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Kickstarted Veronica Mars Promised Digital Download; Pirate Bay Delivers
ConfusedVorlon writes with word that Warner Bros backed out on their promise of digital downloads for backers of the Veronica Mars film "Backers were promised 'You will receive a digital version of the movie within a few days of the movie's theatrical debut.' Warner Bros are providing a non-downloadable ultra-violet coupon (although Veronica Mars is available for download through other stores). The download is already available on the Pirate Bay. The download is even available on commercial stores. The users have already passed over their $35+. But rather than meet the demand for a DRM-free download, Warner Bros would prefer to return the original pledge to backers who complain.
What does this tell us about how movie studios view the world? There can't be a better indication of willingness to pay than 'they have already paid' — are these the pirates WB fears?"
What does this tell us about how movie studios view the world? There can't be a better indication of willingness to pay than 'they have already paid' — are these the pirates WB fears?"
So, according to movie industry math, Warner Bros ought to pay every backer $350?
Warner Bros is just big enough to not even have to pretend like they give a tiny shit about you.
They ARE investors.. The whole point of Kickstarter is for people with a good idea to solicit capital from interested investors. If the original terms of the agreement are not honored, perhaps the original investors can sue for their percentage of ownership of the entire profits of the operation.
--- We need more Ron Paul!
The Ultraviolet version is downloadable via the Flixster client, which plays back from your local machine. Backers were never promised a DRM-free download. Personally, I'll take a DRM download with no weird distracting artifacts over a watermarked DRM-free one. That said, DRM is evil and terrible and always sucks. However, it's not true that the Veronica Mars people broke their promises. That's a lie.
Cloudiot: A person who does not see offsite storage as a way to lose control over access to his or her own data.
UltraViolet (UV) is a free, cloud-based, digital rights library that allows users of digital home entertainment content to stream and download purchased content to multiple platforms and devices.
according to the link UltraViolet provides downloads. The issue was that UltraViolet is buggy. It provides downloads in theory. I think there was some region restriction also with the service. That didn't work with KickStarters international reach.
It's not even that Ultraviolet is buggy, but Flixster is buggy. This just highlights why UV is doomed if they don't fix their shit and drop this "You need an account here, and here, and here, and you need to link this account to that account, and this one to that one, and that one to that other one" BS. Then the poor saps that managed to do that were having issues with Flixster apps on different platforms. It's bad enough for the tech savvy, image trying to help your parent or no-so-technical sibling navigate that maze.
I browse on +1 so AC's need not respond, I won't see it.
Also if you were an investor you would receive imputation tax credits if your kickstarter failed (after raising the specified capital), and would receive shares and a dividend if it was successful.
I was trying to setup a similar scheme to Kickstarter in New Zealand with actual dividends and stock issues, but ran into a brick wall, as there is a certain club of people who are the only authorised persons to operate a stock market or make IPOs in NZ, and the only way to get into the club is to be invited by those already in the club (the clubs is made up of executives of large investment banks and the NZSE, and they have a vested interest in not allowing new members). Since this club is backed by the force of law, much like the Lawyers Guild of New Zealand, you get to see who is really in charge just by following the money.
To them it probably sounds like asking a socialist party from Europe to write an article that gets applauded by Fox News. I suffered through enough Bible classes to find the appropriate quote (from parable of the sower):
The disciples came to him and asked, "Why do you speak to the people in parables?" He replied, "Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. This is why I speak to them in parables: "Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: "'You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. For this people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.'
In their view of the world we've closed our hearts and minds to God and are blind and deaf to the truth, so in their eyes one scientist agreeing with another scientist on evolution is just the blind leading the deaf. You probably think the Nobel prize or scientific consensus means something to them, but it doesn't. To them a legion of blind men are still wrong and need to open their eyes, we're all wrong and the failure lies on our end because we can't see it not theirs. To get back to the parable:
"Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path. The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown."
They're the ones trying to sow the seeds, we're the barren ground. They're looking for the "good soil", the rest of us well they don't really give up on fertilizing it (or as I'd call it, spreading their shit) but well not everybody's cut out for heaven and they as the righteous ones are in and the unworthy of us are out. Unless we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior of course, then all is forgiven.
Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings