Even though it's the excessively high cost of movie discs and audio CDs that breeds piracy, we do fully understand why the film and music industries wish to protect their assets from copying and unfair use. Even so, the trade bodies that represent these industries never cease to amaze us with their brazen cheek and insatiable greed.
The MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) and the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) seem always to be trying to outdo one another to show a face of capitalism even less acceptable than the last one seen - leaving themselves wide open to potshots from the likes of tech-humor site BBspot.
BBspot has a wonderful spoof story that purports to show that MPAA has moved ahead in that race. According to the scammed-up report, the MPAA is lobbying the US Congress to make "unauthorized" home cinemas illegal.
Dan Glickman, top man at the MPAA - and a favourite BBs target - is quoted as saying that home theatres need to be regulated before things start getting too far out of control and pointing out that,
We didn't act early enough
with the online sharing of our copyrighted content. This time we're not
making the same mistake. We have a right to know what's showing in a
theater.
A bill that the MPAA wants to get enacted, BBs says, would force makers of home-cinema kit to factory-fit hardware that reports directly to the association on what's being shown and who is watching it!
And the MPAA is described as defining a home theater as any home with a television larger than 29in with stereo sound and at least two comfortable chairs, couch, or futon!
Worse, the MPAA wants everyone with a home theater to pay it a $50 registration fee or face fines of up to $500,000 per movie shown!
Totally unbelievable? Well, yes, but so, too, is the story being told on Recording Industry vs The People.
This concerns a woman who has never used a computer having been subpoenaed by the RIAA about a PC belonging to her adult son who lives four miles away from her.
And that one, seemingly, is true, as is the follow-up report that the RIAA's lawyer phoned the son's employer - itself a law firm!
Thoughts on the fight against piracy? Be keen for you to share them with us in this thread in the HEXUS.lifestyle.news forum.
HEXUS.links
HEXUS.community :: discussion thread about this articleExternal.links
BBspot - MPAA Lobbying for Home Theater RegulationsBBspot - about
Recording Industry vs The People - RIAA Subpoenas Ms. Lindor's Son's Computer
Recording Industry vs The People - RIAA Lawyer Admits He Called Ms. Lindor's Son's Employer
