the-ish.com/blog

First of all, i want to clarify that iTunes versus Pirating was not meant to be a scientific in-depth review of the entire iTunes store versus all the possibilities of pirating copyrighted material. It was simple a specific example, that of ABC’s “Lost” from the iTunes store compared to the most easily accessible pirated version.

This was no means supposed to be an anti-Apple rant; i still use and love the iTunes store. I also want to apologize about the server outage: i’ve complained to my host (1and1) and am pretty disappointed with them right now.

There were a ton of good comments on digg as well as some nasty ones, which i’m going to address here. Before i get to that, though, i’ll address the basic issues.

Basic Issues

• Apple’s Response: I contacted Apple shortly before posting the original post, and they responded quickly and politely. They were more than fair in finding a solution to my complaint, and without going into any details, my complaint has been addressed. This happened before the article was on Gizmodo, and before it exploded on Digg, so by no means was it Apple just responding to bad press. My server went down before i could add this update. It wasn’t my intent for this to be so incendiary and sensational. …no where did i say that iTunes sucks, that was all gizmodo. :)
• ABC Only: It is true that (as far as i can tell) this problem only exists on ABC’s content. Without any rigorous investigation, i’ve found that my iTS purchase of The Office, Heroes, etc. are all their proper widescreen format, while Lost and Grey’s Anatomy (ABC shows) are cut down to 4:3, regardless of the fact that pirated versions are 16×9. Though this problem is not universal, it is existent at least on ABC content, and so i still believe it is a valid topic for discussion.
• iTunes Preview: It is true that the preview on the iTunes Store is the aspect ratio of the download and so there is a way to see if a show does or does not come in this cropped and chopped format. It hadn’t occurred to me, and the Apple rep i talked to pointed this out. This means that my claim that “no where on the iTS does it tell me that my purchased copy of the season is a stripped down, cut off version of the show” is technically incorrect. I believe that on television, when a movie is turned to pan-and-scan, they are legally required to have the “this movie has been reformatted to fir your screen” disclaimer. Apparently online stores are not governed by this rule, and the crux of my complaint is just that. I’d like some specific warning, which could easily be as simple as their “explicit” warnings.
• Not HD: The pirated versions that i am using for comparison are not in HD. While they are pirated from a high definition broadcast, but they are not actually full resolution. The iTunes Store versions are 640×480, which is significantly larger resolution than the pirated version, but the quality is roughly the same. (the pirated version looks about as good as the iTS when scaled up to be the same height, and the iTS looks as good as the pirated version when scaled down to the same height.)
• Sizes: The pirated version of Lost was 350MB, and the iTunes purchase was about 460MB. Given that the pirated version is technically a lower resolution (though roughly the same quality) this makes sense, but it is worth noting that the pirated version is DIVX and must be played in VLC or you must have the 3rd party codec installed, while the iTS purchase is a more standard, but DRM laden H.264.
• So Much More: This argument is specifically about the aspect ratio discrepancy and a few thoughts on it’s implication. If i were to write about the entire subject of the merits of the iTS as opposed to the risks and benefits of pirating, and the moral and socioeconomic implications of blah blah blah, this would be a dissertation and not a blog post. Pirated versions are almost immediately available, while i must wait 12 to 24 hours (or something) after the shows airs before i can legally obtain it. I have choice, either HD or SD 16×9 or iPod version… while the iTS gives a one-size-fits-all single option. One copy works with my iPod (and the AppleTV i hope to get someday) while the other requires transcoding. One of these options is, of course, illegal, while the other compensates the content owners (which might or might not be the content creators.) There are a huge number of aspects of this argument that i am willing to explore, but was not specifically calling attention to with my post. It was probably a bad idea to title the post as such.
• I know my TV show tastes might suck, but that’s beyond the point. :P

Comment Responses

These are in no particular order. If you had a comment you feel i haven’t addressed, please leave a comment here.

comment by flashman:

Comment abuse, but Duggmirror caught it:
http://duggmirror.com/apple/iTunes_versus_Pirating/

Thanks man, i appreciate it!

comment by diggimator:

He’s complaining that Apple gave him a chopped off version of the show without telling him that that’s what he’ll be getting before he made the purchase. Sounds like a legitimate complaint if true. But this makes me ask: if piracy is constantly providing a better quality product, what exactly does DRM succeed in protecting here?

That’s precisely my point.

comment by node3:

[…] the majority (as far as I can tell, all) of the other shows are the same aspect ratio as the best broadcast version, making the article *highly* inaccurate. It’s not that iTunes shows are 4:3 compared to 16:9 pirate downloads, it’s that ABC’s shows on iTunes are 4:3, which still sucks, but is a very different story with a very different headline and a very different focus.

You’re absolutely right. this was my mistake, and i appreciate the comment. Other than headline inaccuracy, though, i still feel it is a valid topic for discussion. I’ll need to work on my titling skills. :P

comment by JesterJDL:

Power to this guy for wanting iTunes to sell better quality versions of the show…but it pisses me off that this little pussy wants his money back cuz he couldnt see all of hurley’s shoulder….or the right arm of a couch

In my email to Apple i mentioned that i’d much rather a 16×9 format than my money back, i should have included that in the post i suppose. The reason this whole thing came up is because in the screencap of the “arm of a couch” you can see a painting on the left wall (only in the 16×9 version) which just 3 second before was on the right wall in the previous shot. some website was pointing that out, and i went back to see for myself, which is when i realized that the info had been chopped off. That’s kind of a lame line of thought, but that’s how it happened. It’s not that i care so much about missing Hurley’s hand as just getting the whole experience i’m paying for. (or being warned that i’m paying for less than would seem obvious.)

comment by Keyes:

[…] Lost is about the only show to still be uploaded in 4:3. I think that is ABC’s fault, not iTunes’s.
[…] when iTunes start offering iPod-ready and 720p “bundles” of TV episodes I will go incredibly insane purchasing stuff from the store.

As “Grey’s Anatomy” is also 4:3, and widescreen when broadcasted/pirated, it looks like most or all of ABC’s content has the same problem. When 720p versions start coming out, i’ll be going crazy buying crap too. :)

comment by varmit:

Things for the website owner has yet to answer.
What were the sizes of the files for your pirated copy and the Apple copy? Also, were you able to convert your pirated copy into a format that could be taken on a personal device, iPod, PSP, Zune, etc? If so, what were the files sizes and quality then? I agree with you on they should offer wide screen and better quality, but they are also giving delivering for a device, with no need to change what was downloaded to be able to get it onto that device. Which at this moment can’t play the wide screen high quality that we both want.

The file sizes are listed above, but i’ll repeat: iTunes: about 460MB, pirated: 350MB. Yes the pirated version can be converted to iPod format, but it’s no cakewalk. You bring up a good point about device deployment, but why then is The Office widescreen?

comment by Gee4orce:

This news just in : Pirates say “it’s better just to steal stuff than to pay for it”.
In other news, shoplifters say “it’s better just to steal stuff than pay for it.”

You’re missing the point: i am purchasing the episodes. however, the broadcast version, and even the pirated version, offer significantly more image. that’s like buying a CD and only getting a mono track, while stereo tracks are on the radio and being given away on cassette tapes. Why would you buy the CD?

comment by macweirdo42:

You know, iTunes was fine for me until they started increasing the resolution on their videos. I know it sounds counterintuitive, but hear me out. I don’t really care that the video be absolutely perfect, I don’t need HD or anything like that. When they switched to the higher resolution, I noticed two things – one was that they took up more space, and two was that my computer had much more difficulty playing them (leading to an increase in stuttering). All of that without much increase in quality. […]

I understand exactly what you’re saying. I have an old 466MHz g4 hooked up to my 52″ TV and receiver, and before apple increased the resolution, it’d play purchases streaming from my other machine, without even a hiccup. I was using it as my poor-man’s media center / AppleTV. Now that the res has been upgraded, no new purchases play even reasonably enough to watch. (which brings me to the next comment:

comment by shifoe:

hey need to offer multiple encodes. One in a high res, medium, and ipod. The pirates do it, why can’t iTunes?

I agree, somewhat. It would be great for people like macweirdo42 (above) who have older machines or less HD space… and for my poor-man’s AppleTV, but having multiple formats would complicate the process. Apple is always looking to simplify, not complicate. It could be as easy as setting a preference in iTunes as to what quality you prefer… but again, that would complicate the process, and how would Apple benefit? it wouldn’t help sell more new macs, so i dont think there’s much of a chance. (unless they decide to differentiate between HD and SD downloads in the future.)

comment by mysticmaven:

Why buy a Ford Taurus when you can steal a BMW. Great logic there.

Did you seriously just compare me downloading a second copy of a $2 show i’ve already purchased and that is freely broadcasted, to stealing a BMW? i seriously cannot believe anyone actually buys into this kind of irrational thinking. really. A more accurate comparison might be “Why buy a Ford when BMWs are given away for free?” In that case, that really is a good question. I would be very concerned for the future of Ford if this were the case. The parallel in reality is that I’m concerned about the viability of Apple’s iTunes store. The logic is there if you’re paying attention. if you’re just trolling, i guess it doesn’t matter.

comment by unruled:

there is something he actually failed to mention: the “hdtv” rip he was watching, was actually not hdtv…. it was not even an HR release…
If the author was smart enough to get proper HDTV rips (eg. 720p) or higher…. then itunes would REALLY just drop dead….
Quality+no drm= best thing ever.

My pirated version was the most brainless one to download – though no the best quality. It was pirated FROM a HD broadcast, but not distributed in an actual HD format. You’re right that pirating an actual 720p or higher version would really put iTunes to shame, but that’s not really the intent of the article; i just wanted to address the aspect ratio problem first and foremost. You’re right, until iTunes offers true HD (at least 720p) there are much better quality alternative out there. at the very least, though, iTunes’ SD offerings should be the correct aspect ratio.

If i’ve failed to address anything, please leave a comment!