will have all accepted the fact that stealing something digital online is every bit as much a crime as shoplifting from a store. It may just take sending a few more Hana Besharas to prison to drive the point home.”

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