Movie Piracy - Is There a Solution - Essay Example

This paper attempts to answer questions such as these. It argues why movie piracy should be stopped and how it can be curbed to a large extent, if not completely stopped. I. Instilling Ethics The film industry experiences losses to the tune of hundreds of billions of dollars due to movie piracy. Film studios and copyright holders are the largest victims. Movie piracy began with the advent of VCRs in the 1980s (Straubhaar, LaRose, and Davenport 204). Ever since, the copying and selling of movies has been rampant.

It is vital for both, vendors of pirated movies and consumers of pirated movies, to realize that the very practice of propagating and consuming pirated movies is unethical. It is unjust to jeopardize and exploit the hard work of others and deprive them of their fair share. Pirate activities undermine every aspect of the legitimate filmmaking business since legitimate retailers cannot possibly compete fairly with pirate business. Pirate operations do not have the average expenses associated with the cost of doing legitimate business.

Piracy negatively affects every rung on the ladder including the studios that invest in the film, the distributors, the retailers, and foreign and local filmmakers (MPAA qt. in Pang 43). Movie piracy is prevalent worldwide. According to Indian filmmakers, movie piracy accounts for at least 50% loss of revenue (Badam 46). Commenting at the practice of movie piracy, Mukesh Bhatt, an Indian film producer, states, “I’ve seen my movies pirated in streets abroad and it makes my heart bleed because it means I’m not getting my rightful share,” (Badam 46).

Those indulging in movie piracy need to realize that they are stripping the filmmakers of their hard work and well deserved earnings. It is important to understand that being involved in such unethical activities only for a few dollars is against civility and humanity. II. Highlighting the Actual Victims Another issue that must be brought to public notice is that movie piracy is not a victimless crime. Supporters of piracy may argue that it is not harmful to anyone and that it in fact eases the pockets of consumers who cannot afford to spend too much money.

This belief is contrary to the actual reality. Video piracy in fact harms the economy in many ways, whose effects cascade down to the general public including the perpetrators of the crime themselves.