MPAA Exec: Only We Can Make Content That People Want

from the 'scuse-me? dept

Thu, Mar 15th 2012 9:38am — Mike Masnick

Sometimes I wonder if the execs who run the major copyright-related trade groups ever talk to actual people outside of their little bubbles. Because they say things that are so out of touch with reality that it's stunning. We already discussed the panel where the RIAA's Cary Sherman said that various ISPs will start acting as copyright cops by July, but some of the other statements on that panel are worth discussing as well. It was basically a panel of all the big copyright industry trade group associations -- the MPAA, the RIAA, the BSA (software) and the AAP (book publishers).

What was most stunning is the pure hubris of the MPAA's Fritz Attaway, who flat out claimed that only they can make content that people want:

"Our industries do something that no one else can do," the Motion Picture Association of America's Fritz Attaway said at the Association of American Publishers annual meeting this morning. "We create content that people want to have."

Actually, no, tons of others create content that people want to have, and it's the real reason you're struggling so much today. You're not used to competing with those outside your little club.

The folks on the panel (with the exception of the BSA, who famously flip flopped its views on SOPA) brought out the usual crap about how SOPA was defeated via "disinformation":

"Right doesn't always prevail," Attaway said of SOPA and PIPA. "This time, it didn't, because our opponents were able to energize a grassroots response. In my view, and I think all of us would agree, [the protest against SOPA and PIPA was spread] primarily through disinformation and spinning their interest in a way that captured the attention of a number of consumers."

This is such a load of hogwash. The MPAA has been a master at disinformation campaigns throughout its history. It's why it's been able to continually ratchet up copyright law in its favor for decades. This is the same industry who declared that the VCR would kill it... and now whines that the home video market that wouldn't even exist if it had gotten its way is being decimated by the internet. Did some folks on the anti-SOPA side get some of the facts wrong? Yeah, but it wasn't a disinformation campaign. That's what the MPAA ran. And, the only reason there was some misinformation in the campaign against SOPA was because the MPAA went so far in its initial version of the bill (and make no mistake, the bill came from the MPAA), that people reacted to that. It's true that eventually some of the worst parts were removed and people who didn't realize that still referred to the original text. But it's not like they made things up wholesale. The MPAA, on the other hand, regularly made up claims out of thin air -- such as the supposed 2.2 million people this would effect. The industry employs less than 400,000, and many of them have nothing to do with the copyright/royalties side of the business.

The article by Laura Hazard Owen at PaidContent notes that these association bosses are now finally talking of "engagement" with those who disagreed with them on SOPA, but they still are only thinking about industries -- not internet users. They have no interest in actually talking to the riff-raff they look down upon, but still expect to give them money. Maybe that -- more than anything else -- is their problem.

Also, don't think they're done pushing for bad legislation. The RIAA's Cary Sherman noted that the plan was to push for legislation that was less likely to rally up the grassroots again:

The RIAA's Sherman hopes further copyright discussions will be more "rational" than the debate over SOPA and PIPA. "The digital tsunami we encountered with SOPA and PIPA—we're not going to get the same kind of engagement when we talk about statutory damages or open works," he said. "We'll have the opportunity for a more rational discussion."

You see, in Sherman's mind, any time anyone disagrees with the RIAA's stated position, that's no longer a "rational" discussion. But because "statutory damages" sound so boring, he's hopeful that they can pass even worse laws to make the already insane damages rates even more insane.

The whole thing shows, yet again, that these guys still have no idea what happened, and have no idea how to engage with the internet. It's sad to watch them flail around like this. If they'd only taken the time to actually use the internet and learn about it, perhaps they wouldn't always sound so clueless. But, of course, why would they use the internet? It's not like it even can produce any of the content they want...

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Filed Under: content, fritz attaway, hubris
Companies: mpaa

177 Comments

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Jay (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 8:53am

Still using misinformation
The MPAA, on the other hand, regularly made up claims out of thin air -- such as the supposed 2.2 million people this would effect. The industry employs less than 400,000, and many of them have nothing to do with the copyright/royalties side of the business.

Chris Dodd used this as recently as the Attorney General meeting and I'm still amazed that he's gotten away with it. No one has had a public debate with him and this 2.2 million jobs number. It's beyond ridiculous. Also, these "industries" don't create, nor do they represent creator interests. That's the problem here. I look at these people and *all* of them represent gatekeepers who have no interest in what people want. They don't know how to enable access, merely limit progress. We need to remove the bottle out of their mouths and let them cry it out. No more government teat. If they want to have a "rational discussion" it's time for them to recognize that no one is interested in their spoiled temper tantrums.

And I for one know that I'm voting out the politicians that enable them.
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Mike C. (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 9:51am

I wonder...
our opponents were able to energize a grassroots response

I sometimes wonder if they will ever understand that it was the other way around, that the grassroots energized their opponents of their own free will.
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weneedhelp (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 9:51am

Also, don't think they're done pushing for bad legislation. The RIAA's Cary Sherman noted that the plan was to push for legislation that was less likely to rally up the grassroots again:"

Here it comes. A little in this bill, a little in that bill, a few more bills for our congress critters pockets.

"I remember thinking it would take a man six hundred years to tunnel through the wall with it. Old Andy did it in less than twenty. Oh, Andy loved geology. I imagine it appealed to his meticulous nature. An ice age here, million years of mountain building there. Geology is the study of pressure and time. That's all it takes really, pressure, and time"

That's all it takes really, pressure, time, and money.
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:Lobo Santo (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 9:54am

Reality
"Because they say things that are so out of touch with reality that it's stunning."
One could argue that reality is nothing more then a person's aggregate perceptions and experience.

Obviously they've fallen for their own con--repeated the lie so many times they've started to really believe it is the truth.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 9:55am

i disagree. the 'industries know exactly what happened over SOPA/PIPA, and what is happening over ACTA and TPP. trouble is, they dont want to admit to what happened or why. they also know how to engage with the internet, but again thy dont want to. i have a rockin' horse at home that has more sense, common sense and foresight than these idiots will ever have. they only get what they want because they can use their ill-gotten gains to bribe politicians to change laws.
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frosty840, 15 Mar 2012 @ 9:57am

Five comments in?
Five comments in and no shills yet?

The MPAA must be in real trouble D:
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Steve, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:00am

Then how come I've only gone to theaters about 3-4 times over the last year? And one of those was a free screening.
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weneedhelp (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:02am

Only We Can Make Content That People Want
21 Jump Street... nuff said.
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bob, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:02am

It's not hogwash
I won't claim that the MPAA doesn't act in its own interest and I won't claim that they don't lobby to help the movie industry. But you're being willfully foolish if you think that the anti-SOPA campaign was truly grassroots. I'm sure that 99% still think that it was about censorship-- a truly nasty spin given that, if anything, it's about enabling the quiet censorship of artists by preventing them from profiting on their hard work.

There was plenty of astroturfing by Big Search, Big Piracy and Big Hardware. They were out in force and in many cases they pretended that the lobbying was all a charity.

This is a sumo match between the billionaires in Silicon Valley and the multimillionaires in Hollywood. It has little to do with censorship and everything to do with whether or not the artists can make a living off of their hard work. Big Search, Big Piracy and Big Hardware want to keep all of the revenues for themselves.
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bob, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:03am

Re: Five comments in?
Many of the cheerleading comments for this blog are shills-- and the worst don't even realize that they're paid astroturfers. This blog loves to take money from Google and pretend that it has nothing to do with their kneejerk reaction to support anything Google does including trash the privacy of the users.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:04am

Re: It's not hogwash
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZadCj8O1-0
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John Doe, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:04am

I saw a great, independent movie a while back
I saw an article about this movie (Lake Effects) so I decided to watch it and it was good. Apparently the writer, who is also a co-star in the movie, got the community to come together and finance/sponsor the movie. It was a well done movie, as good as anything you will see in the theater.

Info on the Lake Effects movie here
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Titania Bonham-Smythe (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:05am

I've recently decided I just hate the MPAA. I've decided I'm never going to knowingly pay to see a film again. I'm just going to buy things from industries that don't shit on me. When I buy a Blu-ray and am forced to sit through adverts and am then presented with a legal threat that is just plain rude, why would I pay to enjoy that sort of treatment?
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:Lobo Santo (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:07am

Re: It's not hogwash
Not THE bob!!?

Can I have you're autograph? You're my second favorite troll--but only 'cause nobody beats *angry dude*

I find your comments insightful and enlightening. Would you happen to have some helpful links where I could educate myself about "Big Search, Big Piracy, and Big Hardware' and learn more about their billionaire political agendas?

Thanks!
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:07am

Re: Re: Five comments in?
I wouldn't put anything past Big Freetard.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:07am

Re: It's not hogwash
Keep it up bob, the MAFIAA and Copyright can't possibly gain a better image then the one you're painting.
I can hear all the people of the world cheering you and the MPAA on. Go Extreme Insanity, Go!
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:09am

Re:
"Then how come I've only gone to theaters about 3-4 times over the last year? And one of those was a free screening."

3-4 times? I haven't gone once in ten years! Why should I if I've got a theater at home?
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John Doe, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:09am

Re: It's not hogwash
Interesting. So if they are all so rich, why do you care which one wins?

The billionaires have built, at no cost to the millionaires, lots of hardware and software that can be used to get the content out there for the consumer when he wants it, where he wants it and the way he wants it. But for some reason, the millionaires refuse the free services. Maybe there is a reason they are only millionaires and Silicon Valley types are billionaires?

I personally hope the billionaires win, because a win for them is a win for me. A win for the millionaires is a loss for me.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:10am

Re:
And when you begin your foray into the world of non-Hollywood, you'll soon recognize many stories that were stolen by Hollywood and turned into pure shit with pretty colors and CGI.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:10am

How come people don't use those pubic statements to defend themselves in court against the MAFIAA?
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:11am

Re: Re: Five comments in?
Yeah, and many of the comments supporting the MPAA are god fearing bald eagles who have learned to type on a keyboard carefully with their talons in order to support America, Freedom, Apple pie, Broad overreaching copyright laws, and the Statue of Liberty.

Keep fighting fellow Eagles.
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weneedhelp (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:12am

Re: It's not hogwash
"it's about enabling the quiet censorship of artists by preventing them from profiting on their hard work."

Sorry boB, the MPAA cornered the market on:
"preventing them(artists) from profiting on their hard work"

Big time, im on my way im making it... oh sorry got distracted there for a minute.

"This is a sumo match between the billionaires in Silicon Valley and the multimillionaires in Hollywood."
You see boB, this is the problem with your ilk. It was not about big anything. It was normal people being directed to a piece of legislation that goes against the principals of what this country was founded on, and the principles that the internet was based on.

You and your ilk cant get that because you have no principles.

When my mom calls me and says hey my neighbor just told me about this sopa thing and I read about it... I am 42. You just don't get what really happened there.

"Big Search, Big Piracy and Big Hardware want to keep all of the revenues for themselves." - Cukoo cukoo.
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Chosen Reject (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:12am

Re: It's not hogwash
censorship of artists by preventing them from profiting on their hard work.
If not profiting is the only thing that keeps you from speaking, then you had no speech to begin with.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:14am

Re: It's not hogwash
This is a sumo match between the billionaires in Silicon Valley and the billionaires in Hollywood. It has little to do with censorship and everything to do with whether or not the artists isn't going to get raped every day by mike masnick and his army of satans who were legislated into existence the minute that the god-fearing army of SOPA and PIPA fell to the communist fuckstains that are everyone that I disagree with

Nice job Mike Hitler, you went back in time and aborted personal creativity. Now we'll never leave this planet and be forced to burn up when the sun explodes.

You blew it up, you dirty apes.
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Google Van, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:15am

Re: Re: Five comments in?
Oh no, you have discovered our nefarious plot!
Well, we have no choice now Bob. We will have to make you "disappear". Expect us tonight Bob, and make sure your ass is lubricated for the Google Probe.
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Jeremy Lyman (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:16am

A brief flash of hope...
I miss-read that title as saying:
"MPAA Exec: We Can Only Make Content That People Want"
at first and thought for a few seconds that it was an oddly prescient analysis and admission of the actual control consumers have over media and art. If people don't want it, companies can't make money from it (and shouldn't be producing it).

Of course that fantasy vanished as I read a little more of the article. Not only do they not understand it's the consumers who dictate the market, they think that they're the sole supplier. As is evidenced by the stream of crappy content and delivery that dominates over more worthy, but less "profitable" ventures.
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Tom Hanks, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:17am

Re: Re: Five comments in?
That's funny!! Ha!
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Edward Teach, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:17am

Re: It's not hogwash
"Big Search, Big Piracy and Big Hardware"...

Can you put some names to those? Unlike Mainstream Media, which seems to comprise less than 20 companies world wide, and "Hollywood", which comprises maybe 10 major studios (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_film_studio#Today.27s_Big_Six), and Big Pharma, which is maybe 12 companies (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_pharmaceutical_companies), what comprises "Big Search"? Also, "Big Hardware", what companies comprise that?

But the most ridiculous of all, "Big Piracy"? Given that the MPAA and RIAA have sued single people for copyright infringement, why don't we know the names of "Big Piracy"? Napster no longer exists, similar Kazaa, Limewire, and others. Who's left?
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:18am

Re: It's not hogwash
Big Piracy? Now that's a good one, haha.
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silverscarcat (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:18am

Re: Re: Five comments in?
I'm getting paid?!

Where's my paycheck then!?
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Suja (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:21am

Sometimes I wonder if the execs who run the major copyright-related trade groups ever talk to actual people outside of their little bubbles.

Gasp!! Speak to the peasants?!?! What sort of delusion are you living in?!?!
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silverscarcat (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:21am

Re: It's not hogwash
Don't you mean the multi-billionaires of Hollywood and the millionaires of Silicon Valley?

Big Search? Big Piracy? Big Hardware?

... Well, I'll give you the last one if you mean Apple and Microsoft.

And, I'm PRETTY sure that you're right about this last bit...

"It has little to do with censorship and everything to do with whether or not the artists can make a living off of their hard work. Big Media and the Content Gatekeepers of the MPAA and RIAA want to keep all of the revenues for themselves."

Wow, bob, that's so accurate.
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Steve, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:25am

What seems insane about this notion is the subtle, conceited implication that all of the world's culture was in a dark age before the movie industry rolled around.

"'The Sistine Chapel'? 'The Statue of David'? 'Don Giovanni'? 'Handel's Messiah'? The works of Mark Twain? Well, they're alright, but they're no 'Happy Feet Two'."
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:25am

Re: Re: Re: Five comments in?
I'm getting paid?!

Where's my paycheck then!?

You haven't recoup'd yet.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:26am

Re: Re: Five comments in?
Why do you guys have such a hard time believing that normal, hard working, paying people also come here?

I work in the aerospace manufacturing industry. We make parts for those airplanes you jet around the country in.

We have nothing to do with watching movies (productivity loss), or listening to music (safety hazard).

We make parts that go into airplanes.

I read those laws.

Our industries don't even come close to touching each other, and yet, your laws were going to make my job as an IT Administrator way harder, with zero compensation for it.

Your laws were going to make it harder for communication between our customers and vendors.

We already have problems just from trying to keep information secure, so the hackers and terrorists can't get in and figure out how to build these planes...or how they are made to figure out how to attack best.

Not to mention the traceability required when performing that kind of manufacturing....to make sure the damn things don't fall out of the sky....

And yet, you wanted to pass laws that would affect the very thing that would allow us to be able to communicate this information in a timely manner....ALL because YOU don't want to evolve, and came in late to the game.

I am not Google.

I am an American Citizen, working in an American factory, providing American manufactured parts (metal to finished part) to companies across the world.

You, sir, are just the entertainment.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:26am

Re: Re: Re: Five comments in?
Oh, you didn't get the memo this week?

I'm sorry I'm the one that has to break it to you, silvercatcat, But I'm afraid Big Search is going to have to let you go. We've had a bad quarter, less people are searching for things lately. I heard Hollywood's UltraViolet is responsible. People just can't get enough of it. Oh, and QR codes in malls too, they've had MASSIVE success. They're going to be the death of our industry I tell ya!
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Jeremy Lyman (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:29am

Re: Re:
But only they can make it those pretty colors.
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This comment has been flagged by the community. Click here to show it

Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:30am

Sadly Mike, he is right.

What is getting pirated? What is getting downloaded? What is getting bought? What is the talk of everyone? It isn't the latest waste of time from Amanda Palmer or Nina Paley is it? Sure, some people want it, but then again, some people like to get spanked and anally violated by transvestites, but that still isn't considered a mainstream concept, is it?

The MPAA is right - they make the content that almost everyone seems to want.

Wake up Mike.
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gorehound (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:31am

Re: Still using misinformation
Ane me too.I have been doing music since 1972 and am an original punk rocker from the 70-'s.I still play in a few bands and I never ever sold out nor thought of signing with a Corporate Label or RIAA,MPAA.
Millions of us around the World want nothing to do with your greedy Industry.I made the definative documentary film on Jewish Life Before, during, and immediately after WW2.I did this without any signing to MPAA for this film.I share it with the World freely.
I do not need you RIAA or MPAA.We can exist without you.We will exist without you.And I Boycott anything that you do.You are Censored from my Wallet forever.I will buy your Content used somewhere or not at all.
For those interested in my Art or my documentary:
http://www.bigmeathammer.com
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Suja (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:31am

Re: It's not hogwash
So I went and did this BIG SEARCH for the mythological "Big Search", "Big Piracy" and "Big Hardware" here's what I came up with:

Big Search: http://funnyphototime.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/people-of-walmart-fail1-search-and-rescue.jpg

Big Piracy: http://laytonio.typepad.com/.a/6a00e5521f5f1e88330120a62a8803970c-800wi

Big Hardware: I don't think I can post this one...
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MrWilson, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:32am

Even the point that some of the anti-SOPA people got the details wrong and continued to harp on the old version of the bill's language isn't a real detraction of the anti-SOPA cause. You can't trust anyone who brings in legislation that is that harsh to begin with, regardless of what changes they make. The only way you could possibly not be opposed to legislation brought by these people is if they suddenly had some kind of Ebenezer Scrooge experience the night before and come in and change the legislation to restore extremely limited copyright durations and the public domain and better clarify fair use as a pre-trial defense.
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Hephaestus (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:32am

Re: Re: Re: Five comments in?
Is that your attempt at mirroring the, "I wouldn't put anything past big Content" quote? If so, you should try harder , it doesn't have what it takes to be an internet meme.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:33am

Re:
"What is getting pirated? What is getting downloaded? What is getting bought? What is the talk of everyone?"

Call of Duty.

Last I checked, that's not a movie.
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Evelyn Tremble, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:34am

MPAA playing it wrong
When will the MPAA learn that they'll never garner any sympathy as the victim in this matter? Once they accept they're the ones that f'ed up, they can make strides into fixing the bridges with consumers. Till then, they can go climb a tree.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:34am

Re: Re:
Oh, sorry. That was like a year ago.

I meant Mass Effect.
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Baldaur Regis (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:35am

Re:
"Driver, turn here."
"I'll have a martini with a twist."
"The rose bushes need trimming."

They talk to common people all the time. They just don't talk with common people.
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Chuck Norris' Enemy (deceased) (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:35am

Re: It's not hogwash
it's about enabling the quiet censorship of artists by preventing them from profiting on their hard work.

Censorship = preventing people from making money from work ?

You are one comment away from convincing the crazies to vote for you as President! =]
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Colin, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:36am

"We create content that people want to have."

Maybe they should focus on creating content people want to pay for.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:38am

Re:
Wow, did you just compare content not published by big media companies to anal rape by transvestites? That's a new low.
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MrWilson, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:41am

Re:
I'm interested in the content created by particular artists who happen to be published by middlemen like the RIAA and the MPAA. The MPAA doesn't create any of the content they're selling. Artists do.

Sherman and Attaway create propaganda. And it's not even artistic or clever. It's just doublespeak and greed-justifying.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:43am

Re:
Soooooo, its a service problem by your own admission.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:43am

Re: It's not hogwash
billionaires in Silicon Valley

Does something worthwhile and of apparent value.

multimillionaires in Hollywood

Leeches on society, feeding on scraps from the middle class.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:43am

Re: Re:
A new low? Last year he commented how lonely Mike's Wife and Kids were, and how he was watching them. He's fucking INSANE. That's why he comments on here, in real life nobody except his psychiatrist talks to him.
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GeneralFault, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:45am

Re: Still using misinformation
According to the latest numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the entire Arts Entrtainment and Recreation Industry employes around 2 million jobs. But that includes parks, gambling, museums and historical sites. Only about 50k are for independent artists and another 117k for performing arts companies. Since the MPAA and RIAA are going heavily after "public performances", aren't they hurting more people than they are helping?

http://www.bls.gov/oco/cg/cgs031.htm
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Suja (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:46am

Re:
some people like to get spanked and anally violated by transvestites

Hmmm... Is that a closet fetish I hear talking?
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Suja (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:47am

Re: Re:
Something tells me that's not a "new" low in their world.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:48am

The MPAA needs our money far more than we need their content.
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Suja (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:52am

Forgot to address one:

"Our industries do something that no one else can do," the Motion Picture Association of America's Fritz Attaway said at the Association of American Publishers annual meeting this morning. "We create content that people want to have."

Oh? So you think people want shit?

Well, hate to break it to ya, but with Youtube Poops around even the shit department's too high for ya.

Maybe you should invest in toilet paper production?
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:53am

Re: Re: Re: Five comments in?
and fish, we really love fish
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:56am

Re: Re: Five comments in?
You ask and you shall receive.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:56am

Thanks, I needed a good joke today
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:56am

Re: Re: It's not hogwash
Big Search is just bob's codename for Google, which personally destroyed his home, ruined his business, and murdered his dog.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:57am

Re:
Sadly TAM, you are incapable of comprehending words, as usual.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:01am

Re: I wonder...
If they stopped using the word "opponent" and instead used the word "customer" they might have an ah-ha moment.
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Josef Anvil (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:03am

In a nutshell
A huge THANK YOU to the AC who summed up the best way to look at the content industry and any effort to prop up their model.

"You, sir, are just the entertainment."

Congress portrays the needs for laws like SOPA/PIPA as necessary for a number of reasons, but seriously, we are talking about entertainment. Personally I really hadn't looked at any of these issues from that angle, but when you put it in perspective, we are simply talking about entertainment.

In other words, if movies and music require insane levels of investment to produce, then get on Kickstarter and raise funds or quit bitching.
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angry dude, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:03am

Re: Re: It's not hogwash
What did I tell you people about using my damned name? You'd piss your pants if I showed up at your door tomorrow and demanded that you stop.
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MrWilson, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:04am

Re: Re:
I'm sure Ani Difranco, Thom Yorke, and Trent Reznor enjoy having their music compared to such acts. Or rather, they dont' care because they make a decent living without having major labels take a massive cut.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:08am

Re:
The only reason indie content isn't pirated is well... there's no point to pirate it because people don't have to. The indie distributors don't rape the public like the Content Cartels do.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:12am

"The RIAA's Sherman hopes further copyright discussions will be more "rational" than the debate over SOPA and PIPA."
How can they be rational with nit wits like the MPAA, the RIAA, the BSA and the AAP involved?
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:21am

Re: It's not hogwash
First...BAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHA. OK, lets break it down:

"I'm sure that 99% still think that it was about censorship-- a truly nasty spin given that, if anything, it's about enabling the quiet censorship of artists by preventing them from profiting on their hard work."

You're right, Big Media does engage in quite a bit of quiet censorship of artists by preventing them from profiting.
(I mean you do realize that's what you said there, right?)

"There was plenty of astroturfing by Big Search, Big Piracy and Big Hardware. They were out in force and in many cases they pretended that the lobbying was all a charity."

Just like the "charity" the MAFIAA is doing with the lies they're spreading and the unconstitutional laws they're trying to get passed? Also, bonus points for the "Big"'s. Get back to me when there's associations 1/10 of the size and power of the bullshit you work for and then you can start to use the term, "Big."

"This is a sumo match between the billionaires in Silicon Valley and the multimillionaires in Hollywood."

Once again, BAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. I don't know if I've seen something as stupid as you trying to make a media conglomerate large enough TO FUCKING GET SOMEONE EXTRADITED out to be the little guy.

"It has little to do with censorship and everything to do with whether or not the artists can make a living off of their hard work."

You're absolutely right, artists should be profiting off of their work, which means eliminating redundant leaches in the middle who are living off of their hard work and paying them a tiny percentage of what they bring in.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:26am

I got to the point where you said that the anti-SOPA/anti-PIPA movement wasn't using misleading propaganda. Saying SOPA would "break the internet" was a blatant lie. I had people sending me emails trying to get me to help them "save the internet". It was beyond misinformation, it was strategically planned lies. Stopping people from posting links to stolen music/movies isn't censorship it's enforcement.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:28am

Re: Re: Re:
Umm, I never did that, sorry.

Please stop with the bullshit.

MIKE! Haul out the trash.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:29am

Re: Re:
Yet, wait... nobody has it, nobody is "buzzing" about it, and nobody is sharing it.

So what does the public want? Clearly not that stuff.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:30am

Re:
I think in this metaphor money = pressure.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:32am

Re: Re: Re: Re:
Nope, that was you and all the regulars know it. Hiding behind Anonymity isn't helping you when everyone can tell its you, you fucking retard.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:33am

Re: Re: Five comments in?
How could one not realize they were a paid astroturfer? If someone was giving me money I think I'd notice I was being paid right about the time I got paid.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:36am

Re: Re: It's not hogwash
you forgot TAM
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Liz (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:36am

Re: Re: Re: It's not hogwash
They also peed in his Corn Flakes.
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Chosen Reject (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:37am

Re: Re: Re:
And those pretty colors are teal and orange.
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weneedhelp (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:37am

Re: Re: It's not hogwash
"masnick and his army of satans"

LOVE IT!!!

Masnick's army of satanist lord high piracy apologists. Gets better every day.
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silverscarcat (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:38am

Re: Re: Re: Five comments in?
+50 internets for you.
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silverscarcat (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:41am

Re: Re: Re: Re:
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/RealIsBrown - But real is brown.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:42am

Re: Re: Re: It's not hogwash
Google also provided his wife with a link to a voice over internet protocol service known as Skype which she used to call him and say 'I'm calling over Skype to tell you I've run off to the Bahamas with Google,' a clear violation of Skype's trademark.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:43am

Re: Re: It's not hogwash
Microsoft is a hardware company now?
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silverscarcat (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:45am

Re: Re: Re:
That's only because it's not in the movie theaters.

And why is that?

Because the MPAA controls the ratings and puts indie movies so high up that people can't go to see them.

Like that movie "Bully" getting an R rating instead of a PG-13 rating.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:45am

Re: Only We Can Make Content That People Want
not nuff. How about the 5th remake of 3 Muskateers? Another remake of Snow White? I just saw TV ads for both of these.

Shouldn't that guy have said "The people want what we tell them to want!"
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E. Zachary Knight (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:46am

Re:
I think creating a massive government run "man in the middle" attack on web users is very much "breaking the internet".

I guess you have no problems letting the government and entertainment companies spy on your internet usage, but a lot of people like their privacy. Not because they are doing anything wrong, but because they just like keeping their private life private.
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weneedhelp (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:46am

Re:
"The MPAA is right - they make the content that almost everyone seems to want."

Cuz everyone is just going to run out to see 21 jump street. /s

The year 2011 was notable for containing the release of the most film sequels in a single year, at 28 sequels.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_in_film
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Overcast (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:46am

That's why YouTube is so popular - because of the MPAA.

It would help the MPAA overall if they had people that actually looked at facts trying to run things and be their spokesmen.

Oh wait, but that would make sense.
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E. Zachary Knight (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:48am

Re:
What does the MPAA create exactly? Last I checked they create nothing. I guess you could argue that the member studios create that stuff, but are they only doing that because of the MPAA? No. They are doing it because there is money to be made from it.

Also, your comments equating indie film and music to "get spanked and anally violated by transvestites" is rather interesting. I guess it really shows what you think of on a regular basis.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:50am

Re:
It's utterly useless and counter-productive to get people to stop linking. Well, I guess you could achieve that goal if you broke the internet.

Good luck with the future.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:51am

Re: Re: Re:
Tons of people do actually. In aggregate the long tail is much much larger than this 'mainstream' shit you're harping about.
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Allen Bair, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:52am

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!
Rolling on floor laughing my butt off!!!!!!!
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:53am

These guys must really like making enemies...
They are going to continue to push and push for unpopular special interest pet legislation via their public tirades, transparent spin-doctoring and usual channels of corruption until enough people get motivated to enact changes to the system to not only stop them but take away other big companies with special interests (such as the telcos for instance) that have been using the same channels of corruption for their own industry. Then they REALLY will have a situation on their hands.
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Tim K (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:54am

Re: Re: Five comments in?
Yeah, you gotta hate this blog always blindly supports google....

I'm sure I could find more, but that took a whole 20 seconds to find those
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:55am

Re:
Yeah, all those technical experts were lying when they said it would break the internet. As an uninformed layperson I know this to be true and we should have gone full speed ahead on SOPA/PIPA.
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weneedhelp (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:57am

Re:
In my opinion "break the internet" was too weak.

This bill would have severely subverted Constitutional provisions designed to protect the average citizen from abuse from third parties, and government institutions.

Ya know that little thing called due process and innocent until proven guilty? Heard of them?

Yeah, little shit like that.

"Stopping people from posting links to stolen music/movies isn't censorship it's enforcement." - Unless the actions of a few bad eggs infringe on the rights of everyone else. e.g just what happened with dajaz1 & Megaupload. Plenty of legitimate users.

PPL like you appear to be of the mindset of "only the police should have guns" crowd.

""break the internet" was a blatant lie" In your little mentally twisted world maybe.
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Rikuo (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 11:58am

Re:
Accusing people of linking to stolen music/movies (please define for me how these movies are stolen), with very weak evidence, then shutting down their websites by forcing payment processors to cease business with them = censorship.

For evidence, look at how badly a weaker law, the DMCA, is abused.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1QKBmEo-Ns
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GMacGuffin (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 12:00pm

Another Angle
Perhaps the MPAA is right in a sense. Most people want crap. We know that because crappy movies tend to make the biggest bucks; because the comment cards at pre-screenings show people don't get anything with remotely complex narratives ("Er, Memento is good, but can you re-edit it in proper chronology?"); because reality TV flourishes; because Matchbox 20 was allowed to exist. And the MPAA is the crapmeister for the lowest common denominator.

But ... we need the LCD, because if they were to disappear, we might become the LCD. And it's so much more rewarding to be smarter then everyone else, like the MPAA. Dang, I suppose I should reach out to them, they being on the same level of being smarter than those others. Sold, everything on this site is a lie.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 12:02pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: It's not hogwash
You mean someone would actually marry him? She must have the IQ of a tomato too?
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 12:18pm

Re: I wonder...
Okay, isn't "grassroots" by definition the spreading of a popular idea BY THE PEOPLE? Even if we decided to give them (which I'm not, but for the sake of argument, let's say we did) that Google "energized" (read: "started") the "grassroots" movement, by admitting that it was indeed a "grassroots" movement, what happened WAS the will of the people that spread because it was the will of the people and not all Google as they previously claimed?
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Suja (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 12:21pm

Re: Re: It's not hogwash
"Mike Hitler and his army of Satans" =)
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BeeAitch (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 12:22pm

Re: Re: It's not hogwash
+1 for the Peter Gabriel reference. :)
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 12:22pm

Re: Re: Re: Re:
Um, hello what? The ratings are the same for all movies, the difference is those in the Hollywood industry have learned over the years what does and what does not getting an R rating.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/03/15/DD3E1NL98D.DTL

As the article says, nobody should be surprised by the rating.

I don't think I want my kid sitting in a theater listening to people cuss. It's bad enough what they get "outside", there is no reason to subject them to it in a closed room - and certainly not in a movie they could go and see without parental supervision.

So your argument doesn't really hold water. Plenty of movies have gotten R ratings and then bitched about it, and mostly because they know that dunderheads like you will spray their names all over social media complaining about it.
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jupiterkansas (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 12:23pm

The truth is until the internet came along, their industries where the only content accessible to most people, because they had a lock on distribution. If you wanted to get a movie into the theatre so people can see it - you pretty much had to go to an MPAA member to make that happen.

Good movies and bad movies were made this way, but they always made sure it was their movies that were on the screens.

Sometimes a foreign film or two would slip in there, but they would rarely take up space at the multiplex. Independently made movies started to become popular in the 1990s, but they put a stop to that by cornering the indie distribution market. Now there is no indie business outside of film festivals.

So it's not that they make the movies people want to see, but control the films that are available to see.

They were busted for this in the 1950s, and maybe they should be busted up again. The deals they're making for digital projection systems is giving them even more control over what gets shown at your local theatre.
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bshock, 15 Mar 2012 @ 12:23pm

you're sounding a little condescending, Mike
I agree that Big Media still doesn't understand the resistance it encountered with SOPA/PIPA. But I don't think that ultimately makes any difference. These idiots will never stop trying to pass progressively worse IP laws.

Maybe the Internet hive mind has already lost interest in this game. Maybe Big Media will learn the lesson that they have to be even sneakier and/or more gradual in their approach. But one way or another, bad IP laws have a very high probability of getting on the books.

It's a little early to be smug about the last Internet victory.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 12:24pm

Re: Re: Re: Five comments in?
You know what now that I think about it, bob's comment's are even more entertaining when you imagine them being written (and read) by Eric Cartman.

* (It was the anal probe reference that made me think of it. Thanks GV) :)
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 12:27pm

Re: Re: Re: Five comments in?
Well done.
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BeeAitch (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 12:29pm

Re: Re: Re: Re:
"MIKE! Haul out the trash."

No, we don't want you hauled to the curb, we're not done laughing at you yet!
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 12:33pm

"We create content that people want to have."
You mean like that Marmaduke movie literally nobody asked for? "War is peace, ignorance is strength, movies based on universally hated comics are what the people want" indeed.
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Gwiz (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 12:39pm

Re: Re: Re: Re:
And those pretty colors are teal and orange.

Only because other people took purple and magenta.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 12:41pm

Re: It's not hogwash
Provide verifiable facts and you have my attention. Otherwise, I have no idea if you are deluded, confused, repeating AA crap or whatever.

Sad part is, I would actually like to see anything verifiable out of an AA that can be double checked. I am wondering if anyone in the AA world will stand up and give the rest of the world a reason to NOT jeer at them.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 12:48pm

Re:
Face it, any version of the SOPA bill was a rape of public domain, the public's right to privacy and the ruination of many members of any Government you care to think of.

It was overreaching and degrading to nearly everyone that would fall under it's oppressive reach.

Nice try at making any version of it seem acceptable.
It's not acceptable.
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Richard (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 12:49pm

Re: Re: Five comments in?
Many of the cheerleading comments for this blog are shills-- and the worst don't even realize that they're paid astroturfers. This blog loves to take money from Google and pretend that it has nothing to do with their kneejerk reaction to support anything Google does including trash the privacy of the users.

Classic cargo cult comment.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 12:51pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: It's not hogwash
Temporary insanity.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 12:52pm

Re:
You can yell that everyone owes you anything you want and that wont make it true.

Not only will you not engage in useful discussion, your obvious lies are old.

When you realize that not everyone is 12 and that most people can see through the AA lies, the sooner you can come to the table and start to really work out a deal the people are willing to live with.
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MrWilson, 15 Mar 2012 @ 12:55pm

Re: Re:
I think you're agreeing with me and just don't know it. I'm saying that no version of it is acceptable because the only ways in which it could be acceptable is if it was entirely rewritten from scratch to rebalance copyright law back in favor the of the public, which would never happen. So essentially, no version would ever be acceptable.
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Richard (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 1:02pm

"only we can create content that people want to have"
OK - go on Kickstarter and raise the money for your next project up front.

Ther should be no problem doing that - if as you say the public want your content.
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silverscarcat (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 1:04pm

Re: Re: Re: It's not hogwash
Well, OBVIOUSLY they are...

After all, didn't Bill Gates specifically state that he's not against piracy?
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Ruben, 15 Mar 2012 @ 1:05pm

Re:
What is getting pirated? What is getting downloaded? What is getting bought?

Nothing.

Black March, bitch.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 1:10pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:
How square are you?
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 1:15pm

Re: It's not hogwash
It has little to do with censorship and everything to do with whether or not the artists can make a living off of their hard work. Big Search, Big Piracy and Big Hardware want to keep all of the revenues for themselves.

Then explain why, according to the studio, Titanic STILL hasn't turned a profit!
The studios (or Big A$$holes) want the profits for themselves, not to share them with the actual creators!
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The Devil's Coachman (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 1:23pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Five comments in?
...........so much we often steal it from other birds.
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The Devil's Coachman (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 1:32pm

Re:
No, the MPAA caters to the slack-jawed goobers who line up outside their shitty, overpriced, theaters to watch boring and unoriginal shit that is mostly copies of other boring, unoriginal shit, or sequels to boring, unoriginal shit. They also profit handily from the same obese, super-sizing diabetes candidates and their equally fat kids, selling them boring, unoriginal shit that is designed to kill them off, and one day they will run out of warm bodies to profit from because they helped kill them off. So if large numbers of brain-dead nitwits support them, that doesn't mean they make anything of cultural or artistic value, and as such, their products are essentially worthless, at least to anyone with a brain that functions above the reptilian level. "Almost everyone" is a meaningless and made-up term used to justify their ridiculous position.
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ltlw0lf (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 1:37pm

Re: Re: Five comments in?
the worst don't even realize that they're paid astroturfers

Bob, I realize you are paid not to think, but explain to me exactly how someone doesn't realize that they're paid astroturfer? You're either a paid astroturfer or you're not, and you will likely know you are when you receive a paycheck.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 1:44pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: It's not hogwash
Was a mail-order bride, Bob saw a QR code for it at the mall
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Dave, 15 Mar 2012 @ 1:48pm

The only thing these content industries see is money.

Money, money, money, money, money.

That's what all of these shenanigans are for.
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Chuck Norris' Enemy (deceased) (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 1:50pm

Re: Re: Re:
You expect "buzz" from the mainstream media who are pushing their content...not somebody else's.
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John Fenderson (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 1:58pm

Re:
Saying SOPA would "break the internet" was a blatant lie.

Oh? Please explain to me how the statement is incorrect. Further, please demonstrate that the people saying it knew it was incorrect.

Because by my reading of the bills, the statement was factual.

It was beyond misinformation, it was strategically planned lies.

Planned by who? Do you have any evidence for this at all?

Stopping people from posting links to stolen music/movies isn't censorship it's enforcement.

Well, first, yes it is. Stopping any speech is censorship. The thing is that some censorship is acceptable to society at large. That you can't yell "fire" in a crowded theater is also censorship, but it's OK censorship.

That said, stopping people from actually distributing pirated material wasn't what people were complaining about when they were talking about censorship. They were talking about the suppression of legal speech, which the original incarnation of SOPA certainly allowed.

Finally, preventing people from linking to infringing material is, I would argue, unacceptable censorship. Posting a link is not the same as posting the infringing material itself. It is no different than publishing an address.

In fact, I'm amazed that people who are extremely concerned with eliminating piracy don't encourage the posting of these links. It makes infringers easier to find, doesn't it? Publishing the addresses of drug dealers is legal, and I would expect that cops would really love it if people did this.
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silverscarcat (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 2:05pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:
Uh huh...

Wanna bet that the MPAA doesn't control the ratings?

South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone got to see both sides of the process when their independently made film Orgazmo was given an NC-17 for lewd jokes and brief nudity in the form of breasts and asses (which doomed it to obscurity until Parker and Stone became household names), while South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut received an R for some pretty explicit cartoon sex and violence. The film even included a real picture of an erect penis disguised as a sex toy.

http://articles.latimes.com/1999/jun/28/entertainment/ca-50911

""They [the MPAA] have no set rules. Things change from movie to movie," says Stone. "It makes no sense. . . . In going through their notes we saw that they had no standards so we decided these people are stupid and we'd just try to get it past them. If there was something they said couldn't stay in the movie, we'd make it 10 times worse and five times as long. And they'd come back and say, 'OK, that's better.' " " - Trey Parker and Matt Stone

Parker and Stone have crossed swords with the ratings organization before, losing their battle on the independently made film "Orgazmo," which received an NC-17 rating, they say, despite the fact that they consider it to be mild by comparison to "South Park." "The reason we got the NC-17 on 'Orgazmo' was that it was released by October Films, which had no clout, and we didn't have the money to reedit the film and continue to resubmit it," says Parker.

"It's all politics, relationships at the top," says Stone. "It's who you know. If you're Steven Spielberg and you want to push those limits, like in 'Saving Private Ryan,' you can because it's done in the name of high art and how much money he makes [for the industry]."

So, what you said... About my argument not holding water?

Yeah, I think it does, maybe you should offer real proof before embarrassing yourself like you just did.
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JMT (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 2:06pm

Re:
The engineers who built the internet say it will break the internet, but an Anonymous Coward tells us it won't. Gee, who to believe...
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ltlw0lf (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 2:08pm

Re: Re:
It was beyond misinformation, it was strategically planned lies.

Planned by who? Do you have any evidence for this at all?

Aliens? I don't have any evidence, and I am not the original poster, but if my years worth of experience watching X-Files and Hulu commercials are up to snuff, it is usually the aliens. /s
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fairusefriendly (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 2:18pm

Re: It's not hogwash
would you support sopa if the penalty for making a bogus complaint was the revocation of all your copyrights.

Such a clause would only punish you if you abused the law to censor people.
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Prisoner 201, 15 Mar 2012 @ 2:19pm

Re: Re: It's not hogwash
Mike is not content with just being Satan, he gets an entire army of Satans.

That's how evil he is.

His mere presence causes artists to starve, kittens to implode and MAFIAA bosses to shit bricks.

And on top of that he is Hitler.

In face of this Satanic apocalypse, it becomes apparent to one and all that in this key moment in time, at the cusp of human existence, we need more draconian copyright laws so that we can sue lots of people out of all their money.

It won't stop the world from burning before Masnick's greedy gaze, but the figures for this quarter will be nice. And that, people, is a worthy cause. That, my brothers and sisters, is what America is all about.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 3:13pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: It's not hogwash
He only THOUGHT it was a mail-order bride. Turned out to be a blow-up doll. But he married it anyway. Now we know the answer to the IQ mystery!
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Matt T. (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 4:52pm

Re: Re: Re: It's not hogwash
And Weird Harold
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Franklin G Ryzzo (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 4:54pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: It's not hogwash
Actually... that was me

Sorry, Bobby :(
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 4:58pm

Re: Re: Re: It's not hogwash
No, I'd probably piss your pants and tell you to get off my lawn.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 5:02pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:
Are you really so clueless as to think the MPAA doesn't rate more harshly on independent films than they do member studios' films?
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The Groove Tiger (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 6:13pm

Re: Re: Five comments in?
Cheerleaders are the Ultimate Paywall.
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The Groove Tiger (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 6:15pm

Re: It's not hogwash
Grassroots are the Ultimate Paywall.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 6:48pm

Re: Re: Still using misinformation
Gorehound, mate, put in a space after every comma and full stop which ends a sentence. And put an extra linefeed between paragraphs, so there is a blank line. Yes, it wastes space, but it improves readability. Take a look, that is what the rest of us are doing.

Your website is just fabulous, but it needs a bit of editing, for the same reasons.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 6:54pm

Re: Re: Re: It's not hogwash
Angry dude! Back from the dead! You staying long?
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TtfnJohn (profile), 15 Mar 2012 @ 6:57pm

Speaking of misnformation
"The intellectual base of the Copyleft is pretty flimsy, and we need to do a better job of pointing that out to the public." is Attaway regarding the holy grail of copyright education.

Except that he's wrong, of course. The Free Software Foundation says this is free software: http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html and notice, Mr Attaway that it says nothing at all about what you consider piracy not does it encourage it. It encourages sharing and creativity free from what it calls proprietary restraints which seems to be what the RIAA and MPAA are all about.

If Mr Attaway would bother to read the GPL he might discover that copyright isn't attacked in it, the code is not placed in the public domain though there are restrictions in converting it to a proprietary product. I fact copyright is expressly contained in the GPL.

Copyleft is a philosophy expressed in the GPL and by FSF which has little or nothing to do with "piracy" however the "content" industry wants to define that (which appears to be surprisingly elastic). And it's not the same as the Creative Commons licenses.

If you're going to "educate" people, Mr Attaway of the MPAA I suggest you start with educating yourself, TAM and Bob first.

Then I suggest you find you how much software covered by the GPL has been used to generate to pretty special effects in your films, the 3D effects and so much else. Not to mention other areas of your member companies where FOSS (Free and Open Source Software) is used. But hey, you think you have another great word to toss around and redefine at your pleasure. Guess what? You don't.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 9:03pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:
Go fuck yourself. I never said anything about Mike's family (I don't care if he is married or not, does it matter?).

Considering it was signed anonymous, it was probably you jus trying to stir up shit.

You are a true asshole (and probably just Marcus not logged in again... am I right there little prick?)
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 9:17pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:
Doesn't really matter, does it? You're speaking up for an industry that's willing to sue children, grandmothers, homeless people, dead people, laser printers and iguanas.

Broadbrush everyone else and the broadbrush will broadbrush you back.

Oh, by the way, he's not Marcus; I am.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:18pm

Re: Re: Five comments in?
They hate the RIAA and MPAA because they're literally addicted to their content and break the law to get their fix.

They're a sad, pathetic bunch.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:22pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:
I know it's frustrating spending all day trying to justify your addiction, but look into some 12 step programs.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Mar 2012 @ 10:24pm

Re:
They've been focusing on that for years.

If you didn't desire it you wouldn't rip it off.
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Miso Susanowa, 16 Mar 2012 @ 12:15am

Re: Re: Re: It's not hogwash
Are we sure that Mike is in fact Satan and not a Reptilian Overlord just pretending to be Satan? Because I want to know who to welcome.

I, for one, will be glad when the flag goes up; new uniforms, if they know my sizes! But I ain't 'sploding no kittens.
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That One Guy (profile), 16 Mar 2012 @ 1:06am

Re: Re: Re: Five comments in?
Hmm... mention of both RIAA and MPAA, childlike attack instead of addressing the point like an adult... I'd give that one a 2 out of 10, but hey, keep trying, you might just hit a 3 some day!
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That One Guy (profile), 16 Mar 2012 @ 1:09am

Re: Re: Re: Five comments in?
Actually you know what, I just noticed you also included the RIAA/MPAA delusion that people need what they push as much as food and water, so congratulations, you hit a 3/10!
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That One Guy (profile), 16 Mar 2012 @ 1:13am

Re: Re: Re: It's not hogwash
Given that it's hard to use their wares, of course so!

That is what hardware stands for isn't it?
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That One Guy (profile), 16 Mar 2012 @ 1:18am

Re: Re: It's not hogwash
With a clause like that I would support it only if the bill was treated the same way TPP and ACTA are being treated, except instead of the public having no idea what's in it it's instead the people paying for the bills who had no idea what exactly was in it.

Given a situation like that, I'd give it a week, top before every last one of them was copyright ownership free.
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That One Guy (profile), 16 Mar 2012 @ 1:23am

Re: Re:
>What does the MPAA create exactly?

Accounting irregularities!
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Loki, 16 Mar 2012 @ 1:23am

Re: Re: I wonder...
No, to the entertainment industry "grassroots" is corporate sponsored entities that enlist the aid of "commoners" through deception or payment. The idea that the general public should be allowed to determine things by free will is totally incomprehensible to them.
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Anonymous Coward, 16 Mar 2012 @ 1:45am

Re: Re: Re: Re: Five comments in?
Please direct your lame rebuttals to those that bring up the "MAFIAA" in every one of the silly articles posted here complaining about piracy enforcement.

You guys must be really longing for the old days at this point, huh?

Grokster forever!
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Ransome, 16 Mar 2012 @ 1:55am

MPAA - distraction
Content is secondary to access.

Surely the enormous amount of time and talent devoted to debating who should or should not control content is a distraction.

Wouldn't it be better to spend all the time, intelligence and resources on "making" a "global citizen's" internet.

There are billions of us who are secular and humanist We are the majority or silent majority in every country.

Surely the likes of Avaaz can make it happen.
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Anonymous Coward, 16 Mar 2012 @ 2:04am

Re: MPAA - distraction
What does that have to do with you taking the fruits of someone else's labor and acting like it's yours?
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Anonymous Coward, 16 Mar 2012 @ 2:14am

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Five comments in?
I don't understand - exactly what's the problem with complaining about a lousy service? If the general public is going to fund piracy enforcement the public is going to expect that it works and, y'know, actually get artists paid.

So far all piracy enforcement has done is demand settlement letters from a thoroughly ridiculous selection of individuals (and devices, don't forget that them laser printers are stealing our music industry). Somehow, the RIAA saw it fitting to give Mitch Bainwol more money. If piracy enforcement actually did its job with efficiency and accuracy it would be far less irksome.
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Narcissus (profile), 16 Mar 2012 @ 3:09am

This is how it can be done!
Recently I bought a Britisch TV-series on DVD (Yes, that was me). Instead of obnoxious 30 second warnings about stealing stuff there was a 5 second message:
"By buying this DVD you support the British Film Industry and it's actors. THANK YOU!"

I really sat back for a couple of seconds and thought this was awesome. I was treated like a customer!

I've never seen it before on anything else but I urge other companies to adopt the same strategy.
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Ninja (profile), 16 Mar 2012 @ 3:50am

Re: Re: It's not hogwash
Holy crap, you managed to scar my mind permanently and make me choke laughing at the same time!
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techflaws.org (profile), 16 Mar 2012 @ 3:58am

Re: Re: Re: Five comments in?
Why do you guys have such a hard time believing that normal, hard working, paying people also come here?

They don't. It's just a silly ploy to derail the conversation cause being paid shills/dumb trolls they are they just don't have any arguments.
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techflaws.org (profile), 16 Mar 2012 @ 3:58am

Re: Re: Re: Five comments in?
Addicted? Dream on, skintube.
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techflaws.org (profile), 16 Mar 2012 @ 4:00am

Re: Only We Can Make Content That People Want
Transformers 3.
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techflaws.org (profile), 16 Mar 2012 @ 4:02am

Re: Re: Re: Re: It's not hogwash
And Darryl.
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techflaws.org (profile), 16 Mar 2012 @ 4:09am

Re:
The MPAA is right - they make the content that almost everyone seems to want.

But not at the price they charge for it. Now what? Who do you actually think will have to budge?
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techflaws.org (profile), 16 Mar 2012 @ 4:12am

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:
Well, admitting you're always outsmarted by Marcus certainly narrows it down.
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techflaws.org (profile), 16 Mar 2012 @ 4:15am

Re: Re:
If they didn't overprice it people wouldn't "rip it off".
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martyburns (profile), 16 Mar 2012 @ 6:03am

Re: Re: Re: Re: Five comments in?
Big Piracy?
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Anonymous Coward, 16 Mar 2012 @ 8:12am

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: It's not hogwash
And Out_of_the_blue
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Anonymous Coward, 16 Mar 2012 @ 11:34am

Be careful what you wish for
Are we *sure* we want them to get online?
Do you really want the "You've Got Mail" people to become aware of the cheezburger network?
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Anonymous Coward, 16 Mar 2012 @ 11:42am

""Our industries do something that no one else can do," the Motion Picture Association of America's Fritz Attaway said at the Association of American Publishers annual meeting this morning. "We create content that people want to have."

When it comes to providing us with entertainment through comic relief, no one does a better job than them. But not because we are laughing with them but because we are laughing at them.
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Anonymous Coward, 16 Mar 2012 @ 12:35pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:
The only addict here is you retard, you can't get enough of techdirt. You're here everyday, all day.
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J.Jones, 19 Mar 2012 @ 6:35am

Re: It's not hogwash
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
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J.Jones, 19 Mar 2012 @ 6:55am

Re: Re: Re: It's not hogwash
No I wouldn't, I'd sic my dog on you. Then laugh and laugh as I call the police because I had a cyber stalker who intended me physical harm.
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Anonymous Coward, 28 Mar 2012 @ 5:06pm

Re: Re: Re: Five comments in?
bite the pillow, he's goin' in dry.
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