So it hasn’t been a good week for Australian online entertainment seekers. First of all you’ve got movie studios suing iiNet because they didn’t stop their customers from pirating movies and TV shows (well, they’re not ninjas). And now Andew Colley over at Australian IT is reporting that EzyDVD’s online movie download store, which was to rise from the ashes of ReelTime TV, has been put on hold thanks to the struggling economy.
The plans for an online store haven’t been canned completely (fortunately), but this is a real blow for online entertainment in this country, even though the service was probably going to be restricted to PC-based viewing through proprietary software. As I’ve stated before, the only options we have to legitimately download movies and TV shows in Australia are through iTunes and BigPond, which each have their own restrictions.
So, here’s a crazy idea I’d like to put forward to all the movie studios who think suing ISPs is the answer. Take the money you’re spending on lawyers and invest it in EzyDVD’s EzyDownload service. Let’s get this thing running sooner rather than later. Because no matter how many people or ISPs you sue, you’re not going to make the slightest dent in piracy until we have a few attractive, legal options on the table.
[Australian IT via Lifehacker]