Study: Most movies leaked to Net by insiders

A recent study published by the AT&T Labs revealed that most of the illegal copies of movies available on P2P networks have been "leaked" by the movie industry insiders, not by movie enthusiasts armed with digital camcorders.

Almost 80 percent of 300 copies of different movies found by the researchers on P2P networks, were apparently leaked to the Net by people working within the movie industry. According to AT&T Labs, this is the first study that tries to identify the sources of leaks for popular Hollywood movies. Nearly all of the movies in the study were found on the Net before their official U.S. DVD release date, some of them even before their movie theater release.

"Our conclusion is that the distributors really need to take a hard look at their own internal processes and look at how they can stop the insider leaks of their movies" before taking measures that might hamstring consumers' technologies and rights, said Lorrie Cranor, a researcher at AT&T Labs and lead author of the study.

This study sheds a very, very different light over DVD backup tools that movie industry is trying to outlaw all over the world (and have done so successfully in various countries already).

Source: New York Times (requires free registration)

Written by: Petteri Pyyny @ 15 Sep 2003 15:59

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11 comments

Hunter007

The RIAA should have done that study too. They might have found that artists or insiders are putting the music on P2P.

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15.9.2003 16:02 #1

Bladestor

No crap it was "Insiders"! It took them this long to realize that? How the hell would it be "Enthusiasts" when the damn movie isnt even out yet?

15.9.2003 20:40 #2

#afonic

They need to study for that?
Not only the movies but the MP3 and the cracks for games are also provided from insiders!
Nobody says no for some extra money!
Finally, they may stop commercial DVD copy programs but they can do nothing with the freeware ones, do you agree?

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16.9.2003 01:33 #3

mystic

AS I said all along when a movie becomes available to the p2ps befor its realesed then how is it our fault.... it isnt why dont the RIAA get ahold of the film crews and run them acrossed the lie detector and leave the poor saps who spend 5-10 hours on a dial up downloading what they made available alone.... starwars hit the p2p a week befor release and since the only ones with axcess to it work for Lucus thats where Id start ... if only the RIAA would listine to the real users/teck. we could help them fix the probum and then its old news ...no they want to go after 12 year old girls... sounds kind of perverted to me ( is the guy in charge of the RIAA a petafial? ) makes you wonder...... and the claim that unrealesed materal was also released ....hum...thinking .... oh yeah who has axcess to the music... the artist and his dogs,boys and anyone else in that circle... not the p2p user... damn it took them that long to figure that out and they have our goverment helping them.... dosnt say much for military intellegence... oh yeah thats an oxymorron..... peace all I'm outta here....

16.9.2003 05:16 #4

Ghostdog

Quote: oh yeah who has axcess to the music... the artist and his dogs,boys and anyone else in that circle. Yeah, like 50cent. He�s Eminems "dog", and I�ve seen him work that Ipod. Like a pro.
Quote: it isnt why dont the RIAA get ahold of the film crews and run them acrossed the lie detector and leave the poor saps who spend 5-10 hours on a dial up downloading what they made available alone What on earth does the RIAA have to do with movie-pirates?
Quote: is the guy in charge of the RIAA a petafial? I don�t know, but maybe you want to be the one who asks him if he�s a petafial :)

16.9.2003 06:27 #5

mystic

ok the dogs was over the top but it had to be someone he's paying or the lable he works for... the riaa and others are looking for any reason to shut down the p2ps its an example of the fact that the movie was released before the public ever had a chance to record it with a cam.... and well anyone who wants to make an example out of the poor or young for their own twisted reasons needs to be looked at...... I am suprized you didnt pick up on the oxymorron... but thats ok.. thanks Ghostdog nice to see your out there.....

16.9.2003 08:20 #6

GrayArea

I'd like to know how many copies of a given movie get swapped via P2P vs. how many DVDs of the same movie get sold. Then factor out the P2P copies that would have NEVER* been sold in the first place. At that point is it, big impact on DVD sales? OR, great promo tool for the studios? I don't have any idea what the answer is. Just wondering...

*In my opinion the majority of files swapped over P2P would never have actually been sold at retail even if P2P did not exsist.

We mustn't lower ourselves to the level of those we loathe, lest we become loathsome ourselves.

16.9.2003 10:00 #7

joy53

Tell me these people are slow, anyone with common sense knows if a movie is on the street while it's at the theatre, has to be an inside job, you know money talks and bullshit runs a marathon. If the government was helping they didn't have much help, those people are extremely slow. Save the enthusiasts. This is the same thing with the music. Leave p2p alone, they are not the ones.

16.9.2003 13:50 #8

joy53

They need to check out New York, The biggest illegal city in the country, the beginnin and the end.

16.9.2003 13:52 #9

Powa

Well I hope they keep it up anyhow ;)

->E�F<-

17.9.2003 06:50 #10

vudoo

The RIAA has everything to do with the MPAA's decision to go after p2pers. Now that this has came up both organizations will have to be really careful about making accusations about p2pers. Just as we are not allowed by law to make accusations about others and slander people the RIAA needs to be accountible for their actions as well. And making computers with DRM inside the hardware and software is not the answer to their woes. Now that some of the judges are getting together we may have a chance at keeping our rights as individuals. Just because the MPAA and RIAA are big corporations does not give them a license to push blame onto the consummer when their own people are the real issue when it comes to piracy and price fixing. In the long run we are all human and you don't really know who to trust.

Voodoohippie

17.9.2003 16:15 #11

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