Comic characters to alert children about dangers of downloads

June 11, 2010

Dangers of online movie piracy were highlighted through a comic book launched recently

Indian film productions are available on the Internet within hours after they are released in theatres. There are many websites available that let people download films for free within hours of a film's release. Not surprisingly, Hindi films are the most widely available domestic Indian content."

- Rajiv Dalal, managing director, Motion Picture District Association

Internet piracy is increasingly rampant among an online audience. School children are at an impressionable age and don't always know the distinction between legal and illegal. The comic book is a valuable step in educating them about online piracy."

- Prakash Nathan, vice president UTV Motion Pictures

Brinda Majithia

In the coming months, 10,000 comic books will be distributed in Mumbai to children aged between five to ten in schools, multiplexes and malls. A local adaptation of a comic originally developed by New Zealand Federation Against Copyright Theft, tells the story of two boys who become trapped in a virtual city after downloading an unauthorised copy of a movie from a peer-to-peer file sharing site.

LAUNCH IN INDIA

The comic will be published in three languages - Hindi, Marathi and English and has been endorsed by the department of information technology, Mumbai Police, Data Security Council of Indian (DSCI) and National Association of Software and Services Companies (Nasscom). "This is a great initiative by the film industry to raise awareness of the dangers of online theft," said Mike Ellis, president and managing director, Motion Picture Association, Asia Pacific.

He added, "The comic book was a success when we launched it in New Zealand last September and we are glad to see an adaptation being distributed in India. We must also get the message across to public, by saying no to illegal movie content."

Talking about the concept of a comic book to highlight online piracy. Rajiv Dalal, managing director, Motion Picture District Association (India) said, "The comic book was originally developed by our affiliate, the New Zealand Federation Against Copyright Theft, to raise awareness among youth and parents about the dangers of illegal file sharing. After receiving a positive response in New Zealand, we decided to introduce the comic in India but adapted in Hindi and Marathi."

Despite low levels of broadband penetration, India has an alarmingly high rate of Internet piracy. According to two studies released last year, India is now in the top 10 countries worldwide in terms of illegal P2P infringements. Increasingly, the youth are engaging in illegal downloading of content and they view file sharing as an innocuous thing, a perception that this comic book seeks to change by demonstrating the dangers of P2P file sharing such as identity theft computer viruses and job loss.

Rajiv added, " In addition,we felt that the comic book will be well received by the Indian youth, as they have responded favourably to comics in the past. Marvel Comics Launched the Indian version of 'Spider Man', aimed at rural outreach in Indian. Even the 'Snake, Devi and The Sadhu' by Virgin Comics has also been an excellent initiative to boost creative thinking among the youth. Our comic seeks to build on this momentum and educate children on the harm of Internet piracy."

OTHER METHODS

In late 2009, MPA released two reports demonstrating the extent of internet piracy in India. These reports not only raised public awareness, but industry and government awareness that India had a significant piracy problem that was causing severe financial and job loss. Prior to these reports, a majority of industry executive's and government officials in Indian believed the piracy problem only that of DVD piracy.

Talking about the accessibility of Bollywood movies, Rajiv said "Over the first six months of 2009, India was among the top 10 countries in the world with the largest number of P2P activities. Moreover, new Indian film productions are available on the Internet within hours after they are released. There are many websites available that let people download films for free within hours of a film's release. Not surprisingly, Hindi films are the most widely available domestic Indian content with most surfers."

Maharashtra deputy CM Chhagan Bhujbal, home minister RR Patil launched the book entitled 'Escape from Terror Byte City' at the inaugural session of Cyber Safety Week in Mumbai recently.