RSSWarner: Canada Source of Film Piracy
By Nate Mook | Published May 9, 2007, 5:22 PM
Warner Bros. announced this week it would no longer hold promotional screenings of movies in Canada, and all press screenings would take place in a private room. The move comes in response to increasing movie piracy in the country, which the studio blames on lax laws.
While China and Russia often thought as the largest sources of pirated content, Warner Bros. claims Canada is the real problem. The company says 70 percent of its films have been pirated in Canada over the last 18 months. Those illegal -- and often poor quality -- copies are then sold around the world.
"The newly enacted policy represents the studio's response to the lack of legislation in Canada to curtail the growing wave of camcorder-shot ("camcorded") films being trafficked around the world,” Warner Bros. said in a statement.
"Despite incontrovertible evidence that film piracy has become a major economic and law enforcement issue, Canada has not adopted a federal law making camcording illegal or permitting the confiscation of equipment, and, as a result, has become the main source for most of the world's film piracy."
The studio said that within the first week of a screening, a Canadian copy usually surfaces on the Internet before spreading to other countries.
Warner Bros. upcoming film Oceans Thirteen will be affected by the rule change, as well as Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Warner Independent Pictures films are also included in the screening ban.
"Piracy is the leading issue the international film industry struggles with everyday and content recorded in Canada is the first place to take action, as Canadian recorded content is distributed and viewed everywhere," said Veronika Kwan-Rubinek, President of Distribution for Warner Bros. International.
From the MPAA itself: "For example, in Canada camcording is an infringement under the Copyright Act, regardless of whether it is for the public or personal use of the person making the copy."
http://www.mpaa.org/piracy_theatrical_cam.asp
Under our Coyright Act, this includes unlawful sales or rental of any copyrighted material and is punishable by a one million dollar fine and up to 5 years in jail. What the heck is Warner talking about?
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|Oh boo hoo hoo.
US corporate business law & practices don't dominate the entire globe (just yet).
My heart bleeds. Not.
Good luck Cannucks, keep telling them to go & f**k themselves.
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|While they are at it why don't they move the movie release dates in Canada back 2-3 weeks as well, it will give Canadians time to download it, so they won't have to go to the theaters to see it.
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|Three cheers for Canada! That's just one of the things why Canada is much better than the US!
*raises Canada flag and sings the anthem*
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|So It does not screen there.. big deal, It comes out when it does everywhere else and whats changed? Nothing... So its pointless anyway. People that want to steal it, will steal it, people that want to pay for it will pay for it. Same is true for people in the US that hop theaters... Something that has happened since threaters existed.
If its a good movie it pays for itself... because people will WANT to see it in quality... If its crap, well its a saved dollar as far as the consumers are concerned, and 90% of the time that so called pirated movie is long deleted...
If the MPAA starts b****ing at Canada, I say Canada should kick the movie and television production studios out of their country telling them to go back and pay triple for labor in Hollywood, cause they don't want them anymore... Yea right thats going to happen, But I think the point is made...
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|South Park was right all along! Those sneaky Canadians. You just can't trust people with heads the bob up and down when they talk.
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|"Warner Bros. announced this week it would no longer hold promotional screenings of movies in Canada"
Yeah, I'm from Canada and we don't care. Who are they hurting? Not us. They're only hurting themselves. I mean, all the money Warner and the MPAA are losing (considering they've been posting record profits every year) is caused by Canada entirely. *roll eyes* Now it's time to use political pressure and other strong arm tactics to try and force Canada to comply with whatever ridiculous demands they have. Anyone remember The Pirate Bay fiasco last year? How about we give people the death penalty if they're caught recording a movie in a theater? Would that do? Then if you're caught uploading any movies, it's 10 years in prison + $500,000 fine. Sound about right?
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|Why are they picking on our higher class, better mannered, and all around nicer people to the north? Just because thier country is clean and they don't have hillbillies?
Everything about Canada is better than here except no Vegas or good beaches.
Leave those syrup sucking puck slappers alone.
The time for consumer revolt is coming.
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|That's it Warner, blame Canada. Great job. lol.
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|People are tired of paying for overprices movies. I think this should of happened years ago. Its like everything else in this country that is overpriced or illegal and has a market. If they push down on Canada it will pop up somewhere else. I say we need more peer to peer file sharing programs.
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|Price is dictated by the buyers for the most part. When movies first started showing up in VHS format - they could be $50-$60 - and people rented them instead of buying.
Now movies are down to $20 a pop and places like BestBuy, Circuit City and all of the other shops are selling them like hot cakes.
Why - because it's a price the market will bear.
I don't go to the movie theatre anymore, because I won't pay $9 to see a movie that I could rent from Blockbuster in a few months for $3. If I do go to the theatre, it's usually the budget theatre or during a matinee.
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|i dont buy movies anymore, i dont see them in theatres, and i dont rent them. i boycott them completely and i also dont download them, i am not paying for their overpriced crap. but that is not an excuse to pirate, it is just that, an excuse to boycott.
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|Give me a break.. the INTERNET is the source lol... Can't blame a country.. but if you want to blame one.. Canada is fine hehehe ;)
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|does this mean we won't see Ocean's Thirteen and Harry Potter in CANADA?
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|For goodness sake, read the damn story again would you...
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|nah, if they did that it would hurt your feelings...
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|I thought of the South Park movie quote (and song) "Blame Canada" as well.
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|Keep it up boys, you'll have the CRTC on your tails.
"Warner Bros. announced this week it would no longer hold promotional screenings of movies in Canada"
Good! We have enough mafia in Canada.
"...which the studio blames on lax laws."
What? You couldn't bride any judges this time?
"all press screenings would take place in a private room"
Well, isn't that how you do business anyway? As in private rooms, much like the ones in Tim Hortons where people relief themselves. Nyeah, what's up doc?
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|Look at www.IMDB.com and you will see that a lot of DVDs are released in Canada a long time before anywhere else.
Sometimes 2 years before the films appears in other countries.
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|that has nothing to do with this. their complaints are about people walking into movie theaters and recording just released videos then selling the s***ty copies cause its not officially illegal to do so in Canada. has nothing whatsoever to do with dvds being released here before they are in Europe.
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|They're just mad because isohunt moved its servers to Canada.
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|COME ON!! You need to think about the amount of money these companies lose and would give to it's employee. Not to the people in Eastern EU or China who can't even (if they wanted to) see these movies.
The MPAA/RIAA NEEDS to CONTROL YOUR HOUSE, COMPUTER, CAR!!
They have already purchased the US Congress now for the rest of the world!
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|Blame Canada! ;)
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|LOL. My though exactly...
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|This is BS. There have been several studies done recently to refute this allegation. It's a political ploy to convince the Canadian government to pass a DMCA type law.
God willing, the Canadian government will see right through this game and not lube up for the MAFIAA.
I think it's be great if WB kept its films to itself and quit messing with the legal sytem in other countries.
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|thats the most rational thing i have heard today.
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|I agree with some comments about not bending to the MPAA/RIAA and the Clintonista DMCA, but there's a bigger problem here:
Disrespect for private property and licensing. I don't think that the MPAA or RIAA are right 100% of the time, but for Canada to allow the sale of pirated movies and making illegal and unlawful copies of copyrighted works is absolutely wrong.
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