TV, Movies and Music Online

TV, Movies and Music Online
Over the years, much has changed about the Internet. Its uses have changed as well as the general amount of access to it. In developed countries, it is very uncommon for a household not to have internet access. The age at which children start browsing is
5 to 7 years old (Poulter). With this great change, the internet has become an important tool for file sharing, “the practice of distributing or providing access to digitally stored information” (File Sharing FAQ). These days, it is much easier for teens and adults to download music and movies from the comfort of their home instead of going to
Blockbuster or HMV. In short, there are two different types of file sharing. First, there is
Peer-to-Peer file sharing like Kazaa, where users connect to a program which finds files on other computers on a network. Second, there are File Hosting Services that work in collaboration with tools such as email, and blogs where there are links to direct downloads (File Sharing). The access to TV episodes, movies and music online has increased exponentially with the use of these two types of file sharing, and not necessarily for the better. It has had many effects on the entertainment industry, only a little of which are advantageous.
Even though the internet has accelerated new forms of human interaction and can be seen as something that is advantageous to our society, there are a larger number of negative aspects that can be associated with it. For instance, music-pirating which is in other words, the unauthorized duplication and/or distribution of music has become a large problem due to the internet’s popularity and its laissez-faire stance on music pirating. Software such as Utorrent and Limewire is increasing the amount of

illegal file sharing happening all over the world. For teens, it is now the norm to download music illegally, now that iPods and Mp3 players have become progressively more popular. There are more than one billion downloads per week of music files alone
(Oberholzer). By internet users sharing files, it is causing great damage to artists since they are not being paid for the work they are doing. According to BBC news “up to
800,000 jobs in the creative industries, out of 1.8 million in total, are threatened”
(Waters). This is having huge effects on the industry today and will create problems in the future. Also, almost 40% of households watch “full length television shows” on the
World Wide Web (The Independent).
Another negative aspect associated with the internet is how pornographic videos, due to the internet’s popularity, have made their way into mainstream society. Internet is the reason behind why the pornography industry is making more than any other kind of medium (Dr. Gail Dines). “By the end of 2004, there were more than 420 million pages of pornography found on the internet” which further highlights the large role that internet plays in its widespread popularity (National Research Council Report). In essence, pornography is a serious issue concerning the internet because studies show that it is detrimental to a person’s way of thinking.
Internet also creates the issue of movie pirating. Internet piracy has raged across the internet for ages and it is on the rise. Movie pirating can be defined as the illegal copying of movies for personal or commercial use. Internet can be seen as the main basis behind the growing global epidemic of movie pirating. The reason behind why internet can be blamed for this huge predicament is because of the invention of highspeed broadband internet technologies, such as DSL and Cable modems, which allow

computer users to pirate material at an alarming pace. According to a survey conducted in Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Korea, Japan, the U.K., and the U.S, 24 percent of participants reported that they had already downloaded a movie online in their lifetime, and 69 percent said that they did not believe that online movie piracy was that big of a concern. Even though movie pirating does not affect us in any negative way, the movie industry loses approximately $3 billion in annual revenue due to global piracy every year. In essence, Internet is the leading cause behind why some actors and singers are getting underpaid for their hard work (Scarlett Pruitt). Surprisingly, the only condition under which file sharing and the internet is useful with regards to music, television and movies, is how it helps promote groups which have not been discovered yet (My Daily
Tech).
In conclusion, one can see how internet has mainly a negative impact on movies, television and music. Even though it may help promote certain bands, actors, movies and songs, it causes a lot more harm than good. In other words, music and film industries due to the internet lose billions of dollars each year.