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Earlier this week we received a leaked presentation covering the results of a Google Fiber survey conducted on behalf of Warner Bros and Sony Pictures Entertainment. The research was conducted in 2012 and aimed to get a baseline of the piracy levels, so changes can be measured after the rollout.
[...] Drawing on an MPAA formula that counts all pirated views as losses the report notes that it may cost Hollywood over a billion dollars per year. That’s a rather impressive increase of 58% compared to current piracy levels. The research also finds a link between piracy and broadband speeds, which is another reason for Hollywood not to like Google’s Internet service.
[...] What’s most striking from the above approach is the way the studios frame Google Fiber as a piracy threat, instead of looking at the opportunities it offers.
(Score: 2) by Hairyfeet on Friday January 02 2015, @04:28PM
Its called facts, want some? How about this...2014 box office is at a 2 decade low [slashdot.org]. How is THAT for lack of fucks for ya?
ACs are never seen so don't bother. Always ready to show SJWs for the racists they are.
(Score: 2) by FatPhil on Friday January 02 2015, @04:44PM
Fucks given: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Fucks not given: XXXXXX
You have a perspective problem.
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
(Score: 2) by edIII on Friday January 02 2015, @08:29PM
Perhaps he does have a perspective problem, but many of his points may still be valid.
The movie theater experience is really hard to beat, and people do still want to go, including myself. I'm waiting for Alamo Drafthouse (they're super serious about STFU) to make it my way since I'm prone to getting police involved when people won't stop talking or texting (I ask very politely the first few times before I go Hulk smash). That being said, his points about younger demographics holds true. I'm surprised it's only 6% down though, as most of what I've been hearing is that ticket sales were absolutely horrible for some seasons these past years. Like the worst fall season for movies in 20 years, and stuff like that. So 6% might be the average, but I think in some months it could have been down by as much as 50% or more. Of course the MPAA is sure to have their hands in the propaganda, and would never say anything other than bad news.
I myself have a very large wide screen HDTV hooked up via HDMI to my laptop. It has never seen a cable box, used the TV tuner, or otherwise been connected to the traditional distribution channels. For pretty much it's entire use has been a computer monitor. I'm fairly progressive in this area as someone approaching 40, but my younger relatives pushing 20 act exactly as HairyFeet described. They watch TV on the web, pirate WEB-DL releases of their TV shows, or are consumed by Twitch/Vine/Imgur/Reddit etc. providing alternate content creation and sharing features. Instead of waiting for a scheduled program of media with commercials interrupting everything, my younger relatives all have tablets, laptops, or PCs and actively search out their content. Even without adblock, they just put it down, ignore it, switch to another tab, etc. before being stuck with advertisements. Only my older relatives think it's normal to leave a single channel on and listen to commercials all day long in the living room. The kids are quietly ignoring it by muting their devices even when they lack the sophistication to install ad blocking software.
While that could just be another anecdote, I'm seeing articles talk about the "cord cutters" all the time. There have been plenty of studies (marketing not scientific) showing rapid and profound shifts in how people consume media, and most of it supports HairyFeet, with the exception of his movie theater Armageddon statistics of course. As crappy as telecine and cams are, they are still downloaded and watched (much to my own amazement).
Also, young people aren't daft despite the generalizations. It can cost $50 to go out to the movies for a group of young people, easily. Stay in, and you might download an equally good Hollywood movie, get pizza, and probably score some drugs for that same cost. Even better drugs and alcohol if you skip the 3D showings. Maybe the MPAA should just realize that it's as fucked as everyone else in a bad economy, and more so when you're assholes pushing a generation of younger entitled assholes about who can demand what for a good time. The MPAA going up against teenagers trying to have a good time is one of the more comical battles in the universe.
Movie theaters and the MPAA just need to simply accept that with technology now in the homes, that far less people will be willing to go into a theater. Hence, why it was such a big deal to have the Interview online and in theaters at the same time. Movie theaters will need to adapt to service the people looking for a great experience outside of their homes, and that includes urine and fece free bathrooms (they're far worse than gas stations), no talking, and nicer seats. The regular experience can now be had at home, replete with great sound and 3D video. In some cases I would be willing to pay $20 for a great movie if only it wouldn't include the police, managers, etc. dealing with people talking and chatting on phones, crappy seats, crappy food and drink, etc. Alamo Drafthouse is about my only hope of having the real nice movie theater experience again.
The MPAA and movie theaters will continue to progressively fail as they don't service the customer, and as HairyFeet pointed out, they are not serving the new generation of customers with anything but alienation and direct attacks.
Technically, lunchtime is at any moment. It's just a wave function.
(Score: 2) by frojack on Friday January 02 2015, @09:06PM
You've made the case for movies being too expensive.
Its not clear you've made the case for the 20 somethings not liking movies. Just that they are now living on their own, and having to pinch pennies, like every generation. I found early on in my post college days that I couldn't afford the night out at the movies, drinking in the pub, or even eating in restaurants. A few years later when I could easily afford that, the habit was broken, and I've really never re-succumbed to the draw of movies. I'm content to go to a few of the very best, or watch them on the big screen at home.
In short, you've mistaken cheapskates (sometimes with a conveniently loose sense of ethics) for changing tastes.
I know of several 20s that share apartments or houses who all chip in to fund netflix accounts and high speed broadband connections as second only to paying the rent. Not because they don't want to go out to the movies. Just because they can't afford that.
The teen-somethings still love going to the movies. Netflix is a distant second.
I don't think you can assume huge changes in the culture, without considering cost as a key factor.
No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.
(Score: 2) by urza9814 on Monday January 05 2015, @02:48PM
I dunno man, I'm 24, and I can't recall myself or my friends *ever* really *wanting* to go to the movies. Usually when a theater is involved it's not so much "Let's go see this movie!" and more "Well...I *guess* we could go see a movie to kill some time unless you've got a better idea...?"
I've got a 100" projector screen five feet in front of my futon, and I can download a full-length blu-ray rip in 30 minutes. What the hell would I want to deal with a theater for? That's another big issue that may not have fully hit yet, but it's coming -- you can buy a high-def home theater projector for about the same price as a large screen TV now. Mine was about $500. And that price is going to keep coming down. Merely having a big screen isn't an advantage to the theaters anymore. And they're not getting movies first by much of a margin either. Maybe 3D will save them for a little while; maybe these experiments some theaters are doing with scents and other feedback will help, but that's gonna raise ticket prices too. I bet a lot of small town theaters will close; while the larger ones raise prices and become more of a higher class experience. This Alamo Drafthouse place that I keep hearing about seems to have the right idea...