Studios Sue to Stop Family-friendly DVD Film Cuts... Again.

[admin]

A coalition of major studios including Paramount, Warner Bros., MGM, Disney, Universal and Fox has filed a lawsuit against a defendant who has taken movies such as "Iron Man 2," "The Hurt Locker," "Prince of Persia" and "Date Night," altered them to be free of objectionable content, and is distributing them to consumers as "family-friendly." The lawsuit was filed on Thursday in Arizona District Court against Family Edited DVDS, Inc. and its leader, John Webster. The studios claim that the reproduction of the films violates their exclusive copyrights. Further, the plaintiffs allege that the defendant is selling its films in DVD-R format, which they say strips away copyright protection measures and makes them "highly vulnerable to further unauthorized copying and other forms of infringement." Unfortunately, we'd have to agree.

Discuss "Studios Sue to Stop Family-friendly DVD Film Cuts... Again." here. Read the article.

 

[its phillip]

A coalition of major studios including Paramount, Warner Bros., MGM, Disney, Universal and Fox has filed a lawsuit against a defendant who has taken movies such as "Iron Man 2," "The Hurt Locker," "Prince of Persia" and "Date Night," altered them to be free of objectionable content, and is distributing them to consumers as "family-friendly." The lawsuit was filed on Thursday in Arizona District Court against Family Edited DVDS, Inc. and its leader, John Webster. The studios claim that the reproduction of the films violates their exclusive copyrights.

I'm with them there - plus that's just really lame. If you don't think the movie is appropriate for your children, then don't let them watch it...don't nerf the film :/

Further, the plaintiffs allege that the defendant is selling its films in DVD-R format, which they say strips away copyright protection measures and makes them "highly vulnerable to further unauthorized copying and other forms of infringement." Unfortunately, we'd have to agree.

I think copy protection and other forms of DRM are total crap, so somebody removing copy protection doesn't bother me in the slightest. Consumers should be able to make a backup copy without any kind of hassle, and we shouldn't be forced to watch a bunch of unskippable garbage at the beginning of a movie.

 

[gliz]

I'm with them there - plus that's just really lame. If you don't think the movie is appropriate for your children, then don't let them watch it...don't nerf the film :/




i am one of those people who might consider getting something like that. If the studios had any brains, they would see the this niche and work together, there is a market for it. For example the second transformers move had way way too much foul moth stuff in it, they could have toned that down. The studios know darn well that kids will be coming to see it. Cussing does not make it a better movie

 

[j_garcia]

io am one of those people who might cinsider getting something like that. If the studios had any brains, they woud see the for this niche and work together, there is a market for it. For example the second transformers move had way way too much foul moth stuff in it, they coud have toned that down. The stufios know darn well that kids will be comming to see it. Cusing does not make it a better movie

It is almost part of the normal language these days, however children do not need to be exposed to it via movies. Having said that, if they tone it down to kid level, then it likely won't really appeal to the vast majority of their target audience demographic - 18-35, IMO.

I don't care if there is a "sterilized" version of it like they have for CDs (aka "radio edit"), as long as it is easily identified so that I KNOW that it is edited AND have the choice of getting an unedited one.

 

[gliz]

good writing is good writing foul language does not make good writing better. Now if you are talking about R rated moves that is another thing. Transformers was PG-13 and the only bomb that did not drop was the F bomb. I do agree that "It is almost part of the normal language these days", you are correct and speeking for myself, that is a sad commentary

 

[its phillip]

My point is this: why on earth do people think "bad" lanugage is worse for children than violence? It's okay for your kids to see people getting shot/blown up/etc, but hearing somebody drop the f bomb isn't? Same goes for language vs violence vs sex and the like. Why is one okay for kids, but not the other? Doesn't make any sense to me.

 

[gliz]

Good point TOCHE!. I ask myself this question ,if it is bad for my kids do I really need to watch it?

 

[gliz]

My point is this: why on earth do people think "bad" lanugage is worse for children than violence? It's okay for your kids to see people getting shot/blown up/etc, but hearing somebody drop the f bomb isn't? Same goes for language vs violence vs sex and the like. Why is one okay for kids, but not the other? Doesn't make any sense to me.

also as a perent I never thought one was better than the other it is all bad for kids. honestly, have you actually heard someone say that one is worse than the other? I bet not. I was just trying to make a songle point and I used
lanugage. There are a LOT of movies that I dont watch these days because they are trash

 

[j_garcia]

I am not saying that the language should be there or that it somehow makes a film or even a song any better, but if the artist made it that way, that is their choice. If I don't like what is said in a song or a movie, then I don't have to continue watching/listening and that is my choice. If it is bad for my kids, then my KIDS don't need to watch it...until they are old enough.

You can't entirely shield kids from the real world and that is a fact, because if you think that they haven't heard that language and worse on the playground then you are dreaming. That doesn't mean you let them swear like a sailor. Violence, sex and language all carry a similar weight to me as well in films. They have their place in film and again, if you are offended, then don't watch it and don't let your kids watch it. Even a film that deals with adult themes - death, factual accounts of tragedy, infidelity, etc... are all things that kids don't need to be exposed to either, but nobody is complaining about those.

What really needs to happen, IMHO, is that the kids just need to be taught the difference between a movie and reality. On the same note, I don't want a watered down version of anything, because life doesn't come that way.

 

[gliz]

youmke some good points.

 

[mattburk]

I am all for this guy. I don't know how many times we have sat down to watch a show even over the air TV to then be surprised by the content. I know OTA is a different subject but it would be nice to have content control for that too. It would be great to have content that you could play that you would not have to worry about your kids watching. There is a large group of people in this country (millions) that would love to be able to filter out the cursing in their shows on DVD and over the air. I have had things like the TV guardian, piece of junk and clear play, another piece of junk, but they do not function well. If someone would figure this out they would make a killing.
The argument of not letting your children watch it if it is bad is not the point, it is unpractical and impossible to research every show out there before you buy to know if there is anything in there that you consider inappropriate for your family.

This is not a matter of shielding children from the real world. Kids swear at school all day long. It is a matter of what you condone in your own home. That is the big difference. It seems like many shows throw in vulgarity or cursing just to say they have it. You can call that art all you want it is not. I am not talking about cleaning up movies that are sold on the basis of vulgarity, but cleaning up movies that are marketed as clean that throw in vulgarity. I think you see my point. Yes we should not let our children watch vulgar movies. That is not the point. The point is to simply clean up family movies so a parent does not have to either 1. Have nothing to watch with the family on a Friday night or 2. Compromise their values in watching things that contain behaviors or content that they do not allow their family to participate in.

The guy should figure out a way to encrypt the disk, but even then people can still decrypt it if they try hard enough. I really do not think the decrypting is the issue. These people tend to freak out if you imply that there is something they created that God would not approve of. That is the real issue imho and that is why they are upset. If money was the issue they would all make edited disk that they sold at the Christian book store, but they do not.

Peace to all. Have a great week.

 

[Hi Ho]

There actually is an easy way to tell if a movie has objectional content. IMDB has a parental guide which very specifically lists possibly objectionable content.

I don't have kids and I don't really care what words are said in films so I don't really have a strong opinion. It's obvious the guy was infringing on copyright but he was also filling a void that the studios obviously have no interest in filling.

The guy should figure out a way to encrypt the disk, but even then people can still decrypt it if they try hard enough.

That is not true assuming the pass key was strong (not in the dictionary) and randomly generated. Modern encryption is essentially uncrackable. It's not like the movies where they press a few keys and say "Oh I'll have it cracked in 10 minutes". Free open source programs like TrueCrypt can keep ANYONE from every getting to your data if you use a good pass key. The FBI has spent years trying to crack TrueCrypt encrypted drives seized from individuals only to give them back because they could never get to the data.

 

[GO-NAD!]

Wait a minute...

This may be a bit off-topic, but what's with "...the soon-to-be-doomed 3D Blu-ray format...."? Perhaps I'm a bit out of the loop, but I had no idea that it was in trouble and we were just waiting for more 3-D content.

 

[3db]

The studios remind me of a trigger happy fool who shoots first and asks questions later. typical BS one minded attitude of these guys. So rather seizing the oppertunity to expand into a niche market and asking this guy to stop his stupidity of breaking copyright laws, they're gonna bankrupt a little guy. How much money do they think they're going to get from this guy? Dam these studio types are so stupid.

 

[gliz]

The studios remind me of a trigger happy fool who shoots first and asks questions later. typical BS one minded attitude of these guys. So rather seizing the oppertunity to expand into a niche market and asking this guy to stop his stupidity of breaking copyright laws, they're gonna bankrupt a little guy. How much money do they think they're going to get from this guy? Dam these studio types are so stupid.

and tht was my whole point, there is a market out ther for this so insdead of seeing it that are gonna squash it

 

[its phillip]

They probably have the same lawyers as the RIAA :O

 

[supervij]

There's a site I use called http://www.kids-in-mind.com/ that I really like, since it breaks down so-called objectionable content for the parent into three categories: sex and nudity; violence and gore; and profanity. It details everything in a movie that is in those categories and at the end of the "review", it even offers discussion topics to have with kids regarding that movie.

cheers,
supervij

 

[washburn]

I am fully against editing/censoring just because something is not "family friendly". There are enough Disney movies for families. Some movies and series NEEDS violence and certain types of laguage to be meaningful (Imagine Hurt Locker or Dexter without violence and profanity - it's a JOKE!).

I am ok with having a VERSION that's edited, as long as I can buy the normal version of movies/CDs. But making the edited version the ONLY version available is just ****ed up.

 

[j_garcia]

I am fully against editing/censoring just because something is not "family friendly". There are enough Disney movies for families. Some movies and series NEEDS violence and certain types of laguage to be meaningful (Imagine Hurt Locker or Dexter without violence and profanity - it's a JOKE!).

Actually, I was thinking about that the other day and my example would have been: Can you imagine a clean Full Metal Jacket?

 

[malvado78]

I am fully against editing/censoring just because something is not "family friendly". There are enough Disney movies for families. Some movies and series NEEDS violence and certain types of laguage to be meaningful (Imagine Hurt Locker or Dexter without violence and profanity - it's a JOKE!).

I am ok with having a VERSION that's edited, as long as I can buy the normal version of movies/CDs. But making the edited version the ONLY version available is just ****ed up.

No one has even suggested that it would be the only version available...

Hurt Lock and Dexter can easily be filed under not for kids...

Transformers and other could easily be edited to remove the extra language and give a choice in which soundtrack to use. Seems like the studios would gain a wider audience.

There are many many movies I do not watch anymore due to having my 3 year old around. She is a sponge. I am not at all saying that it is ok for her to watch violence, sex, etc. I avoid those as well. But there are PG movies that suggestively swear. Ice Age 2 when the wall of ice is breaking off the one animal say DAMN! or DAM! It doesn't matter that it was supposed to be a play on words. I felt it was totally unacceptable.

I am not trying to nerf it for anyone else. If the choice was there I would choose it. It currently is not therefore there are many less movies I choose to rent/buy.