A few days ago, I reported my findings about the availability of the (Creative Commons licensed) documentary ‘The Internet’s Own Boy’, about Aaron Swartz.
Since the publication of the post, Twitter user @akaasjager has taken it upon themself to contact TakePart, the distributor of the film, about this issue:
about #internetsownboy – I asked @takepart about it, ref. your blog. It is available now http://t.co/7TcyMlvrOM for non-US/CA
— MacKaasjager (@akaasjager) July 2, 2014
Although the main site unfortunately still shows the old trailer, which does not offer the option to buy the film from Vimeo, the linked trailer in the Tweet by MacKaasjager does. You should definitely go buy it and learn more about the life of internet freedomfighter Aaron Swartz!
My advice to TakePart: consider non-US viewers before you release a film next time. It’ll make you more money and save you bad reviews. Thank you for making it available now.
Click to open original.
Original post
So here’s an excellent example of how this ‘copyrights issue‘ thing works.
Here I am – a notorious pirate, because fuck the entertainment industry, right? – actually attempting to buy digital content. I want to support the creators of the documentary ‘The Internet’s Own Boy’ , because the subject is important to me and I believe the filmmaker should be enabled to spread this information further.
The Wikipedia article on Aaron Swartz is impressive. He is one of the icons of the digital age and a hero to most pirates, so obviously I’m going to want to watch this film about his life.
As the official site summarizes:
“The Internet’s Own Boy follows the story of programming prodigy and information activist Aaron Swartz. From Swartz’s help in the development of the basic internet protocol RSS to his co-founding of Reddit, his fingerprints are all over the internet. But it was Swartz’s groundbreaking work in social justice and political organizing combined with his aggressive approach to information access that ensnared him in a two-year legal nightmare. It was a battle that ended with the taking of his own life at the age of 26.
Aaron’s story touched a nerve with people far beyond the online communities in which he was a celebrity. This film is a personal story about what we lose when we are tone deaf about technology and its relationship to our civil liberties.“
So I click the ‘buy’ button and this happens.
Click to enlarge.
The very concept of ‘regions’ on the internet denies the nature of the medium itself. Attempting to keep the people that identify with a freedom of information activist like Aaron Swartz from downloading a documentary about his life is simply one of the dumbest things anyone could have done. The irony can not possibly be lost on anyone. Were they drunk?!
I give you one guess what the next URL in my browser is.
Dear entertainment industry. Fuck you. You just missed out on a purchase and you don’t get to decide for me. I finished downloading the film before even finishing this blogpost. Now that’s some freedom of information for you!
LuciousLisa 
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