Why Bootleg Movies are Still Popular but Still Illegal
Bootleg movies are still popular, even though they are still illegally downloaded using p2p software. One of the major reasons for this is that the prosecution rates are extremely low in comparison to the millions of people that share movies using P2P file sharing software.
The same is true of illegally downloading music tracks and video games: very few are caught and taken to court. Naturally, if you are one of those that are caught it can be difficult for you, but most people feel that the chance is worth taking, and in any case there are few viable alternatives other than paying the right price. In fact that's wrong.
There are many viable alternatives: there are legal download sites online, some of which you will hear about later. For now, however, there are movie sites, for example, that don't have to resort to bootleg movies to make their money. They contain thousands of videos that have already been pre-approved for redistribution to the public from membership sites. Very similar to bootleg movie software, that enable you to illegally download the latest blockbusters using p2p file sharing software from membership sites.
In one case you can get taken to court, and in the other you can't. Similarly with the music and games files that the same bootleg movies sites offer using the same P2P file sharing software. You are taking a chance doing it because it is not legal. However, what alternatives are the movie and music companies in particular offering you?
The music companies have been responding well to the P2P software download threat by offering individual track downloads at very low prices. In fact it's hardly worth downloading them free any more because of the one-off membership fee charged to enable you to do so. Sure, it's a lifetime fee, but you could download a couple of dozen tracks legally for the same price.
Movies are a bit different because it costs just the same to download an entire movie as it does a single music track or a computer game, and the attraction of bootleg movies is obvious. There are still several sites online enabling you to download movies illegally largely because the software is not illegal. I could promote the software as long as I am not suggesting that you use it to illegally download copyright protected material. And I am not: in fact you should use P2P file sharing software to download bootleg movies or music, or any copyrighted files whatsoever, and that is not what it is intended for.
The purpose of the software is to allow new artists to advertise their talents, and allow their work to be freely distributed around the internet. If you use it for that then it is legal. The trouble is you don't often know what is protected and what isn't because the majority of companies don't bother to tell you their products are protected by copyright.
If that's the case then the question is: is that their fault or yours? In my opinion the technology is available to protect tracks from being illegally downloaded or copied, and if they can't be bothered to use it then why are they complaining?
Nevertheless, it is still illegal and while I cannot stop you from using the software on my website illegally, I do not suggest that you do, and give you a warning of that on my website. However, as I say, I can't stop you and neither can the software providers. We trust to your honesty even though the music, movie and games companies don't seem to be doing much about it themselves.
