For An Industry Being Destroyed By 'File Sharing,' Film Industry Keeps Reporting Record Numbers

from the well-how-about-that dept

Tue, Jul 27th 2010 3:16pm — Mike Masnick

The movie industry keeps sending very, very mixed messages. It keeps insisting that its business is being decimated by file sharing, but then keeps putting out reports bragging how well it's doing. Reader ethorad points us to a page put up by the UK Film Council about the movie business in the UK, where it makes a pretty compelling case that the movie business is thriving, despite all the reports of doom and gloom. Some key highlights:

The core UK film industry has grown 50% over the last 10 years
UK box office takings at record levels, with growth of over 60% over 10 years
They have had a 500% return on their investments in film
More films are being released, up over 30% in the last decade
Independent films are performing quite well, taking in nearly half the revenue of major studio films

All of these points seem to go against the claims of an industry being decimated. Rather than the predicted decline in attendance, attendance is way up. Rather than the predicted decline in making films (both major studio and indie), more films are being made, and they're doing quite well. So... um... where exactly is the decimation happening?

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Filed Under: movies

30 Comments

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MrWilson, 27 Jul 2010 @ 3:32pm

Who are you to question their profits? Clearly 500% is not enough! If they could just squeeze out $1000 from every file-sharing pirate out there, they could realize even greater profits! Their jag-u-ars could have their own jag-u-ars!

/sarcasm
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Anonymous Coward, 27 Jul 2010 @ 3:41pm

If dastardly pirates weren't in the picture ... they could report:
- The core UK film industry has grown 5000% over the last 10 years more, than 134% of the British GDP
- UK box office takings at record levels, with growth of over 600% over 10 years
- They have had a 50000% return on their investments in film
- More films are being released, up over 3000% in the last decade
Independent films are performing quite well, taking in nearly 500% the revenue of major studio films.
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Anonymous Coward, 27 Jul 2010 @ 3:42pm

Why makes these stats any more valid than the other ones constantly criticized here?
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Anonymous Coward, 27 Jul 2010 @ 3:47pm

Re:
Their validity (or lack thereof) is rather irrelevant, considering that they are from the industry itself. Since they claim on one hand that file sharing is destroying their business and brag about how well their business is doing on the other, something is wrong.

After all, if the stats are invalid, then the industry is at worst lying and at best incompetent. If they are valid, then their "woe is me" whining about piracy makes no sense even according to their own numbers.
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Anonymous Coward, 27 Jul 2010 @ 3:47pm

Mike, it's happening everywhere else in the world. The UK are special.
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Anonymous Coward, 27 Jul 2010 @ 3:50pm

Re:
Masnick's Law strikes again!
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Mike Masnick (profile), 27 Jul 2010 @ 3:50pm

Re:
Why makes these stats any more valid than the other ones constantly criticized here?

These are factual stats based on actual data, not guesses about what might have happened otherwise. But you knew that. Didn't you?
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cc (profile), 27 Jul 2010 @ 3:51pm

Re:
These stats are about what HAS happened -- facts.

The usual "piracy" stats however are totally made up, because they have no way of measuring the impact of piracy, or even if there's any impact at all.
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Ron Rezendes (profile), 27 Jul 2010 @ 3:57pm

Re: Re:
Because: "A hypocrite is ALWAYS wrong at LEAST half the time!"

If piracy is killing the industry AND the industry is claiming fantastic returns then one of those two statements is logically incorrect.

Face-palm for the industry!
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AJ, 27 Jul 2010 @ 4:26pm

Re: Re:
"But you knew that. Didn't you?"

Mike,

Is there something your not sharing with the audience?
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gindil (profile), 27 Jul 2010 @ 4:30pm

US Film industry
Just in case people think the US is left out. Go here:

$11.11 billion in 2010 alone.

Take a good look at who's at the top. Which makes the entire belief of going for 9 little sites all the more sad and odd...
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Jay (profile), 27 Jul 2010 @ 4:33pm

Re: US Film industry
Dangit... I hate it when it forgets to log me in...
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Anonymous Coward, 27 Jul 2010 @ 4:42pm

For America, I expect more. I haven't heard anything about piracy for a while for the Movie Industry in America.
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RadialSkid, 27 Jul 2010 @ 4:46pm

[shill] "But think how much higher they could be if not for the PIRACY!" [/shill]
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Josh in CharlotteNC (profile), 27 Jul 2010 @ 4:47pm

Re: Re:
In addition to being facts based on actual data, many of the studios included in these stats would be in a very difficult legal position with their shareholders if they lied about their profits.
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Anonymous Coward, 27 Jul 2010 @ 4:59pm

Im in full support of gutting the entertainment industry, its a roiling cesspool of overpaid, under worked, egotists. Any field hand, or janitor does more to actually contribute to society, yet we treat entertainers and the corporate bureaucracy that supports them as paragons... Mabe if the major studios fall, and stardom ceases to be a product of good special effects, entertainers might start entertaining for something other than fame and money.
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Anonymous Coward, 27 Jul 2010 @ 5:44pm

Re:
I love celebrities who celebrate crotch shots and going to jail and beating the shit out of people.

Those are my favorite kind of celebrities.
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Anonymous Coward, 27 Jul 2010 @ 6:49pm

Re: Re:
Economic impact on the UK economy is quantified...
Employment, direct and indirect, is quantified...
Export sales income is quantified...
Domestic and global gross sales are quantified...

MPAA is railed when it speaks to economic impact, employment, income figures, etc.

What makes the film industry in the UK different when it comes to proferred stats?
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TAMpuppet, 27 Jul 2010 @ 7:00pm

but Mike, if everyone pirates stuff then nothing would ever be created because no one could make money. Think of the artists and think of the public. With no art we would be so much worse off. How could you support a world without art and music. We have to have copyright because we need art and music.
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Hephaestus (profile), 27 Jul 2010 @ 7:13pm

Re: Re: Re:
"Is there something your not sharing with the audience?"

He probably knows what company the persons IP adress is coming from.

Also financial numbers for revenue are something that can be proven, unlike attempting to guess at how many people would have bought something.
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Anonymous Coward, 28 Jul 2010 @ 1:32am

I know who's responsible for this
That's because of all those pirates who download our movies.

What? Ignore the pirates and their "huge impact" this time? ok sir.
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AJ, 28 Jul 2010 @ 3:59am

Re: Re: Re: Re:
"He probably knows what company the persons IP adress is coming from. "

Thats what I figured. I don't know if it's right that he do so, but it would be nice if he called them out once in a while. Would make for interesting conversation.
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gorehound (profile), 28 Jul 2010 @ 5:05am

Re:
well all i can say is hollywood does not get a dime from me and may never get another one ever.
i am ona buying used crusade as not to give my money to buy new films.i just wait a few weeks after street and find it used.

Screw The MAFIAA
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PaulT (profile), 28 Jul 2010 @ 7:00am

Re:
The "stats" that usually get criticised are the ones based on unsupportable assumptions (e.g. that every "pirate" would have bought a movie ticket at full price had the download not been available) and then proceed to extrapolate wildly from there, often counting the same "loss" several times over.

The stats above are based on verifiable, solid data about events that have already happened, not guesses about what might have been. Thus, they are more valid.

"UK box office takings have grown 60% over 10 years" is a valid stat.

"We would have made an extra $600 million if people weren't allowed to share files" is not, for the reasons mentioned every day here.
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BigKeithO (profile), 28 Jul 2010 @ 2:46pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:
He won't. This is as close as Mike gets to calling someone out on the site. I agree it would be interesting however.
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homie, 30 Jul 2010 @ 12:43am

artist
and the artists/authors/actors on these industries???
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Desired Username, 30 Jul 2010 @ 8:11am

Re: artist
Get screwed, as usual.
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Katrina W., 30 Sep 2014 @ 11:26pm

I guess file sharing or those anonymous internet access is not the sole reason for the destruction of the film industry. there are other factors too. let's admit it, there's more to file sharing than just piracy and all.
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