Random thoughts

OK, what made me going "hmmmm" today? Well, I read in the papers that Tamilnadu is all out to stop pirating of movies (VCD and DVD piracy). The Government has decided that video piracy (and people watching pirated movies) would be dealt with under an act that is used to deal with hooligans / troublemakers. The news item goes on to say that the producers and directors of the Tamil film industry are cheering the Government's decision and rubbing their hands in glee as they anticipate the crowds that will now rush back to the theatres.

I'm wondering why is it that producers don't wake up and start smelling the coffee (this is j2deep's favorite expression, I think?). Video piracy is rampant not because people want to pay less for watching new movies. Video piracy exists because people are buying into the convenience of watching movies at a time and place of their choice (and getting it cheaper in the process).

Confession - I hardly ever go to the theatres these days. I watch movies on DVD and on TV. My reasoning is that its just too cumbersome (even with Internet booking). Ofcourse a special occassion may warrant the trouble but trying to go to the theatres every weekend (putting up with the traffic, noise, pollution and what not) is just too beyond me.

So what the pirate market does is to really provide a convenient means of watching the latest movies from the comfort of one's home (or wherever you choose to watch it).

Why can't the movie producers do that? Why this fixation with the theatres (and trying to go back to the good old days?). Why can't producers release DVDs of the latest movie as soon as it hits the theatres? With digital delivery here (even for many theatres in India) it should be far easier to do than imagined. Release the digital version via the satellites that beam them direct to the theatres and at the same time release it for the home market via DVDs.

I'm sure that will not only kill video piracy immediately but will also mean that the viewer gets to enjoy the movie in the medium of their choice (and not how the producer wants them to watch it). And one day if we all get 2mbps broadband connections to our homes they may even choose to stream the movie down the Internet to our flat panel 40" LCD displays eliminating the DVD altogether.

In other interesting news - I switched broadband providers this week and got myself a broadband connection from Iqara Broadband. The deal gives me unlimited time and unlimited bandwidth (no cap) access to the Internet - and freedom from using the Sify Broadband connection which bills me by the minute (and forces me to install McAfee ViruScan which now gives me wierd errors such as saying I am no longer entitled to get virus updates). The Iqara connection is pretty fast (9kbps or more on a link that is rated 64kbps) - which is good by Indian standards.

Countdown to Sony Vaio V505 - 1 day.