From Ad Age: "How Big Media Makes It Easier to Steal Content Than Buy It"

I just read a great article on Ad Age about “How Big Media Makes It Easier to Steal Content Than Buy It”. As I’ve mentioned in the past, I’m a firm believer in the idea that if you make it easier for your fans to support you and buy your product, they’re much more likely to do so. On the other hand, if you set up restricting DRM, force people to jump through hoops, or require too much personal information, you may have lost the customer and all hopes of acquiring their cash. Meanwhile, they’ll head to their favorite torrent site for quick, convenient, and free downloading. Here are some excerpts:

This process was proving to be as frustrating as Tracy Jordan’s quest for the elusive EGOT (a joke I would only get if I could actually watch season four!). All I wanted to do was consume content I legitimately paid for through my cable bill, and despite that fact, was willing to pay for again. As part of this process, I encountered random price differentials and windowing and still could not get the content where and when I wanted. Or… I could get it where and when I wanted it if I was willing to steal it and just visit one of thousands of torrent sites. I’m not going to lie – it’s a tempting alternative!

That does not change the fact that they are competing against piracy, where cost is $0 and convenience is abundant. Most people don’t want to use torrent services, but will if they feel they are being gouged or inconvenienced.

Read the full article HERE

Have you ever experienced a time where you wanted to pay for something, but the powers-that-be made it so difficult – almost to the point where they made it seem like they didn’t want your money– that it was just easier to download illegally, ? Let me know in the comments!