Broadcasters, producers and the film industry are at risk from a
"piracy time bomb" from a DivX compression technology that could
dramatically reduce audiences and ad revenues, according to a key-note
session at this year's Royal Television Society conference in
Cambridge.
DivX is a new technology for video similar to the MP3 format for digital
music. Until now, large size and poor quality has slowed down the
internet distribution of videos, DVDs, TV programmes and films.
Flextech Telewest chief executive Adam Singer warned delegates that the
arrival of DivX combined with the increased take-up of broadband
internet access could have a disastrous impact on the film and broadcast
industries.
The new technology could mean programmes and films will be pirated and
distributed via the internet before they are aired or screened.
Unlike Napster, DivX does not use a central server; instead consumers
exchange files directly between each other, making it much harder for
the industries to prosecute.
However, David Docherty, Telewest managing director of broadband
content, said there was still time for the TV and audio-visual
industries to take charge of the problem. "The record industry missed
this with Napster and didn't understand how to reach consumers properly.
The broadcast industry has a chance to get its head round branding
strategies and the right management strategy for handling DivX."
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