DVD Screener disc banned

"Apparently Academy Award voters are going to have see movies the old-fashioned way--in movie theaters.

The major studios have agreed to go along with the Motion Picture Association of America's proposal to stop the sending out DVD and video screeners to those who vote for the Oscars and other Hollywood awards. In recent years, the proliferation of screeners has allowed voters to watch films in the comfort of their own living rooms. But the MPAA sees the wide availability of award-contending films, many of which are just beginning their theatrical runs, as too tempting for pirates who could put make digitally perfect copies available online and on street corners.

And the MPAA and studio bosses don't want to repeat the Napster-fueled downturn of the music biz.

The screen ban was announced Tuesday, just in time for MPAA President and CEO Jack Valenti to announce it before a Senate committee in Washington, D.C. He cited the move as 'a determined commitment to combat digital piracy and to save movie jobs in the future.' Valenti added that '400,000 to 600,000 films are being illegally abducted every day...and the MPAA intends to deploy every weapon at its command' to stop this theft."

MSFN - DVD Screener disc banned