What They’re Thinking: Collins Road Theatres owner Bruce Taylor on movie piracy

CEDAR RAPIDS — During the 'Amelia 2.0' movie premiere at the Collins Road Theatres last month, someone purchased a DVD in the lobby, then illegally uploaded it to a pirating website, making it available for free viewing.

Bruce Taylor, owner and general manager of the multiplex, is a member of the Movie Theft Task Force of the National Association of Theater Owners. As someone who has been involved in the film industry for 20 years, he weighs in on the issue of pirating.

Q. In what way can movies be pirated — any method other than uploading a DVD to a pirating website?

A. Other than copying a DVD or Blu-ray, the most common way is to set up a video camera and record the movie directly from the screen. There are several other methods that I really shouldn't go into for public release.

Q. How pervasive is this in the movie industry?

A. Very! Virtually every movie is pirated, usually within a day or two of its release. DVDs are often found for sale on the street on the actual theatrical opening day and can be downloaded/streamed from anywhere.

Q. Who loses when films are pirated? What is the trickledown effect?

A. Everyone involved with the film loses. Many people justify pirating because movie stars make so much money, but they seldom think about the little guys who are trying to feed a family. While the movie distributors complain that they lose billions of dollars to pirating, not many people think about those dollars being lost because they aren't being spent at the box office at Collins Road Theatres. Attendance is down at independent theaters like us, and those box office dollars are collectively the 'billions' that the big companies are losing. The studios also lose in DVD sales, but the theaters lose from any DVD sales (legal or illegal) that occur during the theatrical release, as well as the imminent legitimate DVD release being within a relatively short window. The loss is also felt in projects that never get made. There are cases of movies that are pirated and the director has decided not to make the sequel because of frustration at the piracy of the first edition, and that first revenue was supposed to have financed the next project.

Q. Who wins — and what do they gain?

A. Pretty much the only winners are the pirates through their direct revenue and/or ad sales. The viewers probably feel like they are saving money off the cost of a movie ticket as well, but in fact they are losing (because) less legitimate revenue is available for reinvesting in new projects.

Q. What are the penalties if the person uploading the film to a website is caught?

A. It is a federal crime (that) can bring prison time. Many states have state laws concerning piracy, but Iowa does not. Not having a state law here makes prosecution complicated in Iowa, since we can only take action on the federal law.

Q. How does pirating affect movie theaters?

A. It directly reduces attendance. Some people are happy watching a movie on a small screen at their own convenience and it is often cheaper for them. Reduced attendance obviously equals reduced revenue. That hurts a small independent theater like Collins Road probably more than it hurts a more expensive theater circuit, but in the end, it hurts us all to some degree.

Q. What can be/is being done to counter pirating?

A. Not nearly enough. It is probably not enough to educate the public to inform them that it is a crime. Almost everyone already knows that, but they simply don't care. I hope we can start convincing the public that it is not a victimless crime. Although one person viewing a pirated movie probably doesn't feel like he or she makes an impact, everyone who is pirating, combined, makes a significant impact and I wish people could realize that they are hurting people. A beach is made up of lots of grains of sand. Not to get on a soap box, but it is a sad state of our society when many people think that it is OK to steal $5 or $10 at a time, and do that repeatedly. They would certainly be upset if someone stole $5 from them, but somehow feel that it's OK the other way around. I feel that Iowa should pass a state law concerning movie piracy. However, I realize that we really don't have law enforcement resources who have time to investigate.

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