Cable executive: 1Gbps broadband is only useful for piracy

[HappyGilmore]

TomSEA said:
"Uh, I pirate simply because it's the most convenient way of obtaining what I want, not necessarily because I want it for free."

Redbox movies are a dollar each. Netflix gives you online streaming for 8 bucks a month with a sizeable catalog. iTunes and Amazon sell damn near every song recorded for .69 cents to .99 cents each.

Now one more time - what's your excuse to pirate?

He probably doesn't live in the USA!

Where i live in New Zealand, iTunes doesn't do TV Rentals, iTunes movies are months behind the US and the quantity isn't there. We cant get Netflix, Hulu or any other streaming type package. I'd quite happily pay to stream from US sites but you cant because of geographical restrictions, so at the end of the day the easiest way to get content is to torrent it.

Sad but true. I really really really want to pay for everything I watch, but when you cant physically get the stuff and the studios don't want to sell it to you, then pirating/torrenting becomes the quickest alternative.

 

[aj_the_kidd]

HappyGilmore said:
He probably doesn't live in the USA!

Where i live in New Zealand, iTunes doesn't do TV Rentals, iTunes movies are months behind the US and the quantity isn't there. We cant get Netflix, Hulu or any other streaming type package. I'd quite happily pay to stream from US sites but you cant because of geographical restrictions, so at the end of the day the easiest way to get content is to torrent it.

Sad but true. I really really really want to pay for everything I watch, but when you cant physically get the stuff and the studios don't want to sell it to you, then pirating/torrenting becomes the quickest alternative.

I feel your pain, particularly with TV shows, i would pay for streaming movies and TV shows if i could, but i really don't have any options. I will point out that Movies aren't too bad in terms of release dates and I do mostly watch movies at the cinemas

 

[Lurker101]

TomSEA said:

Now one more time - what's your excuse to pirate?

Always online DRM.

 

[Guest]

Ok, so if everyone has a super speed connection then, great, you can watch programs online and in real time without having to pirate. Cable companies get to make their money still because everyone is watching their content in real time with ads, whether on the net or on their tv.
What happens is we see a dramatic shift towards live content, where you can't pirate because it's new and brand new. Everything else gets immediately churned into the internet melting pot where you can download everything that's historical (i.e. not live) for free. However, that means that stations are producing more and more live content to keep viewers and advertisers equally interested, and we see the loss of good dramas, films and content; replaced by live action gameshows, sitcoms, and most horrible tons of SOAP OPERAS! Oh yeah, and LOTS of product placement since you can't cut that out!

Peter F Hamilton predicted this quite a while back. Read his book 'Misspent Youth' and it's all there already (although it isn't the subject or theme of the book).

I'd also like to add that, in addition to the above, piracy is also going to be an issue where tv shows or films go worldwide. Not only do time differences impact the idea of live streaming to other countries, but cable companies are not global and therefore for them advertising fees are not targetted towards an international audience. So pirates still get into action to capture the shows and cut out the ad breaks for international audiences. The other reason why this is going to continue is because networks can't do the translations as quick as the guys on the internet. There's a massive lag time to produce official subtitles if you want to broadcast a show in multiple countries/languages at the same time, and each translator that has access to a show is another potential pirate. PLUS, even crappy translations are out on the net as soon as the show airs live in one country.

Beat that...

 

[Guest]

I pirate. Why?? Because I like to watch movies, pref in full HD on my nice plasma tv. If I were to go out and rent each movie I watch then this is going to cost me around €10 per week from a video rental place, which is a ludicrous amount of money just to watch 2 films that I will never watch again. I live in Ireland, where the internet in some areas is what you'd expect in the 3rd world. I get around 7Mbps at quiet times, at busy times around 5-6pm it will take around a minute to load a web page and becomes completely useless. Streaming (if its available) is out of the question with such a connection. So what I do is set my computer to download a movie overnight for me. I pay a monthly subscription of $11 a month to a 'provider' as I don't like bittorrent as its full of crap and viruses and often wont max my connection speed. A full HD film is typically around 8-13GB in size, this will download nicely overnight ready for me to watch the next evening.
I will occassionally download a game, but very rare, and only then it will be a game that I have no intention of buying whether piracy existed or not. I prefer multiplayer games, which if pirated will not work online so I ALWAYS buy these genuinely.
I prey everyday that maybe someday in the future we will have 1Gbps speed here. If I could get movies streamed at this kind of in full HD with blu-ray quality at a nice price it'd be great. I have steam but never buy anything from it, as its generally €10 more expensive than buying a disc from game, and its not very fast. What legitamate company will let you download at 1Gbps anyway? My 'provider' would allow me to.

 

[Guest]

I'm an American living in the Philippines. I pirate mainly because it is the only way I can get the content I want to watch. Filipino tv is garbage. Like wise American tv that I could receive via dish. Oh, sure the streets are full of the latest crap from Hollywood on dvd. But that stuff is pirated also and not the content I want. How else do I watch old shows from the 60's? An internet connection here is 1meg so streaming is pretty much out. Hulu is out because I live overseas. Never mind using a proxy. But I can frequently get good movies like Blade Runner, 2001, The Good The Bad And The Ugly via the torrents. And usually in HD. Ditto for the old shows I remember from my youth. So what the hell should I do? Sit on my hands and download nothing because piracy is bad, bad, bad. Or tell Hollywood to kiss my *** and download what I want? I will leave those last two questions as an exercise for the student.

 

[Guest]

I don't get statements like that^^..

If in ecudor u can't buy them, then why? And if so, why is the people in ur nation not doing anything about it? Or for any nation..?

If ur government, or infrastructure is that bad, fix it.. right? Make ur country the best it can be, from the inside. You steal things that isn't urs, because You cannot legally buy them in ur country..?

To me, that means you shouldn't even bother with such things until ur country (ur people) ur laws allow/facilitate such things.

 

[captaincranky]

So what the hell should I do? Sit on my hands and download nothing because piracy is bad, bad, bad. Or tell Hollywood to kiss my *** and download what I want? I will leave those last two questions as an exercise for the student.

Personally speaking, you can do whatever the f*** you want. Save for expecting me to waste my time solving your riddles.

Also useful for porn.

Jus' saying.

Yes indeedy!

 

[MilwaukeeMike]

Here's a newsflash.... no one care why or how you justify stealing. Any story about piracy always turns into a confessional with 'I HAVE to steal, I live to far away,' or 'My internet too slow,' or 'It's not MY fault they don't make games worth paying for'.

back on topic... this guy is right... as of june, 2011, 1Gbps is really only needed to download or share multiple movies at once. In a few years when HD is 3 times the resolution or if we're streaming 3D, then maybe it'll make sense.

 

[captaincranky]

back on topic... this guy is right... as of june, 2011, 1Gbps is really only needed to download or share multiple movies at once. In a few years when HD is 3 times the resolution or if we're streaming 3D, then maybe it'll make sense.

Since many households have networks, and ostensibly, many household members might be accessing the web at the same time, why isn't multiple movie streaming within the realm of >>> LEGAL<<< possibilities? It doesn't fit your internet model?

 

[MilwaukeeMike]

Ah... the 'hypothetical exception' card... Excluding the fact that the use of the word 'only' is almost always an exaggeration, I doubt this cable exec arrived at his conclusion because his customer surverys were coming back with people complaing that their 4 kids couldn't all watch separate movies at the same time via their tablets.

More probable is the motel owner who provides free wireless and would have 20 guests using it at once. You're right Cranky it would have been more accurate to say 99% of the use for 1Gpbs in 2011 is piracy.

 

[captaincranky]

Ah... the 'hypothetical exception' card... Excluding the fact that the use of the word 'only' is almost always an exaggeration, I doubt this cable exec arrived at his conclusion because his customer surverys were coming back with people complaing that their 4 kids couldn't all watch separate movies at the same time via their tablets.

More probable is the motel owner who provides free wireless and would have 20 guests using it at once. You're right Cranky it would have been more accurate to say 99% of the use for 1Gpbs in 2011 is piracy.

No, he probably arrived at his conclusion because he wanted to. Well, that and the fact that his infrastructure would need too much investment to make it a reality. So, "we don't have it because you don't need it", and "if you want it, you're a thief", become his reality.

Anyway, back in the day, we used to compete by saying, "my car's faster than your car", or, "my stereo's faster than your stereo", and not by getting on the internet and saying, "my PC's faster than your PC", "or perhaps, my smart phone is shinier than your smart phone"! See, the human spirit of competition lives on, albeit in a petty, shallow, trivial way, in a game played with imaginary money. Or should I say, "mommy and daddy's imaginary money".

I have 1Mbs DSL service, and I'm quite happy with it! So, you can save all the preaching, lecturing, jumping on the bandwagon, and pulling numbers out of your a**, for somebody that cares.

Personally speaking, I'm not too lazy to go to Redbox, and could care less whether or not the 3rd world has access to the same entertainment that I do.

That said, I hope you all get your wish, don't have to get out of your chairs for any reason, you really can spend your way to prosperity by online shopping, and your smart phone becomes your whole reality.

And for the other side's benefit, I hope you all get so dependent on the internet, that they stop selling physical media, and the DRM becomes so ponderous that it slows your systems to a crawl, they slap on ridiculous data caps, and the RIAA and MPAA finally triumph.

That way, I won't have to listen to the crying, whining, lying, bragging, or preaching. And yeah, I'm in it for me, so what?

 

[Guest]

Some people here forget the fact that in a typical household, there are more than 1 person living there that use the internet. If you have a family of 5 -7 people and everyone is streaming video, even the fastest current speed available will slowed significantly. Piracy will happen regardless of the situation. There are so many other ways to control piracy instead of limiting speeds. Comcast's CEO is an *****.

 

[dividebyzero]

...and could care less whether or not the 3rd world has access to the same entertainment that I do.

Speaking as someone who resides in that Third World, I'd say that if the NFL season is canned then virtually everyone here would quite happily forego the balance of what passes for U.S. "entertainment"....oops, wrong link (or is it?)...[fixed].

 

[captaincranky]

Speaking as someone who resides in that Third World,

I never really considered you ANZAC types, "third world". Methinks you're being way too modest.

I'd say that if the NFL season is canned then virtually everyone here would quite happily forego the balance of what passes for U.S entertainment.

Well, point taken. Save for the fact that personally I'm hoping the NFL season gets canned. That way I wouldn't have to contend with a bunch of total a**h***s on the news, grunting like they're about to take a dump, and trying to spell, "E-E-G-H-O-L-E-S" at the same time.

My TV has mostly been shut off since the season finales of a few action/drama series I enjoy. The rest is absolute garbage. Let me add to that I don't think Charlie Sheen is funny, or worth more than a day's pay, equivalent to a garbage collector's wages per epidode. His replacement,Ashton Kutcher, is an even bigger crap hole, so "2 1/2 Men", won't be on my viewing agenda in whatever future I can imagine.

Our Sci-Fi series never hang in there long enough to gain a following.

Pity we don't have any shows as sophisticated as "Dr. Who", to further idle away our time with. ....

And BTW, if you want an intelligent conversation, (and I assume you do since you posted a pic of the sheep watching Wubbya), I'd pick up the sheep's tail, talk to its a**h***, and shut off the TV altogether.

Some people here forget the fact that in a typical household, there are more than 1 person living there that use the internet. If you have a family of 5 -7 people and everyone is streaming video, even the fastest current speed available will slowed significantly. Piracy will happen regardless of the situation. There are so many other ways to control piracy instead of limiting speeds. Comcast's CEO is an *****.

For once I come down on the side of the guest. The fact of the matter is, Comcast can't supply 1Gbs internet, so they sent some douche bag to tell you you're a thief for wanting it

 

[dividebyzero]

I never really considered you ANZAC types, "third world". Methinks you're being way too modest.Well, point taken. Save for the fact that personally I'm hoping the NFL season gets canned.

Hey! Aren't your guys tied for first place at the moment?

That way I wouldn't have to contend with a bunch of total a**h***s on the news, grunting like they're about to take a dump, and trying to spell, "E-E-G-H-O-L-E-S" at the same time.

Sometimes being Third World has it's advantages...

I don't think Charlie Sheen is funny...

At least not intentionally

...or worth more than a day's pay, equivalent to a garbage collector's wages per epidode

I'd put that down to nepotism. Tou think if Martin Sheen wasn't pulling strings Charlie would have got the part in Hot Shots ahead of this guy?

His replacement,Ashton Kutcher...

Hahahaha, and America considers itself a developed country

...is an even bigger crap hole, so "2 1/2 Men", won't be on my viewing agenda in whatever future I can imagine.

I heard the studio were going to change the name to "One Man: Two Boys", but didn't want the Catholic priesthood getting any false hopes up.

Pity we don't have any shows as sophisticated as "Dr. Who", to further idle away our time with. ....

Dr.Who is only worth watching when Spike Milligan is involved

I'd pick up the sheep's tail, talk to its a**h***, and shut off the TV altogether.

I was wondering what Oprah's next project was

 

[captaincranky]

So You're Third World After All...

I though I'd share .this comment under the Dalek video with you:

British humour? The really funny thing is that Spike fought in the British army but was refused citizenship because he was born in India of Irish parents.

So he became an Australian.

OY...!

I was wondering what Oprah's next project was

Thanks for reminding me, I have to call Comcast and pay them about $100.00+ dollars a month for cable, because I'm going to miss her soooo badly, now that she's off broadcast TV.

(Damn, I should have saved that one for April Fool's Day)