Articles: Pirated Television On the Internet

PIRATED TELEVISION ON THE INTERNET

Where Did it Start?

The first phase of popularity was with download software such as Morpheus. These programs allowed computer users to share files, including music and video, by downloading from other servers.

Although available, television shows were certainly not the most popular downloads - taking a distant third place behind music and movies. The reason for this was primarily because television shows often took a very long time to download and were frequently of lower quality than their movie counterparts.

What Technology is Driving this Trend?

There have been a few key technological developments over the past 5 years that have allowed pirated television to thrive online. The first development has been the continual reduction of cost for high storage computers. Compared to 5 years ago, the average computer now has more than 20 times the storage space. Also, DVD burners have sparked an increase in pirated video trafficking ensuring that viewers are not limited to collecting only what can be stored on their hard drives.

Even more recently, direct streaming capabilities improved to the point that internet users can visit sites such as YouTube and watch videos without actually downloading the content to their computer. From here, several pirated television databases, PeekVid and TVLinks being two of the most popular, have cropped up offering hundreds of links to television shows available online.

Why Are People Concerned?

Those who view pirated television must sacrifice some quality and convenience in order to receive free television shows. First, the sites that provide direct streaming are often short lived, meaning that viewers must frequently search for a new supplier. Second, even if the site is active it is common for several of its links to be broken or damaged meaning that the video is unavailable or incomplete. Third, even after locating the television show they wish to view, users are still often faced with poor image quality or uncoordinated audio.

These problems are not enough to deter everyone, and they certainly are not enough to appease the industry that is being robbed. When the concept of pirated music first landed on the radar, video, and television was believed to be immune given the size of the files. Ubiquitous access to high-speed internet changed this. Now, experts understand that the technology of tomorrow will likely overcome the direct streaming challenges of today.

Dangers for the Viewers

There is a certain sense of anonymity that comes with using the internet, but this isn't actually the case and many pirated television viewers are hiding behind a clock that doesn't actually exist. One of the easiest ways that investigators are finding illegal downloaders is through their IP addresses which are left with every download.

The Solution?

Even with increased legal action against those who pirate television online, it is unlikely that the problem will disappear any time soon. The solution for many companies in the television industry is to simply view pirated television as a message from their customers and adapt their services. For example, several network sites are now streaming previously aired episodes directly from their websites, for free.

This "viewership on demand" trend is one that has been long recognized by Sky television. With a variety of custom packages and sky boxes, viewers can now control their television viewing without resorting to illegal activity.

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