Pirates Promise Improved Version of DaVinci Code 370
Y'arr, Matey writes "CD Freaks is reporting that pirates are not happy with the quality of the DaVinci Code. According to the article, "A sales assistant at one Shanghai DVD shop said the initial copies were 'pirated overseas' and that 'better quality' versions would probably be available early next month.""
From the reviews I must conclude (Score:4, Funny)
I concarrr (Score:3, Funny)
Re:From the reviews I must conclude (Score:5, Funny)
Re:From the reviews I must conclude (Score:5, Insightful)
Sorry for this completely off topic rant, but I just get like this whenever I hear how great Dan Brown novels are (which has been a lot recently).
Dan Brown's writing style (Score:3, Interesting)
News? (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:News? (Score:4, Informative)
The guys who do this stuff usually try to get their hands on (pre)release DVD/VHS screeners.
Failing that, they grab a telecine [wikipedia.org] or an telesync [wikipedia.org] done in an empty theater.
Cams usually suck because of their bad quality, both audio and visual. Street corner bootleggers (in countries where it's something of a professional business) generally get their VCD/DVDs from a source that is hooked into the topsites [wikipedia.org].
Cam releases don't count for much in "the scene".
Re:News? (Score:3, Informative)
Re:News? (Score:3, Funny)
wonderful news! (Score:5, Funny)
Re:wonderful news! (Score:5, Funny)
Re:wonderful news! (Score:3, Funny)
Re:wonderful news! (Score:5, Insightful)
It looks like somebody didn't read the moderator guidelines.
You may now mod-bomb me, I am full of love.
Re:wonderful news! (Score:3, Interesting)
Pirate Update (Score:3, Funny)
In fact, the pirate update has already been available [amazon.com] for a while.
Content (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Content (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Content (Score:2)
Re:Content (Score:2)
I just checked the filenames and I'm getting my rips from xvid, lol and loki. I don't know about other rippers, but for TV, these guys always have HD quality perfect rips.
Re:Content (Score:4, Insightful)
Re: Foucault's Pendulum (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Content (Score:2)
No, not the whole thing. They'll just send it to their friends in Bombay, who'll replace the boring bits with musical numbers.
Why is this on /. (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Why is this on /. (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Why is this on /. (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Why is this on /. (Score:2)
cam could be best (Score:2)
From any one cam, some video fields will be junk taken during a film frame transition. Get enough cams together, and you can get every frame of film.
If you want high resolution, zoom in. You can patch together a full image from multiple cameras. It's like doing a panorama. See panotools for a great example.
As is done in astronomy, one can use multiple images of the same thing to reduce image noise. This works for the sound too.
If you
Re:Why is this on /. (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Why is this on /. (Score:3, Insightful)
You are not reading very deeply into this. What goes on here is very much a justification-fest for Internet copyright infringmenet, where frail nerds tell each other that they aren't bad persons by voting the same opinions +5 Insightful over and over again.
Dislike of RIAA/MPAA tactics is only one small part of this, you can also claim that "information wants to be free", "their business model is obsolete", "pe
Re:Why is this on /. (Score:5, Insightful)
For some perspective, the movie The Da Vinci Code will enter the public domain in 2081. By then, the US will have already celebrated its tricentennial. The last Apollo moon landing will have been 99 years ago, and I will be 98 years old.
That, I think, is a problem.
Re:Why is this on /. (Score:2)
Crap, I meant 109 years.
Re:Why is this on /. (Score:2)
Sadly, even the EFF has fallen into this trap. At their best, they focus on critical public policy issues such as the length of copyright and the government tapping Internet traffic, but on the other hand they run "Downloading is cool, RIAA sucks" ads in Wired.
Good post (Score:3, Insightful)
It seems it's always okay to use as much bandwidth as you possibly can or to copy media as you like, but it's not okay when it's your bandwidth or your software that's being abused.
Re:Why is this on /. (Score:3, Insightful)
Stop trying to pretend that there is only one point of view on slashdot.
There are many thousands of readers and commentators on slashdot with many diverse points of view. Everything from Ayn Rand ideologues against almost any form of government to lying RIAA astroturfers spamming bullshit commercial propaganda and bogus moderations.
Your attempt to pidgeonhole them into one box is just sad, and shows just how impoverished your own view of the world is.
---
It's wrong that an intellectual property crea
Re:Why is this on /. (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Why is this on /. (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Why is this on /. (Score:2)
LOL. Seldom, no less. Have you even read slashdot between now and when you originally registered?
Re:Why is this on /. (Score:2)
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=site%3Asla
Re:Why is this on /. (Score:2)
I found it funny.
Re:Why is this on /. (Score:5, Insightful)
What they don't agree with is the *AA treating all their customers like criminals with (sometimes really nasty) copy protection that the real criminals know how to get past anyway.
Or the *AA creating ridiculous numbers and blaming all losses (even stuff thats not a real loss, like them missing their target growth) on copyright infringment, regardless of how crappy a product is.
Ot them using mafia tactics of "I don't have much proof and might not win in court, but I'll drown you in legal fees if you don't pay $3000 for something we think you did."
because (Score:4, Funny)
Re:because (Score:3, Interesting)
The top release groups are very picky about the criteria* [wikipedia.org] they use to evaluate a release that they're going to stick their name on.
To make sure that nothing gets past their filtering process, they have guys whose sole job it is to Nuke [wikipedia.org] "bad" releases.
*The wikipedia article only gives you a broad overview. Some release groups are insanely specific about their release and won't accept/distribute anything that doesn't fit within their narrow definition of "good"
Re:because (Score:2)
There is a huge market for high quality pirated merchandise in countries that can't afford the high prices for authorized copies. In Malaysia you buy pirated copies in shops at the mall like normal, and they offer low ($0.50) and high ($2.00) quality, and even let you preview the copy to make sure it's up to your standards.
Re:because (Score:3, Interesting)
Earlier this week the shops in downtown Kuala Lumpur (capital of Malaysia, for those unfamiliar with southeast Asian geography) were shut down by one of those periodic raids, the ones where the cops take all the DVDs they find on the premises and smash 'em up and email some photos to the MPAA. Obviously that's n
Re:because (Score:2)
And that's discounting the distribution advantages.
Plus pirates really care about providing the best quality to their consumer... they do it for pride.
And when HD comes out, guess where most of us will start watching it...
I don't know what's worse.. (Score:5, Funny)
Or that their customer service is better than most "official" DVD publishers.
Re:I don't know what's worse.. (Score:3, Funny)
Re:I don't know what's worse.. (Score:3, Interesting)
A friend of mine owns a mastering studio and contracts out large pressings. A few days before the release of the Da Vinci Code, he was contacted by somebody who claimed to have a copy and wanted 10,000 of them pressed as soon as possible.
Of course, my friend turned him down.
Judging by TFA, he must have finally found somebody to do it.
Re:I don't know what's worse.. (Score:5, Interesting)
A friend of mine was looking for an original copy of Star Wars on DVD for a movie night. After looking around for a long time, he finally found someone selling a custom version of the trilogy. These are mastered from the lazerdisks, and have been remixed to match the originals as closely as possible. The audio had been re-edited with the original effects, title, etc. They also included four disks worth of bonus material collected from the LD's, VHS editions, Re-releases, TV interviews, holiday edition, etc.
In short, they sold him the definitive box set that Lucas wouldn't*. The customer support was great. The vid and audio quality was excellent. The extras and menus were nicely polished. And of course none of the people who actually produced or worked on the movie got any money at all.
*Rumor has it that at the end of 2006, Lucas will be selling a box set of the hexagy, that includes the revised revised special editions plus the original versions of the films as they appeared in theaters. This is great, and would be considered the definitive archival set, except that he's also planning a revised revised revised "definitive" edition on blu-ray for 2007. And after that definitive, final, this-is-really-it edition, they're working on a 3D version. Sigh.
Can't be that hard... (Score:2)
Disappointed after reading TFTA... (Score:3, Funny)
No right to complain (Score:3, Insightful)
This is like stealing a car and then complaining to the owner that it doesn't have air conditioning.
Re:No right to complain (Score:2)
Well.... (Score:5, Funny)
In other news... (Score:5, Funny)
...and a dupe... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:...and a dupe... (Score:3, Funny)
Re:...and a dupe... (Score:2)
Re:In other news... (Score:2)
Why is this here? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Why is this here? (Score:2)
Re:Why is this here? (Score:2)
Re:Why is this here? (Score:2, Funny)
Remember "The Phantom Edit"? (Score:3, Funny)
Joke! (Score:2)
I mean, quality control from a piracy organization? Ha ha ha.
When? (Score:2, Funny)
pastafarians! (Score:2)
This time... (Score:2, Funny)
Arrr! (Score:2)
I heard (Score:2)
Damn (Score:2)
Okay, maybe its not front page material... (Score:5, Interesting)
What is interesting is that the unauthorized distribution chain is well organized enough that a typical time frame can be placed on the "next" release of the film. It speaks volumes about the actual control content producers have on their material.
In this day of first weekend hits which fizzle or stay on the charts for such a short time, and the inevitable surfacing of the video in the "pirate" channels - both physical and online - is it really advantageous to the bottom line to spread (a) the theatrical release from the home video release by several months and (b) the theatrical release across continents by several months. In an age of essentially world wide communications and market size, and with the ability to distribute and screen content digitally, why not release the films one weekend, and the home version the following Tuesday? Have a blockbuster you think will have staying power and want to try and get a repeat audience? Delay the DVD 2-3 weeks. Get your hype budget right up front, and make sure the patrons who liked the theatrical screening can pick up their own copy before they forget about it.
All the laws and controls the studios have bought from the various governing bodies in the world won't stop the people who make a living doing this kind of stuff. And, unlike drugs or arms traffiking, we're not talking about societal crimes and social unrest. It's a God damned entertainment flick. Quit trying to constrain these "pirates" with rules they won't abide - beat them at their own game. Get the real discs into stores and into consumers hands before the "pirates" do. Crappy copies are no fun to watch. And I don't know about you folks, but if you've ever tried to get a movie of any decent quality off of the usenet you know it can be a royal pain. Quite honestly, it's not worth my time to futz with it if I can have Amazon deliver it to my door for $15. And I pay for good usenet access, so my dowloads are easy and fast. Provide the goods and take away their business and reason for being. Sure, you'll still have to deal with the snot-nosed teens who pirate stuff for the thrill, but those folks aren't going to be buyers (by and large). Write them off.
FWIW, I have unauthorized copies of Star Wars (IV), The Little Mermaid, and (on VHS) Song of the South. I have since purchased Ep. IV, though it had been out for a while (heck, I already "bought" a copy, right?). TLM is "in the vault". I couldn't purchase one from Disney if I wanted to, so some Malaysian pirate got my $20 - I'm claiming fair use since I own the VHS (with the phallic cover, no less). SotS will "never be released", though having watched it I can't quite figure out why. The NAACP has nothing to worry about in the portrayal of of the slaves, but caucasians should be appalled at the portrayal of the plantation owners in the film.
IMHO, the movie cartel actually keeps these shady shops in business. That's what the story really is.
Your comments are being watched... (Score:2)
I knew it! (Score:2)
New version (Score:5, Funny)
Using (pirated) PC-based video editing software, enterprising movies pirates have issued a new, improved version of the Da Vinci code. A plot summary follows:
Middle-aged Harvard professor Robert Langdon is giving a lecture in Paris when he is confronted by a police detective, who shows him a picture of a man who has been murdered in a gruesome fashion. Langdon, who has been living in an airport terminal [imdb.com], takes off in search of the holy grail, which has been stolen by a young Leo di Caprio [imdb.com]. A gratuitous time warp takes him back to WWII to save Matt Damon from being killed by Nazis [imdb.com]. Returning to the present, a slingshot around the moon [imdb.com] reveals his presence to vengeful mobsters [imdb.com], who are unimpressed by his skill at ping-pong and shrimping [imdb.com]. Escaping from them via Fed-Ex cargo plane [imdb.com] only leads him to a close encounter with a volcano and a young Meg Ryan [imdb.com], with whom he has a cheesy and banal romance that only a woman could appreciate [imdb.com]. With a newfound attitude towards the fairer sex he agrees to coach a group of weepy baseball players [imdb.com], but mysteriously, without even sleeping with any of them, he contracts AIDS and dies [imdb.com]. But that doesn't stop our hero. He returns from the dead [imdb.com], bangs a mermaid [imdb.com], and brings joy to millions of kids [imdb.com] before returning back to Paris where he started, which makes you wonder why the hell he left in the first place.
Ahoy Matey! (Score:2)
New, Improved Da Vinci Code? (Score:2)
I think the most inane thing, in a very inane book, was when the world-renowned linguist/prodigy who spoke umpteen dialects and was consulted by the NSA for his Chinese expertise couldn't tell the difference between Chinese and Japanese in less than thirty minutes. Oh, but it gets better (at least, if you have any clue about eit
Anyone else find it ironic... (Score:2)
that's how it is in China (Score:2, Interesting)
Movies that are showing in the theatres will usually be in the stores a few days *earlier* than in the theatre; most often, they won't show in the theatres at all.
The way it is in China (Score:5, Interesting)
I was sorely tempted to snap up DVDs for bootlegging before coming back home but resisted.
I'm not sure I have much of a point other than piracy is here to stay in China. Copy-protection won't matter one wit because it is done by professionals with the equipment to do it right, and it is so firmly a part of the society I don't know anyway you could stop it if you really tried. I for one like the fact that if things become too draconian here stateside I always have a source that can hook me up in the East.
Re:The way it is in China (Score:3, Interesting)
Yes, that goes for DVD recordables too.
Seriously, what makes China that different? Piracy is rampant pretty much everywhere. It's just that pirated material is sold there. Good for those who're lazy enough, but I can't say it's hard to let a computer stay on over the night and spend a few minutes burning your own high quality pre-release DVD.
In Guangzhou lot of people have 50+ inch plasma Hi-Def TVs.
Yes,
Re:The way it is in China (Score:3, Interesting)
I am not Chinese. But you made a wild unsubstantiated statement.
Developing economies like India and China has official versions of audio-visual content priced very high. Last I checked an official DVD of a typical Hollywood film goes for USD8 and above in both the countries. This is equivalent t
davinci code (Score:3, Interesting)
This does bring up an interesting point, RIAA and MPAA are so busy suing average folk in the US that they don't really make any serious efforts against the huge pirates in China. Chinese pirates will continue to go about ripping off movies and software because the Chinese government would rather side with its people than some evil foreign capitalist organization.
Why the fuck? (Score:4, Insightful)
This sort of shit really pisses me off.. why the fuck did China gain admittance into the WTO with this appalling shit going on? They're not even hiding the fact that this is going on..
Sorry for the profanity, but this really makes me angry..
am i the only one... (Score:3, Interesting)
I've read all the dan brown books, but from what I've heard of the movie, it's quite tedious.
smash.
Re:I can't believe... (Score:5, Insightful)
I don't know if the news source can be trusted. And how come a few words that this average salesman said suddenly become news?
Pirates won't stop pirating movies and their quality always increases. They'll try getting the actual film from the theatres and rip it. Or even yet, get an "internal agent" which would work closely with the movie to leak a copy. Ah, so many possibilities!
As for the movie itself, I still have to force myself to read the book before watching it.
Re:I can't believe... (Score:2)
I think the movie was just 'okay', and the book was awesome. My suggestion would be to see the movie first, and then read the book. That way you're not disappointed..
Aero
Re:I can't believe... (Score:2)
... that this wasn't moderated Flamebait.
Didn't know there was anyone who thought the book was good, let alone awesome... people everywhere bash it so rightfully and so unanymously...
I'd actually thought the movie couldn't be worse than the book, especially in the infamous Croatian translation... but from the sound of it, maybe they put Croatian translators to work on the movie.
Re:I can't believe... (Score:2)
Aero
I DON"T believe... (Score:3, Informative)
Having lived in SE Asia until quite recently, and having seen high quality copies of everything from the Incredibles to SW 3 weeks before they hit the cinema, I am certain that high quality boots are available of DvC.
My guess is that he choose the wrong vendor.
Re:4th comment :) (Score:2)
OK (Score:2)
Re:Cmon people! (Score:4, Insightful)
Link [thepiratebay.org]
Aero
Re:The major stages of releases (Score:2)
Re:So the pirates are in effect... (Score:2)
Re:Sadened (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Sadened (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Sadened (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Sadened (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Sadened (Score:4, Insightful)
A monopoly is ONE company, not an entire industry. Nobody has a monopoly on movies. You might complain that there's price fixing going on, but that has nothing to do with a monopoly.