Who are the real pirates?

Apr 10 2009 by Alan Shaw

I QUITE enjoy relaxing in the evening and watching a good DVD. Although there’s one thing which almost every disc I put in my player has that annoys me – the anti-piracy advert.

You know the one, you wouldn’t steal a car, you wouldn’t steal a handbag, downloading is stealing, etc. Don’t get me wrong, I fully agree with the message as, personally, I can’t stand pirated movies. Why pay five quid to watch a movie which was filmed on a camcorder, in someone’s lap, from the back of the cinema, when the same money would buy a ticket?

I think the main annoyance about the advert is that I have to sit through it each time and can’t even use the menu button to skip past.

Then there’s the screen telling me that the FBI will hunt me down if I even so much as whisper the plotline to anyone.

This is after I’ve already shelled out the money to buy the DVD legitimately, I should add. Ironically, the pirated versions don’t have any of these warnings.

The campaign obviously works though, as I’m now completely paranoid about watching any clips from movies online. Will looking at five minutes of the latest blockbuster on YouTube result in my door being battered down and me being fined a million pounds and sent to jail for 10 years?

I do have some good news though, the distributors of DVDs have announced they are to stop using this hard-sell advert.

Instead, the anti-piracy message will get tougher and even more terrifying. Yes, if you copy a movie or watch a DVD you haven’t paid for, they WILL send a folk group round to your house to sing a chorus of knock-off Nigel.

I hope you were lucky if you had a bit of a flutter on last weekend’s Grand National – remember the Coral Scottish Grand National is on at Ayr Racecourse in a couple of weeks, keep listening to West FM this week for details on how to win yourself some tickets.

Many thanks also to everyone who donated an egg to the Cash for Kids Easter Egg appeal this year. Thanks to your kindness, many children across Ayrshire will be enjoying their Easter weekend just that bit more!

I’ll talk to you Monday to Friday on the 96.7 West FM Breakfast Show – remember to catch up on everything we’re doing on the website, www.westfm.co.uk