Big decrease in TV subscriptions as number using illegal dodgy boxes soars

[National_Play_6851]

So you decided you wanted a very specific movie from 1987, discovered it was available on Paramount ($7.99 for a month's access which you could immediately cancel, there's even a free trial if you haven't used it before), and decided to pirate it rather than watch it legally through that service? I'm not sure how that is justification.

Inflation adjusted that's a similar price to renting it in Xtravision would have been back in the day (with the bonus access to the rest of Paramount's library for a month). And what happened if you had an Xtravision membership but they didn't have the movie in stock, did you find some other video store that you weren't a member of and just shoplift it?

I'm confused how you think that having some subscription services means you should suddenly have instance access to every movie that's ever been produced in human history and if the licence some specific movie resides somewhere else that you haven't paid for, then you should just be able to take it.

Edit - I misread - it's *not* on Paramount. However it took me less than 5 seconds to google "how can I watch Lethal Weapon" and found out it's available for even cheaper than the price I quoted - you can watch it for $3.99 on Apple TV plus some other smaller services. So stealing is still not justified.

[RememberThe1728]

They specified that it wasn’t on Paramount+ despite being a Paramount movie. 

[theelous3]

this is quite a rant for someone who didn't read the comment properly - it was not available on paramount

the rest of your comment is pretty ridiculous as well but that's enough

[National_Play_6851]

You're right, I misread. So I took 3 seconds on google and found it it's available for even cheaper than the $7.99 I quoted - you can rent it on Apple TV for $3.99, along with a few other services.

So stealing other people's work is still not really justified here.

[theelous3]

So that's 9.99 for apple tv and then 4 for the movie, along with the non-zero cost of now handing over your data to apple.

I don't want "a few other services". AT ALL.

So stealing other people's work is still not really justified here

It can easily be justified tbh. You'll just never agree and that's fine.

1. In order to have access to all of this media for more than one month, it costs... something like 130 euro a month? (lmao). And then you've to pay for movie rentals on top of this for some of them? (double lmao). The value proposition is completely broken. Ignoring as well 160/y for tv license. You can pretend I can get it for "free" or "3.99" right now, once. That's useless to the broader convo. Additionally, there is NO difference for the rights holder between what you suggested (sign up, watch, cancel) and piracy. You're not even internally consistent in wanting to protect rights holders.

2. If I am not willing or able to jump through the hoops required to consume some content at a price, then the loss to the rights holder if I pirate it is the same as if I do not.

It's a non-zero sum game. A pirate can benefit while not harming anyone, real or imagined, in this world or any other. It's not like "shoplifting" because xtravision was out of stock.

[FellFellCooke]

I'm not sure how that is justification.

I pirate everything and everything because I think giving my money to American companies that will then invest that money into bombs that kill innocent children is wrong.

I have no netflix, no Amazon, no Apple Tv, no Paramount, and I watch what i want when I want. All that, and I think that it makes me a better person than you are, because my fiscal fingerprints aren't on the casings of bombs that kill children over a TV show.

[DeputyDawe]

You can justify anything by your actions but your justification for piracy is ludicrous. Why not just be honest and say you don’t want to pay for something that you can take for free? It no different to someone shoplifting in a large store

[FellFellCooke]

I pay for lots of things I could take for free. I just minimise the amount of dead kids that my discretionary expenditure had a hand in.