Seong-sun a low subscription fee to an Internet-based service in the country that provides him with access to thousands of Hollywood movies - often before their theatrical release in the country - and TV shows such as American Idol and Prison Break. While the local cable companies compete for the rights to show these huge TV hits, the Internet services post them, complete with subtitles, shortly after they originally air in the United States.
Such a service could not be based in most Western countries due to copyright law, but in South Korea, there is lax enforcement of the existing laws. Take that into account, and then add that South Korea has a high broadband penetration rate, and the logical outcome is a rise in the use of file-sharing services.
"So many people do this that I'm not scared of getting caught. Everyone else thinks the same thing, too," Seong-sun said. One of the most popular P2P resources is Mansal, which has nearly 50 million visitors. "I like to download stuff because I don't have to wait to watch something" Seong-sun said.
Chosun Ilbo, South Korea's biggest daily news paper, published the results of a survey earlier this year which showed that the average movie fan watches about two movies a month in theaters and about three new releases a month obtained by illegal downloading. To the South Korean youth, the TV set is becoming obsolete, and even though the trends are set by piracy, the TV manufacturers have no problem falling in line.
"The line between TV and PC is being blurred. Today's consumers no longer care about the conventional definition of a gadget. They just want one that fits their lifestyle," said Judy Pae, a spokeswoman for LG Electronics, one of South Korea's biggest TV makers, commenting on how LG's TVs will evolve for these viewing habits.
Source:
Reuters
Written by: James Delahunty @ 16 Nov 2007 10:34
