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Sony To Release the Interview Online Today; Apple Won't Play Ball
An anonymous reader writes "The BBC reports: "Sony Pictures is to distribute its film The Interview online, after a cyber-attack and a row over its release. The film will be offered on a dedicated website — seetheinterview.com — as well as via Google and Microsoft services." Notably absent among the services to provide The Interview is Apple. The New York Times reports: "According to people briefed on the matter, Sony had in recent days asked the White House for help in lining up a single technology partner — Apple, which operates iTunes — but the tech company was not interested, at least not on a speedy time table. An Apple spokesman declined to comment. "
It's $5.99 for a terrible movie... You go first.
Kim Jung-un has:
* Inherited a position and country that was already hated.
* Behaved as expected of his culture.
* Never been known for harming anyone outside of his own country.
* Suffered insults in nearly every report about him for as long as he has lived.
* Had the majority of information about him relayed through South Korea, a hostile country.
My understanding of the North Korean culture is that the whole system works by deifying their leader. Propaganda is extremely important. With the world seemingly against their administration, it makes sense that things that trickled into their country would be highly censored. It would be stupid of them not to censor it since it could lead to unrest, civil war, doom, destruction, death, fire, lack of bacon.... and other bad things.
South Korea has already mentioned plans to take this film, put it on dvd, and float balloons across the border to incite rebellion in the population. By trying to prevent the movie from being distributed at all, North Korea is essentially trying to avoid anarchy caused by external propaganda.
Why are we so eager to overthrow their regime? Is democracy so sacred that we must ~force~ it on every country around the world? What business is it of the US (and Hollywood) to decide what is the best system? What they have there is what developed in that region. It is a system that won out over the infighting to unite their country. It might not fit our definition of "fair" for the population, but that's only our definition. It's our own view that we're extending upon them, a culture that has had to isolate itself just to keep together.
I for one will NOT be watching this film. I find the comedic insults of a leader and the trivialization of his death is in extremely poor taste, especially since he has done no wrong to me nor anyone I know. "Live and let live" is supposed to be a phrase that the citizens of the US are pushed to believe and follow, especially recently with anti-bullying and gay marriage. This film and the common national support for it spits in the face of that mantra.
Anyone that has EVERY put anything out with Apple -- Apps, Books, Music, Movies -- knows that Apple sends an email several weeks in advanced telling that they are going into a freeze for a week or two EVERY YEAR. They let their people go on vacation and spend time with the family and all that shit.
This was sent out in November: http://www.macstories.net/news...
Guess what? It takes about a week from the time Apple gets a movie until they post it. They do a QA check on it, and make certain the ratings are correct and ask that the folks on the other side to verify the same. The quickest this happens is about a week. And now Sony wants Apple to order their employees back in from their vacation, all the while not putting this up on either of their two services.
I know /. hates Apple these days (I was around when /. loved them) but damn...