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> How are films supposed to get funded if people get them for free? Let me pay money and download a DRM-free mp4 that I can keep forever and watch anywhere. I'

> How are films supposed to get funded if people get them for free? Let me pay money and download a DRM-free mp4 that I can keep forever and watch anywhere. I'd do it and so would a sizable percentage of existing pirates. > The latter costs money, but is more convenient. Not really. If my internet connection is fast, I can download a movie in a few minutes and watch it in VLC, which is more user-friendly than any web player. If my internet connection is slow, streaming won't work anyway. Maybe there's a medium-speed sweet spot in between for which streaming is more convenient, but I suspect only a minority of users occupy that sweet spot. > Illegal streaming services are not viable because they're centralised and easy to crack down on No, illegal streaming services are not viable because torrents exist and people prefer downloading movies to streaming them. People who prefer legal streaming services over illegal downloads do so because of the legal vs illegal bit, not because of the streaming vs downloads bit.

danielrpa 5y ago
> Let me pay money and download a DRM-free mp4 that I can keep forever and watch anywhere. I'd do it and so would a sizable percentage of existing pirates. This. DRM is a major incentive for piracy. I regret every single DRMed music and video purchase I've ever made.
ryandrake 5y ago
Remember Gabe Newell: "Piracy is almost always a service problem, not a pricing problem. If a pirate offers a product anywhere in the world, 24 x 7, purchasable from the convenience of your personal computer, and the legal provider says the product is region-locked, will come to your country 3 months after the US release, and can only be purchased at a brick and mortar store, then the pirate's service is more valuable." Show me the online service that lets me purchase any TV show or movie ever produced, in the highest resolution the media was mastered in, and allow me to play it on whatever device I choose--and I will be a paying customer for life. The service simply doesn't exist outside of piracy.

danielrpa 5y ago

> Let me pay money and download a DRM-free mp4 that I can keep forever and watch anywhere. I'd do it and so would a sizable percentage of existing pirates. This. DRM is a major incentive for piracy. I regret every single DRMed music and video purchase I've ever made.

ryandrake 5y ago

Remember Gabe Newell: "Piracy is almost always a service problem, not a pricing problem. If a pirate offers a product anywhere in the world, 24 x 7, purchasable from the convenience of your personal computer, and the legal provider says the product is region-locked, will come to your country 3 months after the US release, and can only be purchased at a brick and mortar store, then the pirate's service is more valuable." Show me the online service that lets me purchase any TV show or movie ever produced, in the highest resolution the media was mastered in, and allow me to play it on whatever device I choose--and I will be a paying customer for life. The service simply doesn't exist outside of piracy.