Piracy a "Global Pricing Problem"

[Vexx]

Originally Posted by Vallen Chaos Valiant

Actually, consider the fact that the Internet has rendered the distribution costs of information to a fraction of a cent, it is inevitable that if you don't distribute physical goods, you are going out of business.

Information itself can be valued. But the distribution of information has become so easy that it is no longer economical to transport physical matter around for it.

That's why in order to survive, in the long run one needs to add value by distributing things you can't obtain online.

In that sense, it isn't about piracy in this situation. People just don't expect to pay the same amount of postage to send an email the same way they had to with a physical letter. When you become obsolete, you have to change or die.

That's one of the reasons DVDs come with PHYSICAL swag and bonuses... it adds value -- something the US distributors of anime seem to missing the boat on.

[Ithekro]

I've seen some that try it and it generally doesn't work as often in the United States. Maybe it is because the stuff they are throwing in is crap or not what someone getting the DVDs would want.

[Vexx]

Originally Posted by Ithekro

I've seen some that try it and it generally doesn't work as often in the United States. Maybe it is because the stuff they are throwing in is crap or not what someone getting the DVDs would want.

It's hit or miss... I adore my packaging and contents of Kamichu!, ARIA, Toradora!, and some others... but I thought the Lucky*Star "t-shirts" were appalling and actually a bit insulting even though they were probably much more expensive to produce.

One of my favorite Western packages was the first season of Northern Exposure with the orange zippered hunting vest it came in. To some degree, a distributor has to decide whether they want a niche quality product that people with wallets buy.. or a product that will festoon the shelves of Walmart at 9.99. Most of the US distributors don't seem to have the knack of tuning this per product -- which is bizarre considering they're fairly small operations that should be able to dance on a dime.

[Nightbat®]

Originally Posted by Vallen Chaos Valiant

Actually, consider the fact that the Internet has rendered the distribution costs of information to a fraction of a cent, it is inevitable that if you don't distribute physical goods, you are going out of business.

Information itself can be valued. But the distribution of information has become so easy that it is no longer economical to transport physical matter around for it.

That's why in order to survive, in the long run one needs to add value by distributing things you can't obtain online.

Let's be realistic, basically nothing has changed

The half-life of media entertainment has always been ridiculously short

I have more songs and albums on casette tapes predating Napster than I have MP3's on my computer

in 1985 We didn't have to wait for a box set release of S1 of the A-team because we already had it at home on VHS

[Prongs]

Indonesia
my total revenue was 220$ per month
my total expenses was almost 150$ plus saving 20$
what can I got with 50$ left?

for example with 2$ you got a 8 hours Internet service with 56k international bandwith and 1mb regional banwidth. and around that time I will got 10 HD eps Gundam. 1 You Cannot Advance movie. almost hundred page of manga.

so what do you think? can spend 50$ left to buy games, softwares, Anime, Manga, equal with my Internet DL with just 2$?

[Nightengale]

Your country, Indonesia, has one of the highest rising cost of basic necessities, being food, taking up an average of FREAKING 50% of the average income of an Indonesian, compared to US or UK that ranges between 5-10%.

That is a painful reality as far as global pricing goes.

[synaesthetic]

I don't know what America you live in, but food surely eats up more than 5-10% of my monthly outlay!

Food is fucking expensive, dude--to the point where the price difference between eating out and cooking for myself is very small. I can't buy in bulk because I don't have the space to put it.

Food costs per month are generally about $200-300... and that's eating a lot of miso and rice. Maybe that's 5-10% of a career person's income, but it's a huge chunk of a starving student's...

[DonQuigleone]

Originally Posted by synaesthetic

Food is fucking expensive, dude--to the point where the price difference between eating out and cooking for myself is very small. I can't buy in bulk because I don't have the space to put it.

Food costs per month are generally about $200-300... and that's eating a lot of miso and rice. Maybe that's 5-10% of a career person's income, but it's a huge chunk of a starving student's...

To be fair, Food (and shelter) are the only two goods you absolutely need. Historically Food has always been the biggest expense for most people. Besides, I'd take time over high wages any day. What's the point in having money if you've no time to spend it?

Anyway, Piracy is certainly not a recent phenomena (the US was famously a haven for Media Piracy in the 19th Century, didn't pay on copyright for music scripts! Oh the irony...), though today it is cheaper. The fact is though, that the average person doesn't put that high a value for music and TV. Until recently these things were provided for free anyway, through TV or Radio(paid through advertising, subscription or Taxes). Most people who heard a song wouldn't end out buying it, and the idea of selling a tv show after it ran was considered absurd, as recently as the 90s (it was all considered quite disposable).

That's why I think the future is subscription services. I could see myself paying 20$ a month to access the entire BBC catalog and output, or to have access to every anime that airs. I can't see myself paying 20$ for a couple of episodes I'll likely never watch again. Anime isn't always quite so disposable, but a lot of it is.

Another alternative would be able to donate cash to the makers. I don't particularly want to own DVDs, but it would ease my concience, and help support the artists. Why should such a large percentage of my cash go to middlemen like retailers or DVD manufacturers? Let it all go to the studio.

[Ithekro]

Well, and water. Some places water is expensive.

[Random32]

I think the future should be subscription services, but it seems that people are locking down on those type of services. Like Netflix users have to wait 90 days minimum for a lot of content now. The industry doesn't want to go the subscription route, they probably won't be willing until they run themselves into a place where they can litigate to continue their current model any further and are forced into it to stay alive.

On the topic of donations. I think there should be an option to pay money directly to the dev team/etc instead of the people in between. I would personally pay extra to make sure all my money goes to the people who made the game/movie/etc instead of the people who are above them in the food chain. Its not going to happen though, sadly.

[synaesthetic]

I basically live off of Pandora on my smartphone, it's great. It's how I hear new music, and how I decide what to buy. Wish my data cap was higher though... *grumbles*

Step one, listen to Pandora and hear a song I like. Step two, pull up the whole album on YouTube or download it from somewhere and give it a listen. Step three, purchase said album if it's good, from the artist's website directly if possible.

[delirium]

If I were such a media pirate, it would be probable that I would stop downloading things if prices were dropped, if that were the case and if I were a pirate, that is.

[solidguy]

Originally Posted by Vallen Chaos Valiant

I accept Steam, but I will never be totally happy with it until it starts to equalise pricing planet-wide. I should not have to pay twice as much for being an Australian.

Which will never happen. American govt is so deep in the pockets of the MUsic and Film industry that I wouldnt be suprised if the crack down on piracy continues to escalate. Its all Americans care about, money.

[Random32]

Originally Posted by solidguy

Which will never happen. American govt is so deep in the pockets of the MUsic and Film industry that I wouldnt be suprised if the crack down on piracy continues to escalate. Its all Americans care about, money.

not really Americans, since lots of us are complaining too. money is what all corporations care about. legally, they are obligated to do what their shareholders want them to do. In most cases, this is to increase the price of their stock, thus, sadly, all they care about should be money, if they don't want to get sued by their shareholders.

I would like to ask, that since corporations exist to serve their shareholders, is it possible that we could all team up and become a large enough portion of their shareholders that we can influence their decisions with our desires?

[Vexx]

Originally Posted by Random32

not really Americans, since lots of us are complaining too. money is what all corporations care about. legally, they are obligated to do what their shareholders want them to do. In most cases, this is to increase the price of their stock, thus, sadly, all they care about should be money, if they don't want to get sued by their shareholders.

I would like to ask, that since corporations exist to serve their shareholders, is it possible that we could all team up and become a large enough portion of their shareholders that we can influence their decisions with our desires?

Unlikely.. since the "exists to serve shareholders" and "maximize value for shareholders" is a canard. Corporations do not listen to their shareholders unless there's a tidal wave revolt -- their purpose is to extract maximum wealth for a few key players and executives. The shareholders, the customers, and the employees are usually left holding the empty bag.

But .... I suppose one could argue the only "Americans" left are the immortal corporations since the government has been almost completely co-opted by them.

[SaintessHeart]

Originally Posted by Vexx

Unlikely.. since the "exists to server shareholders" and "maximize value for shareholders" is a canard. Corporations do not listen to their shareholders unless there's a tidal wave revolt -- their purpose is to extract maximum wealth for a few key players and executives. The shareholders, the customers, and the employees are usually left holding the empty bag.

Correct. Even though shareholders, be it common ones who have a right to veto any company decision or the preferred ones who get paid first, they are nothing more than funding sources for the companies.

[Random32]

oh well... I can always dream, can't I?

I personally think the domain name seizures that were performed recently were very much unconstitutional. What are the chances that the people behind them will get in any trouble?

[synaesthetic]

Originally Posted by Random32

oh well... I can always dream, can't I?

I personally think the domain name seizures that were performed recently were very much unconstitutional. What are the chances that the people behind them will get in any trouble?

Less than zero.

[Ithekro]

That is slightly negative, isn't it?

[synaesthetic]

Originally Posted by Ithekro

That is slightly negative, isn't it?

Indeed it is. More than likely, the douchefaces who shut down the domain names won't be harmed, while the innocent people who weren't infringing any imaginary copyrights will have a shitload of red tape and nonsense to deal with.

Thus, negative retribution.