Movie rights, wrongs

Christina Asavareungchai / Seattle Times 

 Imagine this: You download a few movies off the Internet. Later, you find out that you're being sued by the Motion Picture Association of America and may be fined up to $150,000 per downloaded movie.

 Sound unlikely? It is, but it's not impossible.

 Following the music industry's misdirected attempts to stop unauthorized downloading, the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) is suing individual file-sharers. Last November, it filed hundreds of lawsuits in federal courts across the nation.

 This is an outrage to many college students.

 With fast Internet connections and popular peer-to-peer networks such as Direct Connect, Morpheus, Grokster and Kazaa, students can download movies in less than 20 minutes, burn them on CDs and watch them on any computer.

 Instead of adapting to this promising technology, the movie industry is trying to shut it down.

 In addition to suing individual file-sharers, the MPAA is taking legal action against more than 100 American and European servers. Recently, the popular file-sharing site Supernova.org closed down, amid the laments and curses of angry students.

 Congratulations to the MPAA. It's not only clogging the courts with lawsuits and becoming the No. 1 Most Hated Industry Group on college campuses nationwide, it's also using a completely ineffective approach.

 Lawsuits won't stop unauthorized file sharing.

 Want proof? Look at the music industry's failed attempts to sue downloaders into submission. The Recording Industry Association of America has filed more than 6,100 lawsuits, but countless students still download music.

 In fact, many University of Washington students download music on a daily basis. They download when they're bored, stressed, avoiding homework and when it's too rainy to go anywhere (which is almost always). Some students accumulate hundreds or even thousands of songs on their computers.

 Apparently, the recording association's lawsuits have done little to stop unauthorized downloading.

 The movie industry, however, is following the music industry's erroneous approach. It's using the same overexaggerated scare tactics, lawsuits and threats. Movie-industry leaders are trying to act tough, but they should leave that to Vin Diesel.

 "People who have been stealing our movies believe they are anonymous on the Internet, and wouldn't be held responsible for their actions," said MPAA president Dan Glickman in a press statement. "They are wrong. We know who they are, and we will go after them."

 This statement might strike fear into a little kid's heart, but it doesn't have the same effect on most students. We're old enough to realize the chances of being sued are minimal. We're smart enough to see through the MPAA's attempts to scare us. And we're getting very, very annoyed.

 Instead of treating us like children, the movie industry needs to see us as tech-savvy customers who deserve better. Instead of admonishing, the MPAA needs to provide us with realistic alternatives.

 First, the MPAA should work with theaters to lower prices. It's common for tickets to cost $10 per person, so many students prefer to download movies instead of paying exorbitant theater prices.

 Lower movie prices would bring in more business. Nothing attracts the college crowd like student specials and discounts.

 Second, the movie industry should set up its own legitimate file-sharing network, allowing students to download movies for reasonable prices. Sales over the Internet can work, especially if there's a wide variety of new, high-quality releases available for legal downloading.

 For example, Apple's iTunes is enjoying enormous success. It has sold 200 million songs since April 2003.

 Ultimately, the movie industry must take advantage of powerful new technology and provide fast, legal, inexpensive options.

 Instead of antagonizing college students, the MPAA needs to acknowledge our needs and find creative ways to meet them in a changing market.