RSSNBCU Chief: File-sharers "The New Face of Organized Crime"
By Scott M. Fulton, III | Published October 4, 2007, 11:55 AM
In a speech yesterday before a summit organized by the US Chamber of Commerce, NBC Universal CEO Jeff Zucker was quoted as proclaiming his industry and legislators are jointly losing the war against intellectual property piracy - a fight which impacts him personally as the chief of one of the world's principal content creators.
Though a complete transcript has yet to be made available, Broadcasting & Cable reports Zucker essentially drew an outline around both physical pirates and P2P file sharers, in an attempt to shame them all with an "axis of evil" style metaphor.
Zucker cited new numbers compiled by the Institute for Policy Innovation in a report yet to be publicly released. The report is expected to estimate losses to the US economy based on activity from both physical media pirates and illegal downloaders. Referring to them as a single group yesterday, according to B&C's account, he tagged them "the new face of organized crime."
That report estimates the cumulative value of lost economic activity in the American economy due to sales of both physical media (including CDs and DVDs) and digital downloads not realized by publishers and retailers. That cumulative figure is said to approach $60 billion annually, which also accounts for approximately 373,000 lost jobs in the retail and industrial sectors, and as much as $2.6 billion in lost tax revenue to the US government.
The IPI report Zucker cited will present cumulative totals based on studies it released in previous years, including one which solely deals with the sound recording industry just last week. BetaNews studied the methodology of this IPI report this morning.
In it, we discovered its authors estimated that roughly 4 billion songs per year were illegally downloaded by US Internet users. It then roughly estimated that those songs actually constitute 800 million songs not sold, under the theory that downloaders accumulate on average five times as many songs as they otherwise may have purchased. The report used this formula to estimate the total annual loss to US retail industries that would have sold those songs otherwise, at $890 million.
"The download piracy losses to U.S. retailers are calculated using an assumed value of 4.0 billion illegal downloaded songs in the U.S. in 2005," reads the latest IPI report, entitled, "The True Cost of Sound Recording Policy to the US Economy." "This value (based primarily on a review of confidential sources) implies that of the 20 billion illegal songs downloaded globally in 2005, some 20% or 4 billion were downloaded to U.S. consumers. Again assuming a 20% substitution rate, these 4 billion downloaded songs translate into 800 million lost legitimate sales. This figure is then adjusted for the weighted average price of legitimate purchases for download consumers and by the retail margin. These calculations lead to download piracy losses to U.S. retailers of $890 million and total U.S. retail losses (from both download and physical piracy) of $1.041 billion."
But as recent recording industry lawsuits against individuals might indicate, many downloaders accumulate tens of thousands of songs, most of which they may never listen to. If you account for those songs as lost sales - which, for purposes of legal indictment, you would have to do - the damage in each case could mount up to tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars.
The problem with that theory, however, is the presumption that had the means not been available for a downloader to have accumulated that many songs, he would have gladly purchased them otherwise. In the legal respect, theft leads to lost revenue; in the economic respect, in which sociological factors are taken into account, that's not always the case.
In other words, take a good look at the average defendant in an RIAA case, and ask yourself whether that person would have willingly spent ten grand on a CD collection had P2P never been invented.
NBCU's Zucker used these numbers to bolster his case for action on the part of content providers and carriers to thwart piracy, action which includes - but is certainly not limited to - penalizing certain high-bandwidth users. "Our unified voices will carry far more weight than the pleas of the individual industries," The Hollywood Reporter quotes Zucker as saying.
As an example, Zucker reportedly said carriers such as AT&T could implement filtering technology to scan content in transit, and could then act to throttle network access by those trafficking in content with a questionable source - people Zucker called "bandwidth hogs."
Such action would enable content providers such as NBCU, he said, to continue opening up their business models to multiple forms of digital revenue through streaming, direct downloading, repurposing, and repackaging for DVD distribution through retailers such as Amazon. Zucker did specifically cite YouTube as not doing enough to technologically combat piracy, even if technology alone cannot completely prevent it.
B&C noted that Zucker's stand against "bandwidth hogs" was clearly anti-net neutrality, on the basis that any unilateral measure to limit one group's access to Internet content in favor of another's is by definition non-neutral. Perhaps coincidentally, the Institute for Policy Innovation has also taken an antagonistic stand toward net neutrality, having praised the Federal Trade Commission last June for declining to enact new federal provisions to ensure equal access among network operators.
"The FTC demonstrated they're right on target when it comes to net neutrality," the IPI commented at the time. "For a dynamic economy, it is vital the industry be permitted to experiment with new business models, and deregulation is key to promoting the expansion of products and services."
I think that in a world with controlled (censored) press and large monopolies taking every bit of blood while they can this seems to be a logical path. But, they lie about their reasons. They cannot control P2P contents, so that is why they want to pursue them. Power groups already found the way to control the web (through Google), videos (Google again, trough youtube), mail (hellmail, gmail, yahoo, whatever, they are all the same) but they cannot control a network like Kademlia, there is no head to cut. So, their only ways are infiltrate and criminalize them. Recently the best edonkey servers were seized, but emule users are still downloading almost unaffected because of Kademlia. I am glad developers were able to see the bullet coming and move them before impact (years before).
P2P networks are plagued with fake contents (virus, malware, pr0n, etc) but if you know where to look, you will find exactly what you need. Long live to them! And guess who are infecting the p2p networks? Yeah, the same “good” boys trying to criminalize it. Mafia? They are just governing right now.
If you want to see a censored article/video/game there is no better place than decentralized P2P.
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|The REAL "New Face of Organized Crime" is the ones who invaded a country on bogus reasons. And is now sucking the oil out of the victim.
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|-1 troll
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|The program says "the installation completed the installer will remove from your operating system and restart so you choose yes or no doesnt matters but installer will remove itself.
Your OS restarts. And the program wants to connect it homepage so you click on yes and confirms itself.And then your shareware or freeware starts works.But if you say no wont start and removes it uninstalls or just works but gives no result it hangs like a cloth.You have to learn sharing with firms.Before installing read what it says.When you want to try a program share with them give handshaking then help them they will help you.Simple way of sharing 15 or 30 days.Test drive.Thats all but they will earn for their good work.If they have good work and keeping you and your PC or Laptop.
Some want try who bought and used a program means that program is good work fine.So P2P helps all.A person shares his own program by his control but looses his program too.If someone asks about it he or she will answer it not who take it from P2P.Who spreads the program is the responsible about it.Who shares more in this world in this area.If your upload is slow you will download all the time.If your family not allow you to upload you are downloader.But if you have cd or dvd burner this may cause new problems.So keep trying alive try see if its helpfull for you go and buy it.This is safe for you and for you friends.
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|What economic loss? The ten bucks that doesn't go to the RIAA just ends up in the Walmart coffers for exchange in food and clothing anyways. Walmart's gain is the RIAA's loss. There is really no loss in the economy at all.
Maybe Walmart's big bucks would conquer the RIAA if they know it would benefit them.
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|Instead of taking sides about who's the bad guy here is an idea. What IF a website(s) hosted all kind of files, from music to even software and and each download would be payed by "clicks"(advertizers and what ever other source of money) the same way some websites finance themselves. Each files downloaded would see the money earned by that "click" split between the maker of the music file(Elton, Britney, who ever, just an example) or software,(M$,Corel, again, just examples) and the website(s). The downloader doesn't pay a penny(the same as when he downloads freeware or free music files) or maybe just a buck or two per downloads? Of course, since all files would come from legitimate legal providers it would eliminate tons of virus and trojans and malware. Everybody would win? Just a crazy idea? While it's not worded like I would like it to be I think you get what I mean.
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|Who uses sharing P2P programs all buy internet security programs. P2P work for security pragramers.I bought one of the famous internet securtiy 2007 program. F-Secure IS 2007 and Trend Micro IS 2007.They work very nice.They solve all problems about internet and surfing and against bad.Saves time and PC too.Also saves your internet connection.Your Pc or laptop work powerfully.Your program works better than others you wont pay more.Saves you all the time. So the other my creat new ideas.For instance when you install a program it says you have 15 or 30 days to try.So when you install after the installation the original program can remove it self from your pc.When the trial days ended if you dont buy desired not to use it it automatically deletes it self from your PC or laptop but you can installed it again why the program has taken your winXP key for till another version is out to try Or some do reformats pc or laptop and uses it again.If the program takes your IP the second installation the program will understands update needed or giving trying trial license will remove automatically.This is an idea.
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|who made own files and sharing or own software who has bougth his or her software sharing or own freeware sharing or own music file sharing or sharing picture who is taken by users from personally from own are by their own camera.
They are sharing their own proframs with P2P with others. Pls dont share commercial problems with who share his or her own bought it and wants to share and learn more about that files prgrams if they feel happy means "ok this it I like it so going and buying one what they like it. File sharing helps us? If you like one of them you decide to buy it. Because this shared things are old.Sound is not clear and damaged almostly.If you want new you may buy it.Used and shared things are all second hand or third hand.If you want new you buy it.
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|Doesn't Organize Crime profit from their tactics? The last time I checked the mafia didn't share s*** with anyone.
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|*laughing*
Truth++;
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|Quote from the LA times:
"Thomas became the first of the accused to bring a civil case to trial. The verdict could discourage others like her from taking a chance that the industry couldn't prove they were guilty."
IN other words take the extortion deal or we will destroy you. Publicly and Professionally. And set you up and a Head on a stick to serve as an example to the masses of what happens to you if you dare have the nerve to stand up to them.
Here is the light at the end of the tunnel. The Industry is finally starting to realize what the consumer demand is and acknowledges this privately if not professionally...
{"You can't stomp it out. People are going to get it one way or another," said a senior executive at a major label who said he'd be fired if his name were printed.
The industry is desperately trying to preserve the sale of music in forms consumers are increasingly rejecting, such as CDs and digital tracks that come with restrictions on how many times they can be copied or on which devices they can be played.
"Eventually we will all have to go MP3," said the executive, referring to the most common format of digital music. MP3s can be played on any device, and no software restricts them from being copied.} Again the LA times...
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|The RIAA win is devastating but ultimately Will change nothing. Let me put this as bluntly as possible. these unrealized imaginary profits they always speak of. I 100% guarantee if there was no Internet and no file sharing and no mp3s at all, nothing. Guess what that figure would be to added sales. That's right folks. ZERO.
Its bad that the burden of proof on the RIAA case was so lacks that the jury didnt think she distributed anything but simply made it available through use of the service, and as such was liable for the accessibility. NOT the act of piracy (as the jury basically said they did not have sufficient evidence that the files were distributed under the copyright piracy criteria,) the only thing the RIAA proved was the act of accessibility of files from CDs she owned that she ripped to make fair use of for Illegal activities. things like moving files to a mp3 player or to a mix CD. Both of which is considered illegal by the industry. Yet generally accepted in society.
This is a sad day for consumers. Personally I hope the entire thing is taken down world wide and global profits plummet 300% for the industry... then who do they blame? No one but themselves.
Its time the DMCA is put in check. 20 million users can not all be jailed. I dare them to do it... I would refuse to pay a dime in such a case. I would take the jail time and live off the tax payers dime for a change. lets just see how expensive this is going to become before lawmakers start listening to voters and not lobbyist. 20 million prisoners... Loss of 20 million voters, Um... maybe we need a penal colony for file sharers? In such a situation that location would be the only place to do file sharing... Sounds like a plan. I nominate the US as the world penal colony for file sharers. Bring them all and imprison them in America. Sounds like a plan... As far as the rest of the world is concerned with us anymore we are all criminals anyway. so there you go... Terrorists win, Come home, Jail up everyone in prison in America, and live in a socialist society that the RIAA MPAA wants...
Trust me in 20 years if left unchecked. If your eyeballs are scanned watching a copyrighted presentation your retina will be the signature that allows you to be billed for viewing that content. That is the Future the MPAA RIAA wants for the world... If you hear it see it or are in its presence, you pay for that privilege.
As to the whole organized crime issue. Give me a break if we were organized we would have the DMCA issue nullified. Point is we are just normal people that are socially disobedient to an overly broad law that is sorely in need of Consumer rights adjustment. And because we are NOT organized we do not have the money to influence lawmakers as the industry does by the millions spent on yes men lobbyist. All I can say is Thank god for the EFF... At least they have a voice, not matter how smothered and ignored it is... Guess EFF has not found that bribe that makes the wheels turn for them for a change yet.
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|They are only using existing laws. But I wonder maybe we are now before a new type of Inquisition instead. "Summum ius, summa iniuria", old romans said (strict laws are the worst of all injustices).
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|The Malleus Maleficarum
Look it up. There is interesting parallels in history... Maybe a look at things to come if the industry continues on this path?
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|Wow, it's amazing the lengths that companies will go to to shed customers.
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|Actually, "industry and legislators", there's your new face of organized crime :p
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|Yeah, but consumers keep buying and voters keep voting.
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|Just another idiot doing his own personal little absurdly pointless 'King Canute' act.
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|It has been shown that downloading along doesn't affect record sales. So, this idiot is completely clueless to say this about filesharing. The real pirates are in Russia and china where they sell illegal copies....
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|I doubt most kids in the demographic involved here could organize a trip to the restroom, let alone some sort of money laundering, body burying syndicate. Holy crap. This Zucker is an idiot.
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|They want to "experiment" with the Internet until it works like the 1950's telephone network and returns control over our media to big companies like they had in the 1950's.
I say we should move forward not back to the past. The open non-discriminating Internet has brought success to thousands of new companies and entertainment choices to billions of people because it has been open and non-discriminating.
Just because some old-fashioned media companies are being left behind is no reason to go "experimenting" and break the Internet now.
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|I'm going to start dressing like a mob boss :D
But really I like to think of myself as more of a "Robbin Hood" type of guy. If I were keeping the profits I should be a lot more well off than I am now.
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|Riiiight, cause a dozen goverment-sanctioned Chinese DVD duping factories running full-tilt 27/7 isn't "organized".
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|Nice.. The US Government needs to go after people pirating REAL things like Airplane parts and Medication. Music and Video is really not a big deal. These companies make billions of $$.. They say you can't placeshift your $100+ cableTV (most people spend over $1200 a year for TV)
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|NBCU: The old Face of what entertained us.
NBC hasn't been relevant in years.
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|Jeff Cokzucker
What a load of crap, first off if someone steals 60,000 songs in one year they would have NEVER been able to afford buying that many songs. Second, if they did not rape people with ridiculously high prices...maybe this would not be so large scale. I buy music online from iTunes pretty often because I like apple, I like their stance on things and its just damn convenient but why should someone have to buy a cd for a ridiculous amount of money if they only like one song. I don't see where video piracy is hurting jack because people still flood to the movies and people still buy DVD's like there is no tomorrow. I buy DVD's because I am a quality nut, like many others. The industry is full of s*** and they just want to make more money by trying to scare us into conformity. Screw them. Jeff Zucker is a c*** sucking piece of s*** and he needs to go back to his mansion and send out a press release THANKING all of us for the money we have put in his pansy little pockets. What a d***.
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|"Jeff Zucker" The NEW FACE of CORPORATE AZZHOLES that know nothing!
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|I have yet to see estimates based on inflation(salary increases, newer cheaper tech to make/distribute, etc) Put all that in and i may see the point, or completely discredit it.
As it stands PROVE that your losing money from piracy and not a s*** in buying practices. They still don't include Used Items and auction sites. THOSE impact the industry big time as many times stuff auctioned is used. The industy gets nothing back from the RE-sale of a CD or DVD, or that digital file bought from Amazon.com So how do you figure that in? Used items is BIG business these days.
Now onto another point:
The view of copyrights has changed, either because it's outdated or because nobody can stand being told what to do with what you 'presumably' bought.
Me i think the idea of lease of media needs to change. If you buy a CD you BOUGHT the music, if you buy the DVD, you OWN the movie. Do with what you will. Of course if that changes it completely irradicates EVERYTHING the movie and music industry have done up to now combating piracy. In essence there would be no piracy.
TV Shows are funny, most of the channels now offer their shows to view... online... for free! How can you combat piracy of something you yourself are giving away!
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|population of the planet ~ 6 billion
population of developed world ~ 2 billion
and they estimate lost of $60 billion a year (?!)
so what if everyone in the developed world gave #100 a year ... and in return got all media for free ... walk into a cinema, book shop, record shop ... a kind of 'all you can eat' system
2 billion in developed world x #100 per year = #200 billion
I would like to know how much money they want from us
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|People have been video recording stuff from TV for years ...
I dont see video recorders being outlawed, or Tivo, or DVR, or tapes, or CDs, or DVDs ...
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|If I listen to the radio all day
(and by that I mean FM not internet radio)
lets say 3 minutes per song ... 8 hour day ... around 120 tracks
is that classed as lost sales ?
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|that also includes any TV show you recorded on that Tivo thing!! you need to pay again for anything you watch or listen to.. I think iTunes make about 60m a year.. that might be a lose for them..
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|Let's get Chris Hanson to work on those bandwidth hogs. Get on the ground! Get on the ground!
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|*laughing*
Hey, didn't he already start a series on the phishing scandals going on?
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|On the bright side this appears to be the first major study (that I've seen anyway) where they're not counting *every* downloaded song as a "lost purchase". They've got a 5:1 ratio in there. It's a step in the more reasonable direction anyway.
Still, I've always thought instead of "lost revenue" they should realistically call it "unrealized revenue". They're not *losing* anything, they're just not *gaining* something they expect or hope to gain.
That's the case with digital piracy anyway, and that's one of the things that makes piracy of physical goods so much different. They're both illegal and morally wrong, but as far as counting the losses and actual impact on the manufacturer and retailer digital should be much lower down the totem pole. A $2000 plasma TV that "fell off the truck" is a lot harder and more expensive to replace than a pirated download of a $2000 software package.
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|It's closer, but it's still miles away from 4,000,000,000:0 which is more than likely the more accurate ratio.
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|Yeah its potential revenue. Businesses loose potential revenue every day because someone else was able to offer a better deal. When that better deal was obtained illegally like say Price fixing between two companies (visy & amcor Australia), there’s a problem and nothing justifies it.
Without a doubt its just too dam easy for people to download these days.
No one can deny piracy has become a huge problem today, but estimates are called estimates for a reason. No one can put a accurate figure on this.
People just want stuff they can get easily. When you have something, no one likes to loose it. We are all human unfortunately
I certainly don’t agree with the Organized crime view, though I can see his frustration.
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|Organized?
He does realize most of these folks are probably 12-19 years old, right?
What a joke.
Organized Crime: Hitmen, extortion, protection rackets, blackmailing, murder, prostitution, drugs.
File-Sharers: Downloading and uploading files.
The chair for 'em all, eh? Get some perspective, Zucker.
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|You sir are retarded (not the actual PC_Tool but) you who had to create a new account just to discredit the real one. I don't know if you're serious or just trying to poke some fun.
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|Christ on a biscuit tin, will you just drop it you loser.
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|Welcome back. It took you 2 days to create a new account?
I'm impressed.
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|OMG do I have to start reporting every one of your accounts... Chill out dude and let it go. We do not want that kind of attitude here.
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|Tool, got your pet back on the board again I see... lol
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|Yup. I don't even have to feed him. Though he does tend to s*** all over the place...
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|Puh-leeeze. I'm tagging Zucker's statement as hyperbole.
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