It is important for us to ask ourselves what pirated movies are. Essentially, pirated movies are movies which are counterfeit in nature. This means that they are movies which have been illegally obtained and reproduced by a group of people or individuals.
This is usually done with the intention of getting these movies out for circulation and distribution without obtaining the correct distribution rights. Piracy has got harmful and negative effects on both the movie industry and the entire economy. Effects of pirated movies It is important to take note of the fact that any movie or music which has been pirated has got effect on the industry as well as the entire economy as well.
When a movie which has been produced is pirated and sold without the recommended rights, then the people who took the initiative to produce the movie are deprived off their rights and they are denied their profits. It is worth noting that movies require huge amounts of money to produce.
This notwithstanding, the man power involved in the production of these movies is vast (Avery). This means that if all the movies which have been produced would be pirated, then there would be no income to produce more movies. Consequently, the people who have been employed by this industry would end up being jobless. In this case, the movie industry would be closed down thus resulting on causing harm on the economy.
In one off the studies which were carried out, a respondent claimed that as the music and film industries accounted for a significant proportion of the GDP of some European economies, any shrinkage of the sector due to piracy would have national, rather than simply industry, implications, especially when reduced taxation revenues are taken into account.
In this respect, recent EU data indicates that the copyright industry (which covers music, film, software and books) contributed EUR1 200 billion the EU economy, produced value added of EUR 450 billion, and employed 5.2 million people in the year 2000 (Avery).
The total gross value added, which measures wealth added to the economy, represented more than 5.3% of the total value added for the (then) 15 EU member states. In terms of employment, the industries contributed 3.1% of total EU employment (Avery). This is a significant economic contribution of the EU, and would be paralleled in other economies, especially the USA, which highlights the potential broader economic losses that could flow from extensive activity by pirates (Avery).
Technology and Piracy As was the case in the music sector, the rapid evolution of affordable powerful computers, and the growing availability of DVD-R burning machines, which permit home computers to copy video content just as easily as audio, means that both sectors are now exposed to similar risks from both large scale and small scale pirates (Avery).
The availability of sophisticated camcorders has also given the pirates the opportunity of copying new movies directly from their very first screening; thus allowing pirated copies to hit the streets more quickly than ever before.
In other words, the experiences of the audio have been repeated in the video sector; that is, the ready availability of pristine original material and the growing capacity of pirates to copy material by either using reasonably priced commercial reproduction equipment or personal computers as a small scale enterprise. In addition, the rapidly growing ability to move video content around the internet has made access to content and distribution of pirated items erasure, and their detection more difficult (Avery).
These developments have been unique to the music, film and software industries, and while the development of technology has not been the only reason for the growing incidence of piracy, the technological capability that is within the reach of virtually anyone with a computer has made these industry sectors more vulnerable than most to counterfeiting or piracy.
Piracy Kills innovation In the current age, watching and downloading a movie from the internet seems to be one of the easiest options to get quality movies cheaply. However, this has had detrimental effects especially with regard to the impact that this is having on the degree of innovation and creativity in the industry (Avery).
Piracy stifles creativity and innovation when the person who invests heavily is not compensated for the efforts. Essentially, most of the creative and innovative minds within this industry have ended up without jobs due to the fact that their jobs are threatened. In addition, piracy denies the creators to risk big by trying new initiatives in the movie industry. This is because one feels that if the movie does not get an opportunity to market itself then the project might end up being a loss on part of the producer.
The movie companies and record labels spend many years trying to sell their brand or label. But the moment that a pirate steals the creative genius behind this product, then the company runs into heavy losses. Conclusion The general public might not have adequate information regarding the nature of crime that piracy is. Furthermore, many consumers feel that piracy has little impact on the multinational film companies. This is a misleading notion.
There is need to ensure that the public is made aware of the harmful and negative effects that piracy has on the movie industry and what needs to be done to ensure that this vice is mitigated. The lobby groups should step up their efforts towards ensuring that the right policies and regulations are put in place to protect the movie and the film industry from the pirates who want to take advantage of the advancements which have been in this industry.
Works Cited
Avery, Peter. The economic impact of counterfeiting and piracy, New York: OECD Publishing, 2008. Print.