Tuesday, April 26, 2016

Pilfering IP #GoT #250

Well I've finally done it. After years of doing things proper by paying Sky for the first five seasons of Game of Thrones, I watched the first episode of season 6 from a streaming site. I switched from Sky to UPC/Virgin Media last year and no longer have access to Sky Atlantic - missing GoT was really the only downside to this switch. For nearly a year I wondered how I would see the next series - in the end I decided to join millions of others watching from streaming sites that make the series available for free. At least I paid for five seasons!

Image Source: Wikipedia.
There is of course the ethical question to consider here - what is the right thing to do? In one of the modules I teach in the College we consider the ethical challenges posed by Information Technology. It's easy to download movies, music, and software without paying for it - but this does not make it right. I've been told that streaming is not stealing as it is not the same as downloading - I don't believe this for a second. 

Filmmakers need to be paid for their work - otherwise they won't make movies. If it is not right for me to walk into a shop and steal a DVD, it is not right to do the same on-line. But somehow it does not feel like I'm doing wrong - maybe it's because so many other folks are doing it. It's a bit like being at a red traffic on my bicycle and seeing so many others breaking the lights - sure what's the harm in it?

For Game of Thrones it is worth the risk - it is such a fantastic series. The streaming site I chose was full of traps to get me to register and provide credit card details - so desperate I was to see GoT that I nearly fell for it. Be warned!

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