New software has been set loose unto the internet to give the MPAA their biggest headache since China’s limp anti-piracy policies. It’s called Popcorn Time and the mere mention of it probably has Hollywood’s lawyers salivating like Pavlov’s dogs at dinner time.
Popcorn Time is a relatively new approach to an old idea, but it’s effect is no less threatening to the movie studio business model. So why the hell is Hollywood trippin’ so hard over it?
Piracy
If you want to watch a movie, you have three options. You can try and rent it somewhere. You can buy it somewhere. Or you can sit and wait and hope that the movie you want to see will show up on one of the channels on your expensive cable package. Hollywood did it that way on purpose so that they could make every possible dollar on movies not in theatres.
Popcorn Time makes you able to see whatever movie you want whenever you want so long as someone out there has the software and movie on their computer’s hard drive. This includes new releases! How?
Bittorrent
Bittorrent is a way of P2P (pier to pier) downloading from one computer to the next. But instead of downloading your file from one computer, you’re downloading pieces of it from anyone that has the thing you want and an internet connection.
However, bittorrent won’t allow you to watch a movie until it’s done downloading. Popcorn Time lets you watch from the moment you start gathering the bits.
Ah. So you see why Hollywood is losing their minds over this, right? Well, it gets worse.
Napster
Remember Napster? Maybe you don’t. But the most important thing you need to know is that there was a time up until almost 20 years ago where you were required to buy whole CDs from music artists. If you wanted the fifth track off of a band’s album, but didn’t want to pay for the whole CD, too bad. Unless they released it as a single, you were paying for the whole thing. If you were lucky, it didn’t suck. More often than not though, it did.
Napster gave people the ability to download specific songs they wanted from other people’s computers for free. The music industry fought it for the longest time, but eventually coughed up a la carte song downloads in the form of iTunes, Google Play, etc.
Netflix
Since Net Neutrality has been struck down, Comcast has been charging Netflix fees in order to maintain their connection speeds to their customers. However, Netflix hasn’t been sitting on their asses. They’ve been throwing around the idea of adding a bittorrent-styled P2P version of their service to avoid internet companies altogether. Nothing’s for sure yet, but they also know they can’t keep the price of their service down forever if they have to keep paying shakedown money to Comcast and their ilk.
Here’s where it comes down to the final factor for why PopCorn Time will change the movie industry…
You
In the end, it’s about what you want and when you want it. You’re the consumer and it’s your money that Hollywood wants. Popcorn Time evens the playing field in that now you don’t have to wait for Hollywood and Comcast to give you what you want when they want to charge you for it. You can get it yourself. For free.
Napster and its users turned the music industry on its ear because you wanted music on your terms. Popcorn Time is the warning shot to the movie industry. Hopefully, they’ll revise their system. Most likely though, they’re going to fight it tooth and nail. As the sparks fly be sure to grab some popcorn and enjoy the show.
https://twitter.com/giant_life/status/354628266843316225
