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Don't Copy That Floppy! Gets a Sequel

Posted by timothy on from the not-the-jailhouse-fantasy-I-signed-up-for dept.

theodp writes "Back in 1992, the SIIA released Don't Copy That Floppy!, a goofy video in which anti-piracy rapper MC Double Def DP convinces a young lad not to copy a game by appealing to his sense of right and wrong. Now, to address what it calls 'new generations and new temptations,' the SIIA has uploaded a trailer for a new anti-piracy rap video — Don't Copy That 2 — that will be released this summer. To underscore the video's it's-not-just-a-copy-it's-a-crime message, the new film is a tad darker than the original. A smug teen who's downloading files from 'Pirates Palace' and 'Tune Weasel' finds his world turned upside down when automatic weapons-toting government agents break down the door and take his Mom away in handcuffs. The teen finds himself in a prison jumpsuit forced to tattoo shirtless adult inmates who eventually turn on him, physically attack him, and make him run for his life back to his jail cell (image summarizing his plight)."

8 of 523 comments (clear)

  1. BILLY MAYS HERE... by BillyMays · · Score: 5, Insightful

    ...with scare tactics!

    Seriously though, the first DCTF was happy and upbeat (and for good reason, as many people simply didn't know that copying a floppy was piracy). What happened to that feel? Are we really at a point where we're so influenced by the RIAA/MPAA's ways of doing things that SIIA's first sequel in 17 years immediately jumps to scare tactics?

    Maybe it's just me, but I see this quickly becoming one of those "You wouldn't steal a car" type of things - jumping to such an extreme that it becomes a satire piece.

    1. Re:BILLY MAYS HERE... by MBCook · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Watch the preview video. It's there now.

      I agree that at least DCTF served a purpose. This one is exactly where the RIAA/MPAA is. Kid copies some software, ends up making prison tattoos and being chased (so he can be beaten/killed) because he wasn't good at making the tattoo.

      It's clear cause and effect here: own a computer, be annoyed by an 80s reject rapper, get shanked in prison.

      What they need is another DCTF, just not corny. If they ran PSAs saying it's important to buy software, otherwise people won't be able to make The Sims 4, Crysis 5, or Barbie Horse Adventures 7: The Mysterious Case of the Calico Clydesdale, they could probably get a whole new generation of kids to think twice about copying.

      Instead they made themselves a joke again.

      Even if they had to do this campaign, did they really have to tie it into DCTF? That can't possibly lend them credibility. I bet if I showed this new video to the average 12 year old, they'd think it was some kind of internet sketch comedy thing.

      --
      Comment forecast: Bits of genius surrounded by a sea of mediocrity.
    2. Re:BILLY MAYS HERE... by snowgirl · · Score: 5, Insightful

      People seem to have a big problem with understanding what "illegal" means. You cannot go to jail for every illegal action. Some illegal actions create a civil liability, and some create criminal liabilities... and then criminal liabilities are separated into misdemeanors and felonies.

      I've had issues with people commenting that "prostitution is like murder, it's illegal", and I point out, "No, prostitution is like jay-walking... it's illegal." Prostitution is a misdemeanor and will not get one a lot of time in jail. It's why prosecutors (hell, law enforcement themselves) are so eager to offer a prostitute immunity in order to testify against their pimp (which is a felony).

      People just have a very hard time understanding that you cannot be sent to jail for every illegal action. ESPECIALLY, a hard jail. Typically the worst that you can be hit for with copyright violation is fines... it can make your life difficult, or even hell, but it can't take away your freedom.

      --
      WARNING! This girl exceeds the MAXIMUM SAFE standards established by the FDA for BRATTINESS
    3. Re:BILLY MAYS HERE... by Goldberg's+Pants · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Got into this argument with someone today. They said they wouldn't be STEALING a movie they want to see. I pointed out that downloading it is hardly stealing when, by my downloading it, I am not depriving a single person from seeing it.

      The car analogy doesn't work unless when I download Big Robots Part 8, someone going to see the movie gets turned away. "Sorry, Goldberg's Pants pirated this film so you can't see it."

      And yet these idiots just don't get how their analogy is utterly flawed. The thing is the media have spent so much time yelling IT'S STEALING! IT'S STEALING! IT'S STEALING! that the majority have bought into the lie put forward by the RIAA, MPAA etc... Despite the fact that they can say it a million times, and it still won't make it true.

      People who get hauled up for downloading are NOT charged with stealing or theft. It'd be better for them if they were because theft, rape etc... Carry far lesser sentences than what they are ACTUALLY charged with. Criminal copyright infringement.

      On a related note, I saw a nice piece of juxtaposition the other day that highlights the insanity. The RIAA verdict saying $84,000 or whatever it was per song, right next to a story saying the victims families of the Air France crash would get $24,000.

      Three human lives are worth one song apparently.

    4. Re:BILLY MAYS HERE... by Zero__Kelvin · · Score: 5, Insightful

      "Throw it into a DARE program (anti-drug education for those outside the US; called VIP in some areas of Canada) targeting 10-year olds who don't yet understand its stupidity, let it sit for a few years. Bingo, a generation of well-trained consumers who think free information is pure evil. "

      Great idea! They can eliminate all illegal copying using the same techniques they used to win the war against citize^H^H^H^H^H^Hdrugs!

      --
      Guns don't kill people; Physics kills people! - John Lithgow as Dick Solomon on Third Rock From The Sun
    5. Re:BILLY MAYS HERE... by esrobinson · · Score: 5, Insightful

      If you could use my car without having any chance of crashing it and with no wear/fuel usage, I'd be completely fine with it. I'm not going to be upset that you gained some benefit with no negative consequences for me.

    6. Re:BILLY MAYS HERE... by Sobrique · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Always thought the best 'anti-piracy' ad would be from e.g. a set carpenter on a blockbuster - saying something like: "hi. My name's Mike. I work on the set here, where they're making the ${latest_big_blockbuster}. I'm not a 'big name' - I get paid ${reasonable_amount} per (day/month/year), and I quite like my job - I like making movies, that you can see in the cinema or on DVD. I'd like to thank you for paying for (your cinema ticket|this DVD). You see, it's the sales of the film that determine whether they make another one or not - and that means I get to keep my job, and you get to enjoy another film."

  2. Re:Scare tatics by Zero__Kelvin · · Score: 5, Insightful

    OK. Now let's really put it into perspective. One of the most dangerous drugs on the planet is Alcohol. It is legalin the US. Osama isn't running any alcohol production/smuggling/distribution rings. Given that Marijuana, Cocaine, Heroin, etc. are only profitable to terrorists because the government chooses not to legalize and regulate them (in true hypocritical fashion), whom do we have to blame if they are making tons of money on the black market the government created and fuels again?

    --
    Guns don't kill people; Physics kills people! - John Lithgow as Dick Solomon on Third Rock From The Sun