p2pnet - rss feed: Miramax - ‘Shame on you!’
The RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) fires blindly in its sue ‘em all anti- file sharing campaign, no matter who gets wounded - viz, trying to sue a 79-year-old man who doesn’t even know how to use a computer.
The MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) also has a lot of very smelly egg on its face after it tried to nail a site for selling Tolkein’s latest - before it had even been made.
Miramax, one of the MPAA’s owners through its parent, the Walt Disney Company, is extremely sensitive on the subject of Kung Fu.
Apart from anything else, numerous edited and un-edited versions of Miramax / Quentin Tarantino’s latest about an ex-lady assassin on the (very bloody) rampage have been online forever. And this gives the company pause. Understandably.
However, now it’s after Kung Fu Cinema which, although it doesn’t actually sell movies, has links to sites that do.
Read on >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Miramax Serves Us Notice!
By Mark Pollard - Kung Fu Cinema
Left under my doormat today was a curt cease and desist order by Miramax Films in regards to the unlawful sale of import versions of Zhang Yimou’s Hero. As regular readers will know, Kung Fu Cinema does not sell any films. We write about them. But apparently, linking to sites that do sell imports is an accessory to crime. Not only that, it has been made clear that, in Miramax’s case, any individual caught importing a film into the U.S. that is owned by Miramax could face legal action. In other words, Miramax is actively enforcing a total ban on all Asian imports that they have purchased distribution rights to. As a result, you (as an American or Canadian resident) are not allowed to have Hero or Shaolin Soccer shipped to you or carried into the U.S. and Canada.
This is, of course absurd in my mind, but I am not foolhardy enough to challenge the might of Miramax and parent company Disney. Also, I acknowledge their legal right to protect a property they have invested in. It’s simply sound business. But withholding the release of films they have purchased, heavily editing them, and not making the original versions available to Americans in any form and then expecting us to idly wait and quietly accept this is equally absurd.
All Miramax is doing is encouraging less-scrupulous people to seek illegal alternatives like file swapping and bootlegs. Take for example Shaolin Soccer. I was recently interviewed by Wired.com for an article built around the fact that Shaolin Soccer was the 10th most downloaded film in illegal file swapping communities online. This is the film that Miramax bought rights to about two years ago, fumbled with, altered, changed released dates, and still sits on today. I used to say, "well at least people can order it overseas." Now, all I can say is, "what the f–k?"
While I never appreciated what Miramax has done with their Asian film properties, I always felt that at least the imports provided an obscure, yet viable alternative for consumers. But now, Miramax is trying to take it all away with their immoral monopoly on these films. And the people who appreciate them the most and are most willing to put down their hard-earned cash are being hurt the most.
I say shame on Harvey Weinstein and shame on Miramax for their culturally inept handling of Asian films and their despotic abuse of the legal system to suppress the people’s right to simply see a film the way the makers’ intended it to be seen.
If this bothers you as much as it does me, there is definitely something you can do about it. Sign the online petition and send your letters to Miramax and let them know what you think of their handling of these films. Keep in mind that a well-written and respectful letter will have much more impact than an offensive rant. Visit the Appeal to Disney - Web Alliance for more information.
