Could YouTube, PirateBay and file sharing boost 'Sicko'?
We could soon learn more about whether illegal file sharing is a friend or foe to a movie debut.
Sicko, the documentary about the health-care industry from director Michael Moore is due to be released on Friday. To several thousand fans of YouTube, Google Video and The PirateBay, the movie's opening came a week earlier. That's when bootleg copies began cropping up at those places.
Any studio exec will say each illegal download represents a lost ticket sale. That's food out of the mouths of cinematographers, actors, costumers and best boys, the studio suit will huff.
Not so, say those that download. Typically their argument goes something like this: The Internet promotes movies like nothing else. People who really enjoy a film they watch online will often plunk down cash for a DVD or movie ticket. True film fans want high quality copies for their video libraries and also put a premium on the big-screen experience.
I believe some of that. I'm a movie buff and if I like a film I see in the theater I'll pick up the DVD. But what many in Hollywood are skeptical about is whether the masses will pay for something that they can get for free.
Over the next week or so, I'm planning to keep tabs on how Sicko does at the box office as well as track the number of unauthorized copies being shared. The goal of course is to learn whether illegal downloads actually depress ticket sales.
Some anecdotal evidence already indicates that they don't.
First, the controversy over the pirated copies that appeared last weekend generated plenty of headlines for Sicko. Nobody associated with the movie is going to be distressed about that. On the sites where the bootlegs appeared scores of comments were posted and that's the kind of word-of-mouth promotion marketers love.
And what about Moore's controversial film, Fahrenheit 9/11? Despite being widely pirated, the movie's $119 million in U.S. ticket sales made it the highest grossing documentary of all time.
Moore himself sides with the bootleggers.
"I don't agree with the copyright laws," Moore said during a press conference three years ago. "I don't have a problem with people downloading the movie and sharing it as long as they aren't doing it to make a profit off my labor. I would oppose that."
Not every artist sees it the same way, of course. Certainly, the people who bankrolled Moore's latest picture don't.
"We at the Weinstein Company (the movie's producer) are outraged by illegal piracy," said Peter Hurwitz, the company's general counsel, in a statement.
As for tracking the film's progress, here's the tally so far: over the weekend, the copies of Sicko that appeared at YouTube and Google Video were viewed over 1,000 times before they were removed. At the PirateBay and Mininova, copies have been downloaded more than four thousand times combined. If you know about any other sites, please feel free to pass them along.
Greg Sandoval covers media and digital entertainment for CNET News. He is a former reporter for The Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times. E-mail Greg, or follow him on Twitter at http://twitter.com/sandoCNET. 
on his life? Thus the name of the "movie?" Personally I hope the
"movie" fails and no is ever willing to take on a Moore project
again. By the way, I put "" around certain words to emphasis how
loosely I was using them.
with a dynamite health care policy.
These days you'll find a more discerning base of folks that consider their bandwidth more valuable for other shows or media than pushing' Moore's latest load of rubbish.
The trend in the underground has gone from conspiracy NWO towards the real world grass American roots upset with both parties and those playing politics with American lives and lifestyles.
Don't play the 'Internet Revolution', those people not willing to be sheep are wise to one-sided rhetoric. Goodbye Michael Moore and to those like you on either party side.
already downloaded it. I guess they represent the non "real world
grass American roots Internet Revolution sheep"?
Gongratulations on your own densely-written, verbose, one-sidedly
rhetorical, yet totally unpersuasive pile of words.
already downloaded it. I guess they represent the non "real world
grass American roots Internet Revolution sheep"?
Congratulations on your own densely-written, verbose, one-sidedly
rhetorical, yet totally unpersuasive pile of words.
Yes those newbees would be the sheep that have downloaded it. They are also the ones that would have downloaded Paris Hilton's phone address book as well.
I was building PC's when you were in diapers or maybe even when you were just a tiny embryo.
You're just another Republican loser who thinks that you're always right, when in fact, you're wrong.
I'm glad I live in Canada
but hey all need a new drug that makes you artificially happy by not caring, wait I already think that's in your drinking water.
don't worry I made it up.
rotten tomatoes is what helps me decide what movies I'm going to see, and film critics get to see the movie for free + the get paid for it.
I would actually like to only see entertaining movies in theaters, I made the mistake of seeing Mr. $ Mrs. Smith, and I fell asleep to it.
I was 23 at the time.
I think movie theaters should give you money back, or at least a discount back, if you didn't find it entertaining for the price.
achieveable" Sorry but let me point you to the "shining" examples
of the universal heath care systems of Europe (France, Switzerland
need I go on?). They are terrible, all they do is make sure everyone
gets the same bad health care.
- Genius of SiCko Marketing
- by Thomas_74 July 3, 2007 8:51 AM PDT
- As everyone knows SiCKO was released on P2P networks and Torrents weeks ahead of the U.S. release date. Now I know what a lot of people are saying, especially studio executives, ?OH MY GOD, LOST PROFITS, LOST PROFITS!!!? But is that really the case?...
- Reply to this comment
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