Netflix, HBO and Cable Giants Are Coming for Password Sharers • Hacker News Board

Re: Netflix, HBO and Cable Giants Are Coming for Password Sharers

#201

Post by magduf » Fri, Nov 08, 2019, 9:36 PM UTC

kempbellt wrote: post #176

LeoNatan25 wrote: post #131

No worries, I'll just use the torrent sharers. I bet those will give me a constant 4K quality on all my devices, no ridiculous DRM, get to keep them once I terminate my "subscription", etc. Oh and it's free, not 10-15$ USD for each service.

I may (or may not) have built my own Netflix competitor. It had more content than all of the major providers combined. Legal buffer: I will not say what the content was. It may have all been non-copyrighted cat videos ;) The service was available cross region. Stored videos in multiple resolutions for streamability in low-bandwidth situations. No DRM bs. It cost me under $400/month to run the whole service, and I cou…

>Legal buffer: I will not say what the content was. It may have all been non-copyrighted cat videos ;)

Cat videos are far more enjoyable to watch than the dreck that Hollywood is putting out these days.

Re: Netflix, HBO and Cable Giants Are Coming for Password Sharers

#202

Post by diminoten » Fri, Nov 08, 2019, 9:37 PM UTC

LeoNatan25 wrote: post #199

diminoten wrote: post #196

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You couldn't be more wrong. You do not have an entitlement to intellectual property, our entire society is built on top of that concept. It's more like you're saying you get to use any logos you want because you can download the images for them on their website. The only reason you can listen to a concert outside of the venue is because there's no way to stop you that's also in any way proportionate to the crime. Edi…

> The only reason you can listen to a concert outside of the venue is because there's no way to stop you that's also in any way proportionate to the crime. As is stopping people from pirating. Where there is will, there is a way. The promise of Netflix was that virtually all content (or at least a very large percentage of it) would be there, under one subscription, at optimal quality. And convenience. As years have g…

I agree, I don't think the individual pirates are ever going to be in any real trouble. HOWEVER, while it's impossible to find every person who improperly listened to a concert without paying for a ticket, it is not impossible to find every person who improperly obtained a video file for content they haven't paid for.

Just something to keep in mind as we talk about this; you can actually find the people who did it, and there's actual (digital) evidence, if the government ever decides to change its mind on the issue.

Let me be clear; I don't give a shit if someone pirates digital media. But I do think it's a personal failing of mine that I don't care.

I do, in principle, believe in the concept of intellectual property, and I do, in principle, believe someone who owns an idea can decide to only give it to people who have paid. However, on a purely practical level, I cast no judgement towards anyone who violates that belief, even though I do understand that it does cause real, tangible harm.

Re: Netflix, HBO and Cable Giants Are Coming for Password Sharers

#203

Post by LeoNatan25 » Fri, Nov 08, 2019, 9:40 PM UTC

steveeq1 wrote: post #194

paxys wrote: post #186

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There are valid arguments for whether it is right nor wrong, but it is most certainly not "theft". Call it copyright infringement or piracy or whatever else.

https://torrentfreak.com/images/piracy-is-not-theft.png

You should post the full image:

https://i.imgur.com/FPoJnH3.png

;-) Arr matey

BTW—I never thought that I would still find use of these things from early 2000s. Going into the 2010s, it looked so promising. But they couldn't have a good thing going.

Re: Netflix, HBO and Cable Giants Are Coming for Password Sharers

#204

Post by magduf » Fri, Nov 08, 2019, 9:41 PM UTC

joshstrange wrote: post #20

> If none of those tactics work, pay-TV subscribers could someday be required to sign into their accounts using their thumbprints. This feels like an idea from some idiot corporate suit who said "Well there are fingerprint readers on phones, let's use that to lock down accounts" without understanding that your app just gets as "Yes" or a "No" when you ask the phone to scan a fingerprint. The apps themselves don't get…

>> The pay-TV industry is projected to lose $6.6 billion in revenue from password sharing and piracy this year, according to Parks Associates. By 2024, the number could grow to $9 billion, the research firm said.

>BULLSHIT, we heard this SAME argument about piracy. Piracy/Account sharing DO NOT equal a 100% loss in sales.

The software, music, and video industries have been posting enormous "losses" in the billions like this for a few decades now. If they were really losing that much money, they would have all been out of business by now. Instead, last I checked, most of them are more profitable than ever.

Re: Netflix, HBO and Cable Giants Are Coming for Password Sharers

#205

Post by cdcox » Fri, Nov 08, 2019, 9:41 PM UTC

Also seems to ignore that social pressure keeps people from account hoping.

Personally, I'd be much more likely to a la carte services on a month by month basis if I didn't have the subtle social pressure that 'well I'm not using this but my friends X, Y, and Z all are'. Even lacking the pressure element it seems like a small 'gift' to my family and friends who are on it and that it's not 'going to waste'. There is even the element of watching tings your friends are watching that keeps you watching. If they eliminated that I'd probably never keep more than one active at a time and likely not even that. Also once I've dropped a service for nonuse I'm much less likely to go back.

Re: Netflix, HBO and Cable Giants Are Coming for Password Sharers

#206

Post by jandrese » Fri, Nov 08, 2019, 9:42 PM UTC

zelly wrote: post #70

maxsilver wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The entitlement people feel to steal is always surprising. It's not stealing when you already paid in full . Sharing my Netflix password with my wife and/or child is not stealing , I paid in full for that account, and have now for many many years. My Plex server is full of DVDs and BluRays I paid full retail price for (that's $20 to $30 USD each), it's not stealing to use it, and it's not stealing to let some frien…

> Sharing my Netflix password with my wife and/or child is not stealing, I paid in full for that account, and have now for many many years. I am inclined to agree with HBO, Netflix, et al. that this is stealing. You are using their computing resources against the terms you agreed to. However torrenting is good and not stealing. You are using your own bandwidth.

Netflix specifically allows you to stream to multiple family members. There are no terms being violated.

  4.2. The Netflix service and any content viewed through 
  our service are for your personal and non-commercial use 
  only and may not be shared with individuals beyond your 
  household. During your Netflix membership, we grant you a 
  limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access 
  the Netflix service and view Netflix content through the 
  service. Except for the foregoing, no right, title or 
  interest shall be transferred to you. You agree not to use 
  the service for public performances.

Note it says "household" not "individual".

And frankly this is a good thing. It would be completely ridiculous for Netflix to demand a separate account for my wife and each child. The children aren't even allowed to make accounts, they would be left high and dry.

This is one area where I have a constantly annoyance with Steam. You can create multiple accounts on Steam and share the library, but you can't play more than one game at once, even if it's not the same game. It's horrible. I can understand locking you out of a specific game because someone else is playing, but locking you out of your entire library because someone else is playing is so dumb.

Re: Netflix, HBO and Cable Giants Are Coming for Password Sharers

#207

Post by steve19 » Fri, Nov 08, 2019, 9:42 PM UTC

Endy wrote: post #3

manojlds wrote: post #2

Piracy will come for Netflix, HBO and Cable Giants

Piracy already came for them. Netflix digital video content is on a tracker usually within a few hours of release.

I think he means for the users. A lot of people who gave up piracy are going to return when 6 different services are required to watch the four shows they like in any given month.

Re: Netflix, HBO and Cable Giants Are Coming for Password Sharers

#208

Post by [deleted] » Fri, Nov 08, 2019, 9:42 PM UTC

diminoten wrote: post #196

kempbellt wrote: post #181

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>You don't have an entitlement to consume specific content. If it's on the internet and you can access it, yes you do. It's like arguing that if you watch a concert through the fence, rather than paying to get in, you're stealing from the musicians. This "theft" argument is old.

You couldn't be more wrong. You do not have an entitlement to intellectual property, our entire society is built on top of that concept. It's more like you're saying you get to use any logos you want because you can download the images for them on their website. The only reason you can listen to a concert outside of the venue is because there's no way to stop you that's also in any way proportionate to the crime. Edi…

[deleted]

Re: Netflix, HBO and Cable Giants Are Coming for Password Sharers

#209

Post by baddox » Fri, Nov 08, 2019, 9:43 PM UTC

diminoten wrote: post #196

kempbellt wrote: post #181

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>You don't have an entitlement to consume specific content. If it's on the internet and you can access it, yes you do. It's like arguing that if you watch a concert through the fence, rather than paying to get in, you're stealing from the musicians. This "theft" argument is old.

You couldn't be more wrong. You do not have an entitlement to intellectual property, our entire society is built on top of that concept. It's more like you're saying you get to use any logos you want because you can download the images for them on their website. The only reason you can listen to a concert outside of the venue is because there's no way to stop you that's also in any way proportionate to the crime. Edi…

You seem to be confusing the idea of entitlement with simply having the ability to do something. It's perfectly possible to download copyrighted content while also not feeling entitled to that content. If I look for a torrent for some movie, and I can't find a torrent, I don't throw a fit, because I don't feel entitled to that movie. If I do find the torrent and download it, cool, that still doesn't mean that I feel entitled to it. People seem to label any actions they don't like as being an indicator of "entitlement," when that word actually has a pretty clear specific meaning.

And yes, you're completely correct about the reason you can listen to a concert from outside, and that is also true of online copyright infringement. Remember the whole "suing grandmothers because their grandkids used Napster" thing? It wasn't even remotely proportionate, and it didn't go over well.

Re: Netflix, HBO and Cable Giants Are Coming for Password Sharers

#210

Post by thephyber » Fri, Nov 08, 2019, 9:44 PM UTC

shmerl wrote: post #178

megablast wrote: post #140

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They are coming for them too. Don't think that they have forgotten about them.

They could for years do something about it. I.e. start offering DRM-free video for sale. They never cared, so the conclusion is that they don't want to do anything proper about it, they will only spread the DRM paranoia.

To be fair, iTunes and Amazon do/did offer DRM-free for some music selections.

I think blaming the distributors is misplacing the blame. The problem is that the distributors don't have the legal right to do that without contractual buy-in from content owners who fear that their golden goose will dry up if content is offered without DRM or if digital content can be kept and used in perpetuity by consumers.