[quote]Movie buffs are snapping up cheap DVDs and VCDs of classic Hollywood movies released before 1965, because as of tomorrow [Saturday, July 10], the sale of reproductions of unauthorized versions of overseas films will be banned, in accordance with WTO rules.
Taiwan’s first Copyright Law was announced in 1965, and therefore films released before that time were not protected by law.
Many companies have continued to reproduce these films and distribute them, without having to obtain the permission of the copyright holders.
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Jeez, I guess that means I’ve got to go on a shopping spree tonight (though I’m pretty sure I already own most of the ones I want).
What about the cheapo DVDs of more recent movies? What exactly is their status? I mean, I go to a store and buy a DVD for 99NT$. Is that legal or not? Will I have trouble getting those in in Germany when I move back? Would it help that I kept most of the receipts in case German customs cares?
I rekon most are illegal. Exceptions might exist for some B-movie releases and or releases of local movies.
You most likely will. You would need to declare them and the customs might check based on that declaration to determine their status and possibly confiscate them.
It’s also possible that they do a random check of your entire shipment and take notice of those DVDs then.
If you do not declare it would be illegal and if you get caught might result in some punishment.
If the status is determined as illegal it does not. If the status is determined as legal it might help to avoid or lower potential custom charges.
You may declare your stuff as “Uebersiedlungsgut” and import it tax free given the following conditions:
Your houshold is registered in Germany
The items were purchased 6 months prior to import (must provide the receipts)
The items are strictly for personal use (non-commercial use)
The items will not be sold or exported again within 12 months
I’ve often wondered. I mean these are sold in supermarkets and the like, not nightmarket stalls.
My other guess is that a local distribution comapny has the rights to the movie, and when it doesn’t sell well at all, they do an incredible cheap burna nd package deal that costs maybe 5NT a movie, and distribute via deals with Welcome etc - that would be better for then than no profit at all on the rights. Make sense?
Makes sense. The cheap one’s are probably a mix of legal and illegal ones, depending where you buy.
In Malaysia even the big shops were blunt enough to sell illegal ones beside legal ones, usually on shelves hidden from direct view, dunno if the same applies in Taiwan.
Personally I stay well clear of the cheap ones as the quality is mostly inferior and doesn’t do justice to my AV system. Those DVDs from NTD368/398 and up are usually ok but of course there are also more expensive ones, even they are released by major labels, that lack quality but at least it’s not the norm.