The bill threatening to literally destroy the global Internet as we know it – the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) – has now been rendered devoid of any merit by comedian Louis CK. Not that the bill had any credibility to begin with.
Over the past few days, Louis demonstrated how one can successfully launch a movie in today’s high-speed P2P world.
For only $5, his latest hour-long special could be downloaded in an easily shared digital format. Despite the ease with which one could almost immediately pirate a free version of Mr. CK’s content, he still managed to gross over a half a million dollars within two days.
Now, with tons of media coverage highlighting the sales of his latest creative endeavor, he is sure to see far greater returns.
Louis CK’s strategy confirms what many other artists have already learned – distribute copies of your creations online at significantly reduced prices, and make up the difference in volume. Also, don’t bother with any kind of copy protection – it pisses off your customer base, and circumvention will be inevitable.
Of course, this model only works when you have a quality product that stands up to the scrutiny of the public. If you’re peddling the same old inane tripe, you’re unlikely to recoup your costs without gouging your initial clientele.
Maybe that’s why all the media giants have been pushing so hard for SOPA – unable to edit their own scripts for running a business, they’ve decided it will be easier to simply rewrite the entire Internet.
