Speakers address Hollywood’s piracy problem

Without batting an eye, college students are illegally downloading music and movies all over the country. What incentive is there for them to pay?

The year’s final John Templeton Series Debate, sponsored by the IU Maurer School of Law, addressed this issue of piracy and how Hollywood is going to combat it.

Professor Marshall Leaffer, lecturer in international intellectual property law, served as moderator for the debate and reflected on the issue calling piracy and copyright laws a “key issue of our time.”

“Piracy cost the motion picture industry $18.2 billion dollars last year. There are 2.5 million Americans employed by the motion picture industry — not just Julia Roberts or Will Smith — but everyday people like set builders trying to make a living. Movies are very expensive to make, around $100 million dollars,” said John Malcolm, former executive vice president and director of Worldwide Anti-Piracy Operations for the Motion Picture Association of America.

Malcolm supports increased legislation to protect copyright laws of movies and prosecution of illegal downloading sites.

“Movies are a profound cultural resource — they make us not only laugh and cry but also cause to think and rethink about issues,” Malcolm said.

“From an education standpoint I have an issue with a large proportion of the population being considered criminals, along with the indiscriminate flagship of who gets caught,” said Beth Cate, associate general counsel for IU.

Cate agrees with Malcolm that illegal downloading and piracy are serious issues but wants the film industry to take a different route than the music industry.

“Working with the IU network, I have had to deal with subpoenas from the music industry,” Cate said. “It is a University problem. Congress passed legislation placing an obligation on all colleges to use technology to suppress illegally downloading and file sharing. This brings up privacy and First Amendment concerns.”

Malcolm has less sympathy.

“The Internet is large and seamless,” Malcolm said. “That one copy a person downloads can be replicated millions of times. If you get caught don’t come crying — you were warned it is illegal.“

Cate and Malcolm agree a solution can be reached that will allow for creativity while allowing for sane amounts of compensation for producers but it will take time and further open discussion.

“Attending this debate further discouraged me from downloading illegally,” said graduate student Anne Wilkinson. “It is essentially stealing and is immoral.”