Ok, first the news story in question and then my rant (for those of you who are interested). As many of you know, Spider-Man 3 is actually going to be opening in a lot of international markets BEFORE it gets released in Canada and the US (but pretty much roughly the same time). The good folks over at M&C give us this:
Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Philippines, Singapore will open the film on May 1st, while Thailand will see the earliest screening on April 30th at the opening of the SF Cinema City Central World Theater – the new flagship location of the circuit.
This is good news for everyone else on the globe. I’ve been saying for YEARS that studios need to make a better effort in releasing their films to international markets on or close to the same time that they are released in North America. Why??? Because it will reduce piracy a TON.
Increasingly, Hollywood studios are choosing to open anticipated blockbuster films internationally on or near their worldwide premiere dates to thwart piracy efforts
Well DUH!!! I’ve been saying this for ages. Remember a little while ago Fox threatened to delay releasing movies in Canada? I filmed a video open letter to Fox explaining that DELAYING MOVIES IN OTHER MARKETS ONLY ENCOURAGES PIRACY! A lot of the international piracy happens because movies are already released in North America, but people in other countries don’t have any legitimate way of seeing them… so they turn to the pirates. Release the movies at the same time… and you’ll still have piracy… but a LOT less of it since people now have a legitimate option.
It’s funny how much common sense is ignored these days.
