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Posted: **Mon Apr 14, 2014 10:14 pm**

Convenience that is impossible to get without piracy at the moment.

I refuse to deal with their DRM bullshit, however, or sign up for an entire cable service package just for HBO. Am I willing to pay $120 a month just to watch Game of Thrones? No, but I'd be willing to pay something closer to $10 to $20. But that doesn't seem to be an option.

Most of the pirates I know personally are the older ones like me who can and would pay if the content were to be delivered in the way WE want it when and where we want it. But you have to take it how HBO will give it to you, and they aren't exactly flexible. So in my case it is MUCH more convenient to steal it. Tell me what address to set up an automatic monthly payment to cover that and I will.

No. At the end of the day, it's about not paying.

Also, my awesome Comcast DVR randomly decides to delete some of my saved recordings and not record things I explicitly schedule whenever they feel like it. I'm sure one of their competitors has better DVR technology. I'll find out when the FCC allows one to exist.

Also not a good excuse.

I AM going to purchase GoT season 4 on BD, as soon as it becomes available to me. I will pay approximately $45 for it, which works out to about $4 per episode. I find that to be slightly expensive, but this show is worth it so I will pay it.

However, I don't like being spoilered, and I like participating in the post-show discussions on the internet. I can't wait 6+ months for the BDs to be released in order to do that. I am not going to pay the $45ish for 3 months of HBO to watch the series, because then I am basically double-paying for the same content. I have no other avenue with which to watch the shows in a timely manner, legally, for the $45 total I want to pay. I have already paid $135 for the first 3 seasons, season 4 takes me up to almost $200, future seasons will add to that, etc etc. I am paying enough to watch the shows. I cannot watch it both timely and legally in this way, even though I will be paying for it.

So, I will continue to "acquire" the shows the day after they are aired so I will reduce the amount of spoilers to wh9ich I am exposed to as much as I can, and then I will purchase the blurays when they are released which assuages any guilt I may feel, and I will also purchase the seasons as gifts for friends.

Optimally, HBO would let me purchase the blu rays 6 months in advance as soon as the season starts, for $50 or so, and then allow me to stream the episodes as they air, and then send me the BD set as soon as it is released. Everyone makes money and customers are happy.

But nope. As the original post stated, HBO is firmly entrenched in 20th century marketing plans. That worked well for Blockbuster, after all. It may be "their show/their rules," but I don't need to follow their rules, and HBO is losing money, for no good reason, because of it.

Now that wins.

That's a good argument, and it doesn't fall back on the lazy "convenience" bullet point that a good PR person would tell you to avoid using.

Now I'm going to jump around slightly, please follow...

I just want convenience. With my current setup (RSS -> utorent -> NAS folder) it's all automatic and the shows I want just appear ready to watch at will. No special software to be run or applications to install or hardware to switch to depending on which service the show is on. It's just there where I want it when I want it and I can watch it how I want it. I'd pay top dollar to any service that could legitimately give me that for all the content I am interested in. But no one can.

I get that, and I'm down. However, at some point you've got to understand that eventually the people making the content have to get paid. The more money, the better the shows (in theory).

It's on the industry to figure that out. True.

However, do you truthfully believe that one service will, legally, provide an all in one stop for all our favorite shows?

As Malcolm states:

One up. I want several services to choose from, so the streaming industry doesn't get Time Warner'd, and I want them all to have all the content. Actually, I suppose I'd settle for one provider if they had some Steam-like sales. But those would never generate any volume or cash.

So I guess I just disagree with the argument of "convenience". Call it something else.

I honestly don't dislike your stance. I just don't like the unintended consequences. Gordo gets around them because he makes a purchase.

I've said it before, and I'll continue to say it. Buy the products you enjoy or they won't be around for you to enjoy them.

I could start listing them all out, but you know the list.

So yeah, I don't think cheapness is the only motivation, but if you dig something a lot, throw them a bone before they're gone.

Posted: **Mon Apr 14, 2014 10:22 pm**

Malcolm wrote:Hell, I'd even be willing to accept some adverts in the insanely stupid and intrusive way broadcast and cable TV do it now if the content was up to date and on demand.

That is a major line, to me. The fact Hulu Plus gets away with a subscription fee AND commercials is what proves to me there is no god, but there may be a devil.

Edited By GORDON on 1397528763

Posted: **Mon Apr 14, 2014 10:28 pm**

Leisher wrote:No. At the end of the day, it's about not paying.

Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot You were all-knowing and can see into the souls of all men. Forgive me for doubting you, my Lord.

So I guess I just disagree with the argument of "convenience". Call it something else.

No. For me it is 100% about convenience. I don't give a shit about PR because I'm not trying to convince anyone of anything, I'm just informing you of my own motivations and those of some other people I know.

I get that, and I'm down. However, at some point you've got to understand that eventually the people making the content have to get paid. The more money, the better the shows (in theory).

It's on the industry to figure that out. True.

However, do you truthfully believe that one service will, legally, provide an all in one stop for all our favorite shows?

Oh, good, I'm glad by the end of your post you understand my point.

Do I think any service will do that? Yes, one day that is what will happen. The market demands it, and it is inevitable that the market will provide. Maybe later this decade if we are lucky, but probably not. And a lot of large companies are going to go out of business in the meantime.

For now I spend about $300 a month on video and audio content on average. I've paid for a lot of mp3s and videos through Amazon that I have never accessed and don't plan to because I don't want to use their bullshit download software, I just paid for it because I wanted to support the artists whose content I already enjoyed through other means. Most of that monthly budget ends up on Subbable and Patreon. If I could pay the makers of Game of Thrones without having to pay for the rest of a cable service I don't give a shit about I would. But I'm not willing to spend any of those dollars on dealing with bullshit.

Edited By TPRJones on 1397529282

Posted: **Mon Apr 14, 2014 10:39 pm**

I've said it before, and I'll continue to say it. Buy the products you enjoy or they won't be around for you to enjoy them.

Oh, I do not disagree in the slightest. That is clearly true. But show me where I can legally buy Game of Thrones when it is fresh and new without also paying for 200 channels of ESPN and all the other shit cable companies force on you that you don't want. As I said I would gladly set up an automatic payment if I knew a reasonable portion of those dollars would end up with the makers of the program. But that can't be done.

Posted: **Tue Apr 15, 2014 11:31 am**

No. At the end of the day, it's about not paying.

Someone already beat me to a rebuttal.

I forgot You were all-knowing and can see into the souls of all men. Forgive me for doubting you, my Lord.

Bull fucking shit. Every illegal download is not about avoiding payment and not everyone that does it is simply cheap. I have the means to pay, and I'm more than willing to fork out for things that are valuable to me. I bought Static X tickets this week. I got front row seats to Lewis Black next month. I got tickets to Motley Crue's (first) farewell tour. I dropped more than a bit of cash on the Wasteland art print simply because I like the game and want the current company to churn out decent ones in the future. I spent another fuckload of cash on a new desktop over the past month or two. I still pay Netflix to ship DVDs to me because I can't find certain shit anywhere else. I don't have a wife, kids, or a mortgage, I have a bit of disposable income.

The fact Hulu Plus gets away with a subscription fee AND commercials is what proves to me there is no god, but there may be a devil.

Proof how much people want shit on their schedule. They will pay with money and time on top of it.

Posted: **Tue Apr 15, 2014 11:40 am**

But show me where I can legally buy Game of Thrones when it is fresh and new without also paying for 200 channels of ESPN and all the other shit cable companies force on you that you don't want. As I said I would gladly set up an automatic payment if I knew a reasonable portion of those dollars would end up with the makers of the program. But that can't be done.

Boom. It's not the fucking twentieth century anymore, but damned if you can tell by the way cable makes me buy shit. Thanks for making me pay for access to the Oprah Winfrey Network, Comcast. I'm pretty sure DirectTV doesn't include that bullshit in their sports package. Probably because they realized it's no longer 1983. Not my fault that the internet is killing traditional broadcast/cable TV the same way that shit killed radio.

Posted: **Tue Apr 15, 2014 3:07 pm**

Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot You were all-knowing and can see into the souls of all men. Forgive me for doubting you, my Lord.

No. For me it is 100% about convenience. I don't give a shit about PR because I'm not trying to convince anyone of anything, I'm just informing you of my own motivations and those of some other people I know.

Oh, good, I'm glad by the end of your post you understand my point.

That's a snarky and defensive response. I didn't realize I was in the DailyKos forums suggesting that maybe Obama isn't awesome.

Granted, you probably thought I was judging you, but I'm not. I'd be a hypocrite to do so. In fact, I never said "don't do it".

However, instead of a wall of text to defend my position and yada yada yada, I simply have one question for everyone here: Are you stealing?

Posted: **Tue Apr 15, 2014 3:16 pm**

Nope. The original owner still has their files.

Posted: **Tue Apr 15, 2014 3:28 pm**

The last episode of Game of Thrones was most pirated thing ever (as far as they know). Don't read the article because there are episode spoilers, but here's the relevant bit:

http://www.nerdist.com/2014....e-a-lot

According to The Hollywood Reporter, “at the time of the record torrent, 145,594 had a complete copy and continued to upload, while 47,824 were still downloading the file.” BitTorrent, one of the most popular torrent platforms on the web, explained that this bested their current record-holder, the previous season of Game of Thrones‘ finale, which saw 171,572 users sharing the episode online and was downloaded approximately 1.5 million people.

Serious question, though: why did everyone insist on stealing it when HBO has already openly admitted to not caring about HBO Go password sharing? (When are you going to allow people subscription options for the Go platform as a standalone, HBO? Eh?) Surely connection to an HBO Go account must be fewer degrees than it takes to get to Kevin Bacon, right?

Offhand, I honestly can't think of anyone I know who would have an HBO Go password for me to use.

Posted: **Tue Apr 15, 2014 4:01 pm**

That's a good point. We all have them. We just don't want to share it with you.

And as that article suggests, HBO has publicly given the green light to password sharing.

Posted: **Tue Apr 15, 2014 4:09 pm**

You can't like, "own" an HBOGO password, man. It's for the people.

Edited By Troy on 1397592615

Posted: **Tue Apr 15, 2014 6:09 pm**

Is Gordon the only one here who doesn't have one? What a LOOOOOSERRRR!!!!!

Posted: **Tue Apr 15, 2014 6:29 pm**

I get free HBO for another year plus. I'm thinking of downloading this illegally just to piss them off. If you don't care about password sharing, then make it public access.

Posted: **Tue Apr 15, 2014 8:08 pm**

Cakedaddy wrote:Is Gordon the only one here who doesn't have one? What a LOOOOOSERRRR!!!!!

I can't think of anyone that I KNOW pays for HBO.

Posted: **Tue Apr 15, 2014 8:35 pm**

Malcolm wrote:I get free HBO for another year plus. I'm thinking of downloading this illegally just to piss them off. If you don't care about password sharing, then make it public access.

Sweet. Hook us up with your HBOGo pw! Oh wait, we just torrent the stuff.

Posted: **Tue Apr 15, 2014 8:47 pm**

I don't think I'd even use HBO Go.... I haven't seen an app for it on my PS3 and I only watch GoT on my 60" tv.

Posted: **Wed Apr 16, 2014 1:07 am**

All this typing and all I'm reading is "I don't want to pay for it".

TPR: I don't want to buy cable and HBO. So I steal it.
Gordon: I pay $4 per hour of GoT, I don't want to pay any more. So I steal it.
Malcolm: HBO offers a free service to their subscribers and their friends/family. It should be fist fucking free for everyone and it's not so I'm complaining. I would steal it, but I'm already getting it for free. Fist fuckers.

You can dress it up all you want. But bottom line, you are too cheap to pay for the content, so you are stealing it (or complaining about it).

Perhaps all the other content providers in the world should shut down and all content should go to HBO, and HBO should enter the 21st century and have it instantly available to me, anytime I want it, everywhere I want. And it should be free. Until then, they are just asking to be stolen from. Until that happens, it's presented in a way I don't like. It costs more than I want to pay. It's not on my 60" tv. I'm just going to steal it.

Posted: **Wed Apr 16, 2014 8:01 am**

I disagree with your assessment of the conversation thus far.

Posted: **Wed Apr 16, 2014 10:17 am**

But bottom line, you are too cheap to pay for the content, so you are stealing it (or complaining about it).

I just put up a list of half a dozen things I bought over the past few months. Not everything's a nail, hammer.

Posted: **Wed Apr 16, 2014 12:42 pm**

I'm having to side with Cake on this. We can justify the "why" of the pirating, but it's still pirating and the root cause is because NOT pirating the material in question seems like a waste of money. One man's frugal is another man's cheapskate.

Welcome to Thunderdome

HBO still stuck in 20th century