Low Quality - Just in Time for the Holidays

My daughter had just come back from an overnighter with a friend and she said she had just watched a movie that was still in the theaters. Apparently someone in her friends household had just downloaded this movie and did so with other movies on a regular basis. Not a new issue but not one that I had looked at for some time. 

As time went by, I forgot about the incident. A lawyer-friend of mine contacted me about the possibility of doing some work with a film producer focusing on copyright protections. She explained that this gentlemen was having trouble protecting his media and some had ‘leaked’ out of his possession. So, I started to sniff a bit and found the following information related to such activity.

 

ZML.COM is a prime marketplace for the download of movies both first run and classics. The site boasts over 10,000 movies available for download. They also offer TV shows for download as well. All you need to do is enroll for 99 cents and you get 1 day of downloads or 10 downloads – whichever comes first. Of course you need to provide a credit card number. This is fine as long as you go and get one off the internet (they are cheap running from 50 cents to a couple of bucks if you don’t want to use your own. There is a catch though. You can’t get the first run movies without subscribing at $39.90 per month. Again, not an issue if you use someone else’s card and if you are going to download illegally obtained intellectually property, you might as well go the next step and get a stolen credit card.

 

Based upon complaints I have seen online about this service, many people fail to read one of the bullets located at the bottom of the 1 day trial access page that indicates “Your 1 day trial will be extend automatically to full membership at $39.90 USD billed monthly. You are free to cancel you membership at anytime.” In a bit of an ironic twist, “For additional security we do not keep credit card database online.”(offline most likely and one they sell) “All data is transmitted using SSL 128 bit encryption for greater security, any information passed through this site is safe and protected. Your private information always stays private with us.” I feel comforted by their attention to security and privacy. Is there really honor amongst thieves?

 

I started to rummage around the site and found the movie “Armored” available for download. I was drawn to the LQ next to the movie download link. I found that LQ stands for low quality and most likely is a copy of video taken of the movie from within the movie theater. Again, not a new activity since Chinatown in New York provides the same on the street as knockoffs run supreme from videos to Gucci handbags. At least on ZML they allow you a free preview before you download it. Regardless, you have already given them $39.90 for the first month so I’m not sure it is worth a low quality movie. Anyway, IMDB (www.imdb.com) had already rated the move a 6 out of 10 so it must a decent movie. ZML provides you with information on the length of the movie, size of the download, formats, language, frames per second and gives you other information such as:

No additional software or browser plug-ins required!

All downloads are available instantly.

You can play them for unlimited number of times whenever you want.

Downloaded movies will work perfectly on any PC, DVD Player, PDA etc.

You will be able to burn downloaded files on a CD or DVD.

 

Extending into the Web 2.0 realm, ZML also has a Twitter account where you can be informed of the latest counterfeit movies as they become available. They also are on Facebook where fans have signed up offering accounts of their favorite movies in an admission of download guilt.

 

Ever the enterprising entrepreneurial site, ZML has extended to the channel providing resale partnerships. They are specific in how things work with cash transfers with immediate gratification (no hold) and a $50.00 minimum using payment solutions that offer instant dollars. 

 

ZML offers what can be termed as an SLA insuring the every movie is available in HiDef, DVD, DivX, iPod and PDA formats providing direction HTTP downloads of unlimited speed. They even guarantee at least 10 new titles added each day.

 

I decided to start taking a look at just who owned ZML. They publish online that they are:

 

Lemonsiana Trading Limited

Anastasi Sioukri & Olympion Corner,

Themis Tower, 6th Floor, P.C. 3035,

Limassol, Cyprus

 

In addition, it looks like they are hosted in the US but provide a different Organization name but largely the same address. What was interesting is the Nameserver Organization out of Columbia, South Carolina. This is actually tide to in2video.net who must be a US affiliate and partner.  

 

I continue to take a look a the two sites and find that in2video.net is owned and operated by a David Breton out of Columbia, South Carolina: