this post was submitted on 16 Nov 2023
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Piracy: ꜱᴀɪʟ ᴛʜᴇ ʜɪɢʜ ꜱᴇᴀꜱ

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I have a Galaxy Tab S7 and for a trip to Spain I downloaded some stuff to watch on the flight. When I got on the plane none of the stuff downloaded on Disney+ would play. Maybe an issue with downloading to the SD card? I don't know, but regardless Disney offers SD card as a download destination so they should make sure it is working.

So now I'm here pirating a show that should be available to me through a service I pay for. Gabe was right, piracy is a service problem.

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[–] Axxi@lemmy.world 134 points 11 months ago (3 children)

It's probably some weird DRM where it needs to authenticate with their server in order to verify you're actually the one with an account. It's silly. The steps they take to try and stop piracy are what in fact drives most people to it.

I started downloading shows from several streaming services I pay for simply because of the number of repeating ads they'll run during a show. A 24 min runtime gets extended to 45 minutes for all the ads, which I was sitting through for months but when they only have two different ads on loop, WTF!? A man can only take so much!

[–] Redredme@lemmy.world 62 points 11 months ago (2 children)

Shut up. You're paying for a service and still get almost 50% ads?

Why? How? Which? And do we in the EU also have this awaiting in our future?

[–] ahto@feddit.de 19 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Both Netflix and Disney+ now have "cheap" tiers with ads, at least here in Germany.

[–] Sir_Kevin@lemmy.dbzer0.com 23 points 11 months ago

This shit's cable TV all over again. Nobody should pay for either.

[–] Axxi@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

Presently, Hulu's the worst I've experienced of the paid streaming apps I own. I recently just cancelled Netflix because they announced they were raising their prices yet again and with the recent account sharing crackdown, it was the last straw. My parents used my account far more than I ever did and they're not tech savvy folks. They get frustrated by tech of any kind. Once they couldn't access Netflix easily, I asked and they don't want an account of their own, it's just too much hassle. So screw the greedy shits! Now they get nothing.

[–] elbarto777@lemmy.world 11 points 11 months ago (1 children)

I hope you're saying that these streaming services are free. I would never subscribe to something that serves me ads. The one reason I don't have cable TV, actually.

[–] valkyre09@lemmy.world 4 points 11 months ago

My iPhone advertised News+ to me the other day in the settings menu. It’s no fucking different than my LG TV advertising on their Home Screen. Pissed me right off

[–] raptir@lemdro.id 7 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Their help page says you can download to watch where you don't have an internet connection. So if there is some DRM BS then that's going directly against what their help page indicates.

[–] madcaesar@lemmy.world 5 points 11 months ago

Corporations lying?? They'd never!

[–] spacecadet@lemm.ee 60 points 11 months ago (7 children)

Also, I pay for 4k streaming but because of compression or something else they are definitely not sending me 4k content. I was watching a movie on Netflix that I had forgot I pirated. Both were 4K but the quality of the pirated one was far superior.

[–] xilliah@beehaw.org 19 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Youtube has that too where it says 1080p but actually it's potato quality.

[–] Albbi@lemmy.ca 22 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (1 children)

I've noticed a new resolution setting: 1080p Premium HD Enhanced Bitrate.

Image

So yeah, 1080p confirmed potato. Upgrade to new potatoless 1080p now!

[–] Chinzon@beehaw.org 8 points 11 months ago

I think I'll just upgrade to sailing the high seas rather than paying these clowns

[–] weedwhacking@lemmy.world 12 points 11 months ago

Really depends on the service. I find 4K streaming from Apple and Disney are “close enough” to my Blu-rays I can’t tell the difference unless I stick my nose up to the TV. Now, Max? Hulu? YouTube? All “4k” garbage is so low bitrate I need to take my glasses off to enjoy it

[–] araozu@lemm.ee 7 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Louis Rossmann made a video about it noday I think. They (apparently) don't serve 4k in browsers, only if you use their propietary apps and allow to send them all your data

[–] i_stole_ur_taco@lemmy.ca 7 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Link for the lazy: https://youtu.be/o4GZUCwVRLs

Definitely worth a watch.

[–] PipedLinkBot@feddit.rocks 4 points 11 months ago

Here is an alternative Piped link(s):

https://piped.video/o4GZUCwVRLs

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[–] Kecessa@sh.itjust.works 5 points 11 months ago

Where do you watch it from? You need to use the app on Windows to get 4k content, they don't provide it when watching through the website. Same for Disney and Prime... It made me switch to just using the apps directly on my TV instead...

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[–] ininewcrow@lemmy.ca 38 points 11 months ago (3 children)

That really grinds my gears

I remember a few years ago going on an international flight. I had Spotify premium and I spent a few hours sorting and downloading playlists and podcasts that I wanted to listen to on an eight hour flight. Tested, retested and everything worked fine.

Got on the plane, fifteen minutes in turn on my device to play some music .... NOTHING WORKED ... all the downloaded files I had set for offline were unusable. I couldn't believe it.

My next flights were like yours .... just downloada bunch of stuff and play them freely without headaches.

[–] raptir@lemdro.id 3 points 11 months ago

Now I will say that Tidal worked flawlessly so I at least had some music.

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[–] cows_are_underrated@feddit.de 31 points 11 months ago

Gabe was right, piracy is a service problem.

That's it. The great availability of streamed music(and downloaded for a fair price) is the reason why there aren't that much people who pirate music anymore, since it's easier to get it the legal way.

[–] Kolanaki@yiffit.net 25 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (1 children)

I did the same with Lower Decks when it first came out because even though I had a week of Paramount+, not one single thing I tried to view actually worked.

Who the hell would ever actually subscribe if the service doesn't even work when you're doing a free trial?

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[–] ANIMATEK@lemmy.world 21 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Pay for Plex and a seedbox or Usenet and be free while also having the best quality there is. I invested my money in a few HDDs and I watch from every service out there for peanuts.

[–] bizzle@lemmy.world 6 points 11 months ago (5 children)

I currently use Stremio and RealDebrid, is there any tangible benefit to doing it with Plex and a seedbox instead?

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[–] CrabAndBroom@lemmy.ml 17 points 11 months ago (1 children)

I've done this before with Netflix too. I was trying to watch a show and it was constantly stuttering, pausing and dropping out to unwatchable resolution. I know it wasn't my internet connection because the torrent for the episode downloaded in like two minutes lol.

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[–] Semi-Hemi-Demigod@kbin.social 15 points 11 months ago (4 children)

I'm subscribed to a bunch of services through bundle packages with my phone and Internet and still pirate the shows I want because it's nice to have them all in one place and to know they won't be unavailable in the future.

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[–] criticon@lemmy.ca 15 points 11 months ago (1 children)

If you connected to the plane's Wi-Fi disney+ tries to validate before opening downloads or something like that, but the wifi usually blocks streaming requests

You need to put the phone in airplane mode, open disney+, then you can connect the Wi-Fi

[–] raptir@lemdro.id 18 points 11 months ago

I was on airplane mode on my tablet.

[–] Steve@startrek.website 14 points 11 months ago (3 children)

On most of these services you can download but you must be connected to the internet to verify that you have the right to watch the file you downloaded.

[–] raptir@lemdro.id 32 points 11 months ago (1 children)

So... what's the point of downloading then?

[–] biflip@infosec.pub 9 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Download stuff to your phone over wifi and watch away from home without eating up cellular.

[–] raptir@lemdro.id 26 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (2 children)

Their support site literally says "when you don't have an internet connection" so if it's working the way you describe then it's not working as designed.

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[–] DeltaTangoLima@reddrefuge.com 11 points 11 months ago

Bloody typical.

They take our money by offering features that don't meet advertised expectations.

And, yet, we'd be the ones labelled criminals for downloading via other means.

[–] tigeruppercut@lemmy.zip 4 points 11 months ago

Netflix didn't use to do this-- you could watch in airplane mode. Any idea if that changed?

[–] marito@lemmy.world 9 points 11 months ago (3 children)

I recently binged the entirety of Better Call Saul on Stremio using the Torrentio plugin. I have a Netflix sub.

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[–] SexualPolytope@lemmy.sdf.org 8 points 11 months ago (1 children)

I always pirate media even when I'm subscribed to a service. Most streaming services act up because I'm on Linux.

[–] raptir@lemdro.id 3 points 11 months ago (2 children)

I use Linux but the only issues I have are 1) lower quality, since the best quality is usually restricted to Chrome and Edge on Windows and Max, and 2) no downloads.

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[–] NaoPb@eviltoast.org 7 points 11 months ago (1 children)

I am considering this. Since the Disney+ version of Futurama seems to add black bars to the top and bottom of the non-widescreen episodes.

[–] dandu3@lemmy.world 3 points 11 months ago (2 children)

Doesn't do it for me on my TV. I'd be curious to know if it respects the 4:3 aspect ratio if played on such a TV

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[–] tomo@reddit.azumanga.gay 5 points 11 months ago

i basically have to pirate since that web drm stuff all the streaming sites use doesnt like my ancient laptop and im too broke to get a new one lol

[–] JohnWorks@sh.itjust.works 5 points 11 months ago (3 children)

Not exactly Disney plus but I had a similar issue regarding downloading Netflix shows to an SD card. There's a setting in Netflix to download to SD card however even if you select it, it won't work. You have to enable USB debugging and manually force the Netflix app to have SD card access. It's insane.

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[–] s38b35M5@lemmy.world 5 points 11 months ago (2 children)

I'm in another country for a while and can't get English subtitles on my Netflix content on my Nvidia Shield TV. I was using a translator app and pausing the video to understand garbled audio and gave up watching.

I don't dare contact support, so I'm planning to cancel and lean into my eye patch.

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[–] WashedOver@lemmy.ca 3 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Not sure if Disney+ has this issue but I sometimes leave my Netflix tablet in airplane mode when going to another country. If the show is not available in that country when connected to the internet it will not allow play back of the shows I've downloaded.

[–] raptir@lemdro.id 3 points 11 months ago

Yeah I was still on the plane and it was in airplane mode.

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