3-year jail term for watching pirated movies online?

For ardent movie buffs who watch several international films that usually don't get a proper theatrical release in India, the news of many Torrent and free film streaming sites shutting down might be disappointing. However, it has become a landmark step for the film industry and filmmakers, who have been waging a losing battle against piracy all these years.

A pop-up warning users of landing up in jail for 3 years and being fined up to Rs 3 lakh, is now being displayed when users try to open such blocked sites. At a time when people don't depend anymore on DVDs and local cable channels to watch the new movies illegally, but watch them on their smartphones on the go, this warning has indeed come at the right time, if not late. Although it is impractical to arrest every single individual who tries to access such illegal sites, this severe warning might actually help to reduce piracy.

Major sources of piracy

The major problem behind curbing piracy is that its sources are unpredictable and vast. Recently, Suriya's 24 was illegally shot at a popular multiplex in Bangalore and Qube Cinema Network had found this out through Forensic Watermarking. Although it created a rage among filmmakers at that time, the news slowly died down with the arrival of new releases. Are the filmmakers effectively curbing piracy with the help of such technological advancements still remains a question.

Even though the legal film streaming sites are looked at a way of generating additional revenue, they are also a major source of piracy. As soon as a film is released on one of these sites, pirates release DVD-Rip pirated copies on the next day. It is even more shocking to know that films sent to CBFC for certification are being pirated from there.

Innovative strategies to check piracy

Filmmakers have been coming up with innovative strategies to curb piracy. Joker team recently came up with a unique advertisement, in which they encouraged people to transfer money to their account, if they watched the pirated version of the film. Some of the loyal movie buffs actually went ahead and transferred the money. Remo team has decided to release the film across overseas locations a day after it releases in Tamil Nadu to check piracy.

What's the way forward?

Most of the measures taken by filmmakers against piracy are short-lived and opportunistic. The producer of a recent blockbuster biggie filed a petition in the court to block hundreds of illegal websites and the court ordered to block them all. However, consistent pressure isn't being applied by the film industry on lawmakers to get firmer laws against piracy. Most importantly, things will change if the entire industry fights against piracy in unison.

Also, the ticket prices should be kept under control during the opening weekend when biggies release. If the tickets are going to be illegally priced at greater than Rs 500, fans who can't afford will resort to illegal sites to watch the films early. Filmmakers can experiment with Kamal Haasan's visionary move of releasing the film first on DTH, but again, one has to assess if it is completely pirate-proof.