By Will Sturgeon, 17 February 2005 00:05
NEWS Popular US TV shows such as 24 and Star Trek are being pirated in vast numbers online where whole shows can be downloaded free of charge, without adverts, and within minutes of first screening, much to the annoyance of TV bosses.
And it is The UK which leads the way, accounting for around one fifth of global television piracy, ahead of Australia in second and the USA in third.
Research released exclusively to silicon.com today uncovers the full extent of this growing problem which threatens to undermine the business models of pay-TV providers and companies creating new shows.
According to web monitoring firm Envisional the amount of TV show piracy increased 150 per cent over the past year.
David Price, research consultant at Envisional, told silicon.com: "With popular shows such as 24 we're talking about 100,000 copies of the latest episode being pirated with around 20,000 of those shows being downloaded in the UK. That is inevitably going to start hitting the likes of Sky, especially as the people typically doing this are the young, affluent demographic their advertisers want to reach."
Price said after each episode of 24 screens at 21:00(EST) in the US, Envisional has seen copies circulating online by 22:20(EST).
"That means users in California with a fast connection can actually watch that episode before it has even screened on the West Coast."
The growing popularity of BitTorrent software is playing a large part with Envisional claiming that 70 per cent of television piracy takes place using its software. As with Kazaa, BitTorrent is an entirely legal application but its users are making the most of its capabilities, which exploit idle bandwidth to speed file transfers, in order to download vast amounts of pirated content.
Unsurprisingly this high-tech larceny has a strong sci-fi bent, betraying the geeky culprits, with two Stargate shows, one Star Trek show and Battlestar Galactica in the top 10. The list also comprises entirely US shows which typically screen on pay-TV stations long before screening on UK terrestrial television, suggesting it is an unwillingness to pay or wait to watch these shows that has sparked the piracy boom.
The top 10 pirated TV shows worldwide are:
1. 24
2. Stargate Atlantis
3. The Simpsons
4. Enterprise
5. Stargate SG-1
6. The O.C.
7. Smallville
8. Desperate Housewives
9. Battlestar Galactica
10. Lost
A spokesman for Sky, which gave many of those shows their first runs in the UK, said the company is aware of the issue of content piracy and "continues to monitor the situation closely".
"The people doing this may only have a Sky subscription so they can watch shows like The Simpsons or 24 first. If they realise they can get them for free online before they're shown in the UK they may well cancel that subscription," said Price.
Unlike the argument in favour of music downloads, Envisional's Price doesn't believe television piracy will be complementary to sales if allowed to continue.
"People will download these shows, watch them and delete them," he said.
He is in no doubt that further growth in this piracy will hit television companies but like with music the large companies are not entirely blameless. Many accused record companies of simply missing the boat with digital music, almost creating the need for illegal services such as Napster through their inactivity and inability to innovate.
"I don't think TV companies have quite missed the boat yet but it's certainly getting close to that point," said Price who cited the internet's ability to 'Tivo'-ise television content as one of the major appeals for downloading shows beyond availability and the fact they are free when downloaded.
Comments
There are 48 comments. Join the discussion
1. David Barker
I'm amazed people are surprised that the UK is the worst for this. After all, it's us backward folk in the UK who have to wait for months before we catch up to what is being aired in the states.
We're always at least a season behind, and in viewers eyes there's no good reason for this. I have to say, however, that Desperate Housewives is the exception and is only half a season behind.
The other reason is that the reach of cable-tv and Sky isn't as wide as they'd want consumers to believe. After moving to the North-East of Scotland (with a fairly large population due to the oil industry and large Universities) I was shocked to find that cable TV had not yet reached this corner of the country and due to architectural issues many people couldn't get Sky without paying upwatds of £250 for installation (with buildings blocking many peoples LoS for the sat).
Also, compare the costs of Sky, NTL and Telewest with their counterparts in the US. Many UK consumers now refuse to fall into the trap of paying double what US consumers do, and as a result are resorting to solutions such as BitTorrent.
The broadcast/TV industry really needs to wise up - consumers are much more informed than they were 10 or 20 years ago.
DAve :)
2. Barry Ashdown
Services like Bit Torrent can be used for good as well as evil. A good use is for catching a missed episode (that isn't being repeated on TV) and you failed to record using your entirely legal VCR/PVR/TIVO/Sky+ etc. The TV compananies are not being cheated as I already paid for the right to view the material and am simply using new technology as the time shift recording and delivery vehicle.
3. anonymous
Until UK TV shows top shows quickly enough this will continue. Most people I know using torrent to view shows do so because none of the UK networks will show these programmes quickly enough, or even commit to doing it at all.
Another use is to find episodes of series people have missed as they either didn't get into the show early enough, or the show was re-scheduled and their Sky+ or TiVo missed it.
Everyone I know uses torrents to supplement existing expensive subs to pay-TV channels, not to replace.
4. Bill Becket
I agree with David Barker - it is the broadcasting industry that must change and not the consumer. Like most people I pay for Sky AND the BBC (irrespective of whether I want the latter or not)and if someone invents a device that allows me to reduce this outgoing then more power to their elbow.
The industry has ruled the roost for quite long enough - it is time for the user to flex a bit of muscle.
5. anonymous
I take your point. On the other hand, one reason I don't believe Sky will be adversely affected is because a lot of downloaders are late bloomers. By this I'm referring to the audience that come across programmes long after it's aired, therefore missing past episodes. These services offer a chance for users to see these backdated series as there is very little chance of them making their way back on to our TV screens. Although I'm not condoning this, you'll find a high percentage of downloaders fall into this category.
6. Jamie
I can't believe people are suprised this is happening. The cost os a sky subscription is twice the price of that in europe and the quality is half.
7. anonymous
Sky cynically showed the first two episodes of 24 on Freeview and then told Freeview customers that they'd have to switch to Sky to watch the rest. What do they expect if they treat customers like this?
Channel 4 is currently two series behind the USA on the West Wing and shows like Oz are shunted to ridiculous times. UK viewers are fed up of being treated so badly when it comes to US TV shows. I'd be happy to pay a reasonable amount to be able to download the latest episodes, but the companies are not giving us the option. The TV companies need to wake up and give customers what they want.
8. anonymous
I'd happily pay a reasonable pay per view fee to download an episode of 24 (which presumably will happen if DRM ever becomes secure enough). What I resent is being made the watch the adverts and also needing a £20 a month minimum sky subscription and unsightly sky dish. I have no other use for Satellite TV.
9. Charles Wood
The TV bosses should grow up! The population of the Uk has minds of it's own and does not wish to be dictated to as people were in the 40's and 50's.
We want to watch material at our own convenience and with the choice of adverts or not. Sky is particularly bad at extended and too regular American style adds and I , like many others, find them intrusive and irritating. I pay to see this service, why should I not use modern technical solutions to watch, when, where and how I want to.
Grow up guys! Everyone else in the world has moved on from your facist old fashioned viewpoints.
10. George Manley
The supply model for TV programs is going to change. Why sit and watch the endless repeats of 1970's shows on the BBC with no control over what you get? Specialist channels go some way to satisfy the more specific consumer demand and by down loading only the programs they want to see, we will finally reach a point of total consumer choice. The only way the British Government has been able to inflict the dreadful lack of choice on the public is by making it illegal not to pay their standing charge. One day we will look at the TV Licence with the same confused "What were they thinking?" expression as the old 'Window' tax.
The Program makers need to act swiftly with the technology developers if they want to make the most of the changing market. Otherwise we will have yet another 'lets just make it illegal solution that limits public consumption and choice.
11. Alan Lewis
I'm suprised it taken a year for this to come into the open... homebrew DVD's of UK football matches have ben available on ebay for at least a year, following the advent of "cheap" consumer DVD recorders.
I was amazed. Pirate dvd's of films seem to have an average price of £5 at car boot sales. Some were camcopies, some were screeners. Some were poorly converted, some were very well "produced".
In comparison, dvds of football matches were going for £20 on ebay...
And given prices of these recorders have absolutely tumbled in the last 6 months, it will only get worse.
It poses an interesting situation for broadcasters/producers: audio cassettes were subject to a "copy tax". The public is far better educated on costs now, do you see them - and the consumer rights groups - accepting a DVD tax? Or will we see DRM introduced post-haste into new consumer equipment.
12. Dimitri
Bit Torrent is getting a bad rap - it's really one of the most efficient ways of accelerating download speeds without wasting bandwidth and the fact that people use it for filesharing is just a sideline - I just downloaded a bunch of GPL linux ISO's in record time.
It really should become the norm for software downloads.
13. anonymous
Why should I have to pay sky just to see 24? If it was on BBC2 like it used to then this wouldn't happen. UK consumers are always getting ripped off and this is just another example.
14. Michael Fischer
I certainly won't condone the downloading of copyright material, but there is little evidence that downloading is much of a problem to the television industry. Even if we wanted to consider 100,000 downloads as significant in a global mass television audience of some many many millions, there is not much evidence presented here of potential for significant losses.
The concerning aspect of this piece is the manner in which it casts BitTorrent in the same company as Kazaa. BitTorrent is open source software that contains no adware, is used by millions of people to distribute and scale downloads of sizeable distributions of open source software, legal video and sound files, as well as doubtless some downloads of a less virtuous nature.
BitTorrent is not only legal (Ed note. As is Kazaa - and similarly they cannot determine how their users use the application), but serving an important role in the development of the internet by showing once again that the open source movement has come up in two years at a very modest cost a solution to many of the problems of internet distribution of resources.
15. Radical Meldrew
The low standard of programmes broadcast in the UK today means that the average viewer is desperate to watch quality TV. I don't believe for a minute that the UK is more technically advanced than the US when it comes to download technology its just that the demand for better TV is much higher than the US who have come to expect, and get a much wider choice.
The TV execs should go away and think about making necessary improvements before they issue ineffective 'woe is me' press releases such as this.
16. anonymous
Cost isn't the issue, it's availability. It's not convenient to watch a programme when it's broadcast - I want to be able to watch tv when it's convenient for me, and I want to be able to watch the 3 latest episodes of Stargate one after another if I want to. Plus TV programmes should be broadcast at about the same time on both sides of the Atlantic. Then there're things like Lost which are only available as a download in the UK.
17. Stephan Jones
I'd be more than happy to buy several TV series if they were available on DVD, but for some reason several production companies drag their feet getting them onto the market. I've been waiting for Mile High for 2 years, as well as lots of US shows: Malcolm in the Middle series 2+ (where are they? I've had series 1 for ages), Scrubs series 2+ (series 1 finally on it's way!), Dharma & Greg, etc. Living in a listed building in a conservation area, I'm in a Sky and cable TV blackspot, unable to have either installed, and P2P networks are the only way I can see these shows.
18. Paul Jacques
Supply and Demand: If the TV and film companies continue to insist on creating a large time difference between region releases of a show\ film, then they have to accept that they are partially to blame for the demand. Where there is demand, someone will supply. Wise-up mogul types, and release the entertainment globally at the same time. Stop trying to curry demand by deliberate withholding.
19. anonymous
The state of the uk entertainment industry is a mess. were paying £120 a year licence fee for the privalidge of the tat that the BBC produce. and there now pre-airing the good stuff everything on their digital channels before the non digital channels. So if you want to see these new US shows then your going to have to pay for sky+ or Cabel. which is a joke with the prices they charge and the amount of adverts shown on each channel.
The same problems occours with buying these things. DVD/CD are being downloaded of tv/film becasue otherwise your waiting months. if was possible to get a DVD with Extras of The Incredibles before it was released in the cinema in the country.
As mentioned before as well people are downloading old tv and films as well . the costs of CD and DVDs are crazy compared to america where you could pay $9 for a new cd , and we are paying £9.
the pirating of tv has been around for quite a while now, and its unfair to mention bittorrent in the same article. people will now belive that bittorrent is the source of this "evil" when it is actually just a tool to download, like messanger file transfers and files on a website.
20. j
Stephan Jones! you took the words right out of my mouth!
I also, can't get sky because the dish isn't allowed on my listed building.
The other big problem is that the availablilty of shows is down to whether the channel can be bothered to show it. some shows just aren't available over here (veronica mars + house - which stars britains very own Hugh Laurie!) or are shown for a bit then shifted around or delayed months or years at a time (west wing - off c4 for a year then put in a silly friday slot; alias - shown too late then abandoned; same with NYPD Blue; Scrubs - shown in a great slot on friday then banished to breakfast. the list goes on and on!and they foolishly delayed showing LOST til 'summer' but who believes them!)
At least Channel 5 shows the Law and Order and CSI franchises as well as Joey and The Shield in great slots. They have it right! and as such I would never download those shows.
I'd be perfectly willing to pay a reasonable price for downloading the shows from the states, hell, I'd even sit through adverts like normal TV!
This needs to be sorted by US stations and british broadcasters soon. if they do the 'it's illegal so don't do it' then that's just going to make things worse.
21. anonymous
Wait a second, the article says two Star Trek shows are in the top ten, only one (Enterprise) is.
(Ed note. No it doesn't. Read it again. It says two Star'GATE' shows and one Star TREK show.)
22. Blinkie
These programmes are Free on BBC TV
Channel 4 ... eventually
23. bob
I used to have sky but i moved recently and havnt got round to installing a new dish.
Since then i have been downloading the simpsons and other shows i like so i don't feel i need a sky subscription any more.
Not only that but i dont have a TV so i dont need a TV licence either.
They have definately lost one customer here and i'll bet theres plenty more like me.
However I would pay for a subscription service to download the shows legally from fast servers. And i do miss watching the rolling news channels.
24. Craig
I've not used any programs to pirate Tv shows, but I have friends who have downloaded some of their favourite TV shows, namely the simpsons, family guy and futurama.
Torrents have been glorified on the internet, and websites such as b3ta.com promote them as brilliant, allowing users to download television shows from the past, which were somewhat obscure. And many TV shows are pretty much dead, not being run on TV, and not released on DVD. And no one wants to fuss around with TV schedules, so downloading on demand is quite obviously the new option.
The BBC has made many great programmes and documentaries that haven't seen the light of day in many years, and Torrents are a great way for them to be preserved.
The quality of torrents won't be as good as a DVD is, and you get the extra features on a DVD, so that's more reason to buy a DVD. And as has been previously stated, you can catch up on old episodes you missed.
If anyone believes that Torrents suck money from show producers, they can think again. Watching a few episodes of family guy on a friend's computer, I loved it so much I bought all the DVD's.
25. anonymous
Hey - it's not just the UK. I can't get Coronation Street here in the US and the only way I can get it is via Bit Torrent.
Granada TV - wake up ... If you gave us a service where we could download the episodes for 10p each, you'd have me first in line as a subscriber.
26. Jay
I've been downloading TV Shows for about 4 years, obviously not through BitTorrent, but via various means. However, it's not the how that's important here, it's the why. Why did I start downloading 450MB video files on a 56K modem, which could take days to complete? Clearly it was not because it was easier, because most of the time, I was arguably better off watching it on TV. I started it, because of the horrific restrictions that are placed on TV broadcast in this country. A show I had been watching in my former country of residence, began to be showed here, and would be terribly censored by the BBFC, sometimes cutting out up to 5 minutes of the show.
While some can argue that censorship has it's merits, I fail to find it good. It ruins the flow and feel of a tv show (or movie, or piece of music or whatever)
It seems to me that the UK, and perhaps the world, is always playing second fiddle the US, and I'm sick of it. When a show in the US is cancelled, usually from the FOX network. No matter how good it is, and how much of a worldwide public outcry happens, nothing is ever done. Why is it that in a country with the strongest currency and perhaps economy, our own entertainment industry cannot order episodes of US shows, that have yet to be made by a US network.
The world can see that the US is turning into a Fascist state of censorship and heavy policing and few civil liberties, and their media is no different. When something is broadcast that threatens the ideas of the ruling class, it gets shut down, we have seen it with many shows over the last few years, mostly SciFi,
I despair at the state of the world, and the way it's going, but what can we do? We're just a little island.
27. vic hansen
The fact that people will pay for music downloads shows that the market for safe, legal content is there to be exploited. People pay for a Sky subscription costing £400 per year and Internet downloading is simply another distribution medium competing for that spend.
In the long run, there is no way that satellite and cable can hang on to their dominant positions for content distribution. The industry has to get its head around the way technology is moving and provide value for money services when and how the market wants them.
Consumers don't want to break the law but history shows that when the estblishment doesn't supply then they will. Think of prohibition and Sunday trading. In the end, you can't buck the market.
28. Against RIAA
If the tv / music companies placed high quality downloads on their site and you could download easy and fast and have unrestricted use (no DRM). Charge song for 50c and tv show $1 and movie $2.50. I'd use the service heaps. It would cost them little and they'd make a ligitanate fortune instead of trying to rip people of with CDs and DVDs. People want to watch what they want, when they want - if studios don't want to meet customers needs then - Say no more it's obvious.
29. Anonymous
I'm not at all surprised. There was a time in the 70s and early 80s when the popular US TV programs were shown with a day of each other. I can remember the film can of Starsky & Hutch (shown Saturday night in the US) being flown across the Atlantic for showing on Monday night in the UK.
I try to be patient, but its difficult when Andromeda season 5 is now showing in the US... whereas we have only just started getting season 4... CSI is catching up this year at least we are both on the same season (five) - but my digibox broke down so I missed the first ep of season so I'll be going on line to download the missing ep as there are things happening in later episodes that I don't understand.
30. anonymous
They're only downloading to get the shows as soon as possible. It's not about saving money - they're fans, they don't want to wait! We have a supposedly global economy so why should customers have to wait longer dependent on where they live. Also C4 for instance has an appalling record when it comes to showing cult shows at odd times, heavily censored, stopped halfway through a run etc (and don't start me on S4C!).
I think they're under-estimating the geekiness of the geeks. In all probability they'll go on to buy the shows when they finally get released on DVD...then they'll buy the special edition box set with the 10 second extra footage etc etc.
Supply the demand, don't moan about it.
31. Martin Goldsack
I believe a major part of the problem as far as the UK is concerned is the long delay in a show being seen in the US and its eventual appearance in the UK. If the companies making the shows were to accept the fact that they have a global market, and distribute the shows simultaneously across the globe, the number of illegal downloads would probably fall dramatically. This would also apply to the cinema industry too, where films are released in the US months ahead of their European debut, leading to a market for pirate DVDs.
32. anonymous
The real problem here is the outdated copyright and broadcast laws worldwide that limit what a particular licensee can do with a particular show.
Its about time that we had international TV stations, not marked by political boarders. Three cheers for the BBC showing its sports coverage live online in such a spirit.
Loosing control of anything is a scarey thing for politicians or Hollywood.
Its never going to happen, but it would be interesting to see the success of a site, that could collect contributions, from honest donors that have downloaded particular shows, that could then be given back to those shows copyright holders.
As for pricing, I think 50p or $1 for a 45 minute show is more than you currently pay for Sky, As for 20ukp per month you can watch 4 shows from probably 10 leading series broadcast weekly on one of the better channels on the basic sky package (including Sky, sci-fi and FX289 for example channels) and 20 shows a month from any number of old shows that runs daily on all the other channels, not to mention the classic old movies avaliable on the cheaper channels.
It'll happen one day, it's just a matter of when Hollywood start thinking about the consumer rather than the way business has always been done.
33. the chin
Hurry Up, I say. Let's get a legitimate site that charges a reasonable rate for downloading tv shows. I'd happily pay $1-$1.50 per episode of a selection of shows. I don't want sky, my kids would want to watch it all the time. Do the tv companies not realise just how much money they are missing out on by not providing this service. Of course people dl these shows, they're excited about watching them. Who wants to wait nearly a year for some shows to come on in the uk? C'mon WB/Paramount etc.... There's profit for you here, or is that too hard to understand?
34. anonymous
It should be unsurprising that shows like 24 and Lost that entice their viewers to see the whole thing-- and then refuse to air reruns at a later date are in the most pirated category.
Fox wants people to buy DVDs to watch 24, and they're attempting to sluice the market flow. I think BitTorrent, all piracy issues aside, represents a general interest in these shows and should be taken in stride. Cable companies need to start offering more on-demand services so that they can compete with BitTorrent, which allows people to see shows when and where they want.
35. anonymous
Why dont TV companies give the chance to download episodes at a small price and give users a better experience so as to stop them downloading low quality pirate copys!
make it something special :-)
36. Jimbo
If I copy a BBC program using a DVD recorder/VCR will the Beeb sue me?
If I download a show I have missed from the internet will they then sue?
I am a UK citizen with a TV licence - I thought I had the right to record these shows - after all it was my money that paid for them.
37. anonymous
When i pay to go to the cinema, i normally get to choose what i watch. Why is tv any different? I only paid the license fee as it's "The LAW!" i was told.
Didn't realise i'd be paying to watch pap like gardening shows, history of gardening, gardening for the young/old/single, dirty/clean/done up rooms, ads, ads, ads and more ads (who by the way pay the tv station for their 30 sec slots anyway!).
If downloading is the only medium through which i can watch what i want when i want, then it'll have to be that way.
TV bosses, take a leaf out of Channel 5 who - as it's been said already in this forum - who have excellent shows lined up, don't see CSI or Joey on your list do we? And some of the other shows on the list - never going to see it in UK are we?
38. ripped off
1. petrol prices
2. car prices
3. house prices
4. inheritance tax
5. the underground
6. rail
Why are we surprise tv isn't any different? If they can't rip us off, there's something very very wrong.
If you're not ripped off, you're not living in the UK! The only solution is to download - or to move!
39. anonymous
It's a worldwide audience.
Thats what TV bosses seem to forget. The internet allows for everyone to get almost anything at the same time so staggereing the showing of episodes according to country just doesn't work anymore. The whole world should be treated as one audience with the shows being available to all at the same time. The same problem occurs with films being released at staggered dates slowly across the planet invariably produces copies for people not prepared to wait.
The audiences have changed. No longer are we content to watch locally produced tat with the occasional import. Audiences are much more savvy about what's available, what they like and where to get it from.
40. Boris
Here in the UK we are behind in most things - TV and Cinema release dates, DVD CD prices, astronimical Cable and Satelitte subscription prices. It is of no supprise that there is this problem. Until the country wises up and reduces taxes on various imported items this will continue and long may it do so. Live long Bittorrent!!!
41. Dave Sargeant
The only reason I download 24 on a weekly basis is to see it now, i did this with all three seasons previously and then promptly paid for the box sets as they became available - make a decision - either ban all tv recording formats video tv dvd etc or leave this area of the p2p community alone
42. anonymous
In the UK we are forced to pay a TV licence whether we like it or not - we have no choice in the matter.
Since we pay this, why SHOULDN'T we at least be allowed to download programs we want to watch?
Some shows don't even make it to air over here. Also, if you happen to miss an episode or two, it's nice to know that they can still be obtained so you don't miss out.
The bottom line is just THAT - the bottom line. Once TV bosses figure out a way of profiteering from TV downloads, I'm sure they'll be falling over themselves to offer a download service for them.
43. Augusto
It is a false plea. While top most downloaded show hits 100,000 viewers the TV gets over 10 Million live viewers when the show is aired. The losses for TV producers/sponsors in this case are bellow poll error limits. Interrupting download providers will cost more than the revenue. TV bosses could earn money providing these services with worldwide usefull adds instead of losing viewers and money (for other potential shows or products these people will CHOOSE to do not buy because their policy).
44. anonymous
I like many others see the biggoted views of the bosses of the large corporations who realistically have no idea what people want. And by people, i mean the people that are the target of many of the issues that are being discussed here.
There simply is no other alternative to people downloading the programmes or music using whatever programme that is available to them. Of course, your arguement may be that these people can wait for their appearance on UK tv.. (ha) several months later, or they can rent them or download them, for a fee.. an expensive fee that many simply cannot afford.
It seems that many people miss the point. If the items in question were cheaper than they are, and by cheaper i mean affordable, then i feel piracy would be much less of an issue than it currently is. However, these bosses and their coworkers need their fat pockets stuffed silly and then complain when people who simply can't afford their high prices take it for free. And don't forget, the quality of the programmes they download is often bad, with out of sync lip-speech and bad quality images, but it doesn't matter it's just like the old days when you watch a tv programme with bad signal, they want to watch the show and not be broke at the end of the month, or day for that matter.
And another grumble. The people who pay for their subscriptions to these tv companies, etc as well as downloading them are getting them free anyway through their tv, they are simply watching it before the time it is being aired, which quite frankly makes for a null point!
Also, there will always be the people who will want to watch these programmes in perfect quality with excellent sound; those people (the majority) are always going to be there and they are always going to fund the movie and music industry no matter what.
I think the bosses are making a big deal out of nothing and shold get off their ever so high horses and turn their minds to developing better and cheaper technology for getting people the programmes they want to watch sooner rather than later. After all we live in a rush-rush, impatient world now and it is the behind the times attitude that is the problem. Deal with it. Move on.
45. Ryan
Hey, maybe if it took less than 3 months to get a new TV show over here in Australia, people wouldn't do it.
I had finished watching SG1 Season 8, Atlantis and Battlestar before they even started airing over here.
At the moment we are at least 10 episodes behind the US with LOST, if not more.
Maybe if TV execs didn't shaft us with delays and crap hours, it wouldn't happen as much.
46. anonymous
If i was to download a TV show, like 24 or Stargate, it would be because I was unable to watch it on TV at the time of airing. Being young, and 24 airs late on a sunday night, means I am unable to catch it. Anway, i love these shows enough that I will, and do, buy the DVDs.
47. anonymous
I hope and pray that Sky don't get the next series of 24. They completely ruin the tension and flow of the programme with excessive and lengthy advert breaks - I pay a monthly subscription to Sky just so they can bombard me with adverts and spoil excellent drama! Definitely time to review.
48. Clare Hill
I know people who choose to download TV Shows via the Torrent community, and other P2P software. I also know that my friends only used this as a last resort after asking broadcasters in our country to air their shows.
We've been waiting more than a year for Stargate Season 8, and our broadcasting company hasn't even secured Stargate Atlantis yet.
We have no idea when we are getting the new season of Battlestar Galactica.
If broadcasting companies LISTENED to their viewers then we wouldn't have this problem of piracy.