MPAA overestimates college downloading
Mistakes in investigation reveal lower number of pirated movies
By Dan Scorpio
Posted: 2/7/08, 11:55 PM EST Section: News
For years Hollywood blamed college students for the rise in illegal movie downloading. New statistics show they were wrong.
The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) commissioned a study in 2005 and found that college students using campus Internet networks accounted for 44 percent of the industry's U.S. financial losses.
Newly released information shows that those statistics are significantly exaggerated.
The study was conducted by a consulting firm, L.E.K., and was intended to research the affect of movie piracy worldwide.
"While in the process of recently updating that study with current data, we discovered there had been an isolated error in the L.E.K. process two years ago that resulted in an inflated number for piracy by college students," said the MPAA in a statement released Jan. 22.
The MPAA, which represents the U.S. movie industry, told education groups that the inflated numbers are a result of "human error." It now estimates that college students are responsible for 15 percent of total losses due to movie piracy.
A cause for concern among observers is that no part of the original report has been released.
The MPAA "essentially conducted a secret report," said Kenneth C. Green, director of The Campus Computing Project, a study of technology's role in American higher education. "We believe that every part of the report: the methodology, data collection and analytics are faulty."
"They are trying to portray college students as 'digital pirates,'" Green said.
Some higher education technology experts believe the new estimate is still inaccurate.
Steven Worona, Director of Policy and Networking Programs at EDUCAUSE, an organization that promotes technology use in higher education campuses, said that three percent is a more reasonable estimate. EDUCAUSE has been questioning the results of the report for the past few years.
"The study did not take into account that about 80 percent of college students do not live on campus," Worona said. "Not only is their methodology severely under question, but it doesn't even pass the 'common sense' test."
The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) commissioned a study in 2005 and found that college students using campus Internet networks accounted for 44 percent of the industry's U.S. financial losses.
Newly released information shows that those statistics are significantly exaggerated.
The study was conducted by a consulting firm, L.E.K., and was intended to research the affect of movie piracy worldwide.
"While in the process of recently updating that study with current data, we discovered there had been an isolated error in the L.E.K. process two years ago that resulted in an inflated number for piracy by college students," said the MPAA in a statement released Jan. 22.
The MPAA, which represents the U.S. movie industry, told education groups that the inflated numbers are a result of "human error." It now estimates that college students are responsible for 15 percent of total losses due to movie piracy.
A cause for concern among observers is that no part of the original report has been released.
The MPAA "essentially conducted a secret report," said Kenneth C. Green, director of The Campus Computing Project, a study of technology's role in American higher education. "We believe that every part of the report: the methodology, data collection and analytics are faulty."
"They are trying to portray college students as 'digital pirates,'" Green said.
Some higher education technology experts believe the new estimate is still inaccurate.
Steven Worona, Director of Policy and Networking Programs at EDUCAUSE, an organization that promotes technology use in higher education campuses, said that three percent is a more reasonable estimate. EDUCAUSE has been questioning the results of the report for the past few years.
"The study did not take into account that about 80 percent of college students do not live on campus," Worona said. "Not only is their methodology severely under question, but it doesn't even pass the 'common sense' test."
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