-Caveat Lector- from: http://www.sunday-times.co.uk/news/pages/Sunday-Times/frontpage.html?999 Click Here: <A HREF="http://www.sunday-times.co.uk/news/pages/Sunday-Times/frontpage.html?999 ">The Sunday Times</A> ----- Web pirates steal latest Bond film John Harlow and York Membery THE internet bootleggers are more than a match for James Bond. A copy of one of the most widely trailed blockbusters of the year - the latest 007 film, The World Is Not Enough - has been stolen before its official release and is available free over the web. Investigators believe this is the first time a top film has fallen victim to internet thieves before it has reached the cinemas. Experts suspect the internet version may have been copied from a trade tape sent across the Atlantic between film executives. Although it would take four days to download the film into an ordinary computer, users with ISDN telephone lines are able to make a copy overnight and then "burn" it onto a video CD, which could be watched on any home computer. For film studios it is a nightmare come true. George Lucas, producer of the Star Wars films, said he had believed the technology would not exist for several years - but Star Wars: the Phantom Menace was being downloaded on British computers within 24 hours of its American premiere and sold on videotape at street markets before it opened here. At least Star Wars had a chance to make money before the thieves get hold of it. The 19th Bond adventure is not due for release until November 18 and will be shown first in the Far East, rather than Los Angeles or London, specifically to head off bootleggers. UPI, which paid millions of pounds to distribute it, launched an investigation last week to find how a secretive film collectors' club got hold of a video-quality copy and put it on the internet. The club's website could be accessed only by people who were given its seven-digit address as a reward for supplying it with early copies of films. The site has been closed, but the film is being duplicated in ever-wider circles. The theft was not for profit, but part of a long-running rivalry between hackers such as the Inner Circle, a global band of internet fanatics who pride themselves on distributing copies of films, computer games and software before their official release. Eon, the company behind the Bond film, is playing down the theft - but executives are furious. "We have put a lot of effort into the security around this film and it's deeply frustrating," said one American executive this weekend. Other movies available include Fight Club, starring Brad Pitt, The Blair Witch Project, The Sixth Sense and George Clooney's Gulf war film Three Kings, not due for British release until the spring. Lavinia Carey, director-general of the British Video Association, said film bootlegging was a £2 billion business. Video piracy is thought to be worth £130m a year in Britain. In Malaysia, illicit copies outnumber originals by four to one. Most film companies believe distribution of films over the internet is inevitable. Cliff Stanford, who made his fortune with the British internet service provider Demon, is working with Microsoft to produce technology to allow films to be sent live into ordinary computers. Tests will begin next year. "Once that technology is in place, it will be hijacked by the pirates," said one expert. "They are in it for the technical challenge rather than the money - which is why not even James Bond can beat them." [EMAIL PROTECTED] Next page: Robbie Williams wants to play 007 Robbie Williams wants to play 007 Next: Grammars stay top of the league Copyright 1999 Times Newspapers Ltd. This service is provided on Times Newspapers' standard terms and conditions. To inquire about a licence to reproduce material from The Sunday Times, visit the Syndication website. ----- Aloha, He'Ping, Om, Shalom, Salaam. Em Hotep, Peace Be, Omnia Bona Bonis, All My Relations. Adieu, Adios, Aloha. Amen. Roads End DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
