Album of the Week: Röyksopp - Junior

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BLOCKBUSTER'S Demise: The Death of Old Media?

When was the last time you rented a video game from Blockbuster?  What was the last film you rented there?  I have fond memories of paying $100 deposit so that I could rent an N64 game console from BLOCKBUSTER.  How many times have you strolled up and down the isles of BLOCKBUSTER VIDEO waiting for a loved one to JUST PICK A FUCKING MOVIE ALREADY!? er...you know what I mean.  BLOCKBUSTER VIDEO is one of those stores where no matter which one you're in, it always felt as comforting as all the other BLOCKBUSTER VIDEOS.  For over 20 years, BLOCKBUSTER VIDEO has maintained a relationship with its customers that helped entertain a majority of North Americans.

Blockbuster's story is an interesting one which I read about in a Newsweek article called The Rise and Fall of Blockbuster . Troubled by millions of dollars of debt since the 90's, this entertainment giant's story is about to come to an end as its debt reaches $1 Billion dollars (yes that's BILLION with a B).  Over the past year, Blockbuster has been closing several stores as they're in dire need of financial capital.  Unfortunately Blockbuster simply cannot keep it's head above water.  Forced by the New York Stock Exchange, Blockbuster was delisted in July 2010. Huffington Post's article "Blockbuster Bankrupt: Video Chain Files for Bankruptcy" blames Redbox, iTunes and Netflix for crushing the Blockbuster dream.  There's one major force that the article neglected to mention.

Piracy

What happened?  Did consumers stop watching films?  Was Blockbuster's model antiquated after so many years of success?  Did competition drive Blockbuster into the ground?  Obviously there are several answers to why Blockbuster failed, but I'm guessing that Blockbuster ignored the trends of consumers turning to the internet for access to the same content for better rates or even for free.  Mix that in with the rise of illegal downloading services like Napster, Kazaa, Bearshare and todays torrent sites like piratebay.org , Torrentz, and Mininova.  As these websites started popping up anti-piracy groups like RIAA and MPAA started suing piracy websites in the interests of keeping copyrighted content off of the internet, limiting free access by the average internet user.  Prosecuting these websites to force them to shut down is quite a profitable industry.  As the RIAA won victory over victory, random people were being summoned to court facing charges of copyright infringement and ordered to pay up to $9,250 per song!!!  (Read more here.)  Did suing random grandparents and children honestly make a difference in pirating?  I would say that scaring the public by litigating everyone and anyone was a failure, however the RIAA has gained some wealth over the years.

The Pirate Bay's defeat came on April 17, 2009 after losing a court case vs the Entertainment Industry.  All four defendants Peter Sunde, Fredrik Neij, Gottfrid Svartholm, and Carl Lundström were charged with "assisting in making copyright content available" via The Pirate Bay.  Each had to spend 1 year in prison and was ordered to pay $905,000 in damages.  A year later, thepiratebay.org is stronger than ever with over 4,300,000 users and still serving over 1 million pieces of content ranging from television shows, films, software, games, music and several other types of media (reference).  SO what's changed?  Absolutely nothing.  Every day people are still using torrent sites as well as "illegal" websites that stream television shows as well as movies for free.  They used to be fringe websites that popped up here or there, but now all you need to google is "WATCH" and NAME OF TELEVISION SHOW and you will be presented with a menu of options for streaming your favorite content "illegally".  Does the Entertainment industry intend on shutting down every website that steams their copyrighted content?

No, they can't afford it.

Keep an eye on copyright laws changing over the years.  I live in Canada, where are copyright laws are insane according to Michael Geist a law professor at the University of Ottawa where he holds the Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law.  Net Neutrality will be a hot topic over the next 5 years as it has been for several years already.  This is where the "illegal" tv and film streaming sites will die.  Torrent sites will also be impacted by anti net neutrality laws that govern each country.  Imagine being slapped with a $9,000 fine for streaming television shows to your computer?  

I have to admit, I have a guilty conscious now when "trying before buying".  I've started to pay for my content via several channels: 

iTunes -At 99 cents per song I pay for music that I want to exist in my iTunes collection.  This is music that i will cycle on and off of my iPhone forever...so it has to be top notch.  

Grooveshark - You can listen to almost any song, album, artist, even genre within seconds using Grooveshark's search engine.  It costs $3.00 per month to use all features of this great site.  You're able to create playlists of music that you did not purchase and play it from any computer or mobile device over the web.  It's almost like having on-demand radio only you pay a tiny fee every month which goes back into the music industry.  

Netflix - My new favorite website.  Netflix's library offers over 100,000 TV and Film streaming to any device of your choosing.  I've used Netflix on my laptop, iphone and even my Playstation 3.  Sign up is breaze and they even offer you 30 days for free!  Netflix will learn the types of films and shows you enjoy and offer recommendations based off of your viewing habits.  All this could be yours for $7.99 per month UNLIMITED ACCESS.  

Others

Maple Leaf TV - Access all Toronto Maple Leaf games from any computer live streaming over the web.  Access tonnes of highlights and information about the team.  This service is a bit pricy, but all things considered, $59.95 may be worth having access to EVERY Leafs game in HD, that is unless you're a Habs or Sens fan (booooo).

Gamefly - Video game rental service that ships video games to you in the mail.  Keep the game as long as you want, even forever if you're willing to pay a bit more to own it.  Once you are done playing the game, mail it back and Gamefly will mail you the next game on your waiting list.  This is a great option if you're the type to play a game and then trade it in at your local EB or Gamestop.

Steam - Offers digital downloads of computer games on demand.  Steam games are generally cheaper than the physical versions of the game found in your local computer shop.

Face it, we're all media whores, afraid of boredom but willing to pay what we deem fit.  Stop pirating and start giving back via some of these web services.  

Digital distribution is here to stay.  We have so many different devices with digital shops demanding money now.  iTunes, Xbox Live, PS3 Store, Netflix, and Steam are just a few examples of digital outlets nipping away at our wallets.  How can you say no to such low prices to have on-demand service.  DVDs won't be around forever, other than the onces collecting dust on your shelves.  Perhaps this reality has finally sunk in with the BLOCKBUSTER investors and this is why we are witnessing the death of a multi million dollar video chain.  

Good bye late fees, hello on-demand media.

Ted Stevens DEAD: Former Senator Reportedly Killed In Alaska Plane Crash

Just for today: The internet IS a series of tubes. RIP Ted Stevens
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Link IS sexy! - Secret Hidden Triforce in O'Dell Park

I snapped this over the weekend while biking through O'Dell Park.

(love the Triforce)

Flickr Photo

July 17th Sunset in Fredericton

Can someone please remind me to post more photos to my blog? Thanks.

NIGHT DAISY!

The Sloth - BBC Earth

I've always wanted to pet a sloth ... until now...

Discarded Comfort Project

How often do you purchase a cup of coffee "to-go" on the way to work?  I pay $2 per coffee about 4 times a week.  That's 16 cups of coffee per month or 192 cups of coffee per year.  A majority of coffee cups are made out of recycled paper along with a plastic lid, sometimes there's a anti-burning sleeve attached.  So I'm creating about 400 pieces of garbage per year because I'm too freakin lazy to boil some water, grind coffee beans and combine them into my french press.  My lethargy costs at least $400 / year and is a danger to the environment.

I'm just one case here.  For some, this is a daily ritual and just to make matters worse, a lot of you sit anywhere from 2 - 10 minutes idle in a drive thru conga line of caffeine craving zombies who should not be operating heavy machinery.  

Just to reiterate - millions of Canadians pay $2 per day for the luxury of not having to get out of their car to obtain their first coffee of the day.  They pay $2 for a double double which gives them instant gratification and then this comfort is discarded.  Where do these temporary vessels of bliss end up?

Everywhere.

I've decided to take things up a notch with my coffee cup photos.  Some of these photos tell a story.  Often times I will run into piles of discarded coffee cups outside construction sites.  Obviously a group of workers gathered on their coffee break and discussed sports, politics and whatnot while sipping on their comforting cup o'joe.  

Once in while I will snap a shot of a discarded coffee cup that looks as if someone had either forgotten it, or purposely placed the piece of trash on display as if it were a piece of art...

My project will record the locations of my coffee cup discoveries using a gps iphone app and hopefully we can find where most of this trash ends up.  The other concern is which brands of coffee cups will I find most often?  I am still figuring out how to carry this project out in a scientific manner since I can't snap a shot of EVERY coffee cup ... or can I?

Chaf

Plug the Freakin Hole British Petroleum (BP)

Seriously, it's been 5 weeks now guys. And by "guys", I mean the smartest and most creative engineers from around the world.  I hope BP is prepared to cough up a few BILLION for this disaster.

3D TV is NOT the future

When did this hype start about 3D TV "revolutionizing television"?  This idea seems to be a desperate attempt to pull people off of their computers and back into their living rooms as television consumption has been on the decline.  Do we really need to see 3 dimensional Mr. Clean advertisements?  Just imagine Mr clean starts mopping your floor in front of your very eyes!

I'm a bit skeptical of 3D TV being safe for your vision considering that I get crazy headaches after watching 3d films at the theater.  What if children wore these glasses every day for 5 hours for 2 years straight?  I'm sure this would give them super vision in the future.  Perhaps I am a hipocrite since I'm a big fan of video games, however I would certainly draw the line at putting 3D glasses on in my living room to enjoy a film or video game.

I don't buy it.  Is anyone seriously thinking about buying a 3d tv as soon as it comes out?  MEH.